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Post by tommymorris on Mar 20, 2022 20:32:03 GMT -6
What are the good English hops? For the last year I have had ‘Goldings’ from Hops Heaven. Hops Heaven is an A+ hops provider. But, every time I use these Goldings I get more dirt than any thing I recognize from bitters I find in American craft breweries. I can make good American IPAs, but I have never gotten a floral flavor from my English beers. I do taste that flavor in pro beers so, I know it’s possible.
This past week I visited Asheville, NC. My favorite destination was Sierra Nevada Mills River. I added “Bob’s Your Uncle English IPA” to my flight as a throw in. It’s great. I brought home a growler of it.
Without a good description to give you of Bob’s Your Uncle, what are your favorite English hops and where do you get them?
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Post by Megary on Mar 21, 2022 6:33:02 GMT -6
Is it a requirement to use English hops in a bitter? I would think that fresh hops that fit the description, whatever the country of origin, would be the best choice. Willamette comes to mind as something that would be perfect.
To your question though, EKG is my favorite and I usually source them from either MoreBeer or Keystone Homebrew, wherever I'm ordering from. I would love to try Bramling Cross, though I can't ever seem to run into them.
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Post by brewbama on Mar 21, 2022 6:56:07 GMT -6
It’s interesting you mention English hops because I have a recipe that calls for Sovereign and Bramling Cross (along with Cascade and First Gold). Last night I was searching for a retailer. I can’t find either.
MoreBeer has 12 varieties of English hops listed but some are unavailable. Northern Brewer has six. Of course, buying from either of these retailers will get me hops of unknown age. I’d rather not do that. Besides, neither have Sovereign nor Bramling Cross.
Yakima Valley lists six varieties of British hops but two are sold out. Again, no Sovereign nor Bramling Cross. YCH lists EKG and Fuggles. 👎🏻
Even when searching the Malt Miller (UK online brew shop) I can find 2020 Bramling Cross but no Sovereign.
I am now at the point of substitution but that’s a slippery slope.
To your question about fruity British hops: Mystic, Harlequin, Pioneer, Olicana, Jester, First Gold, and others are all supposed to be fruit forward. Of course, I’ve not tried any of them.
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Post by Ken on Mar 21, 2022 7:41:58 GMT -6
I really like EKG and First Gold but like anything else they have to be fresh and from a good hop supplier like YVH or Hop Heaven. Lately, I have been getting very good "Golding" and also "US Golding" from YVH and they have been righteous. I have a bag of "Golding" from YVH now and I made a "Pub Ale" with them. They're 5.7% and their aroma is excellent. I do not get "dirt" from them. For awhile there I was using Pilgrim for bittering of English beers because they had a higher AA% and I thought that Nugget was English but a quick check says it's American. Nugget is a great high-alpha hop and IMO a great dual-purpose hop. I have used it early and late with great results. I also agree with Megary that fresh Willamette would fit the bill. If I can make a pilsner with fresh Liberty then an English beer can be made with fresh Willamette. I know we've talked about this before but the freshest hops in the best condition are better than "the correct hop" that's not in great shape. Cheers Beerheads.
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Post by tommymorris on Mar 21, 2022 17:10:54 GMT -6
I have a Pub Ale with Willamette right now. It’s only been in the keg a week but already I can tell it is gonna be great.
I just wonder what other folks do for English hops. I also noticed it’s hard to get much other than EKG and Fuggles.
Ken, what is you hop bill when using the EKG from YVH?
I think I am going to toss my Goldings. They are old. I used to like them but the last two batches disappointed. I’ll buy some of the YVH EKG.
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Post by Ken on Mar 22, 2022 15:09:40 GMT -6
I have a Pub Ale with Willamette right now. It’s only been in the keg a week but already I can tell it is gonna be great. I just wonder what other folks do for English hops. I also noticed it’s hard to get much other than EKG and Fuggles. Ken, what is you hop bill when using the EKG from YVH? I think I am going to toss my Goldings. They are old. I used to like them but the last two batches disappointed. I’ll buy some of the YVH EKG. Fuggles are kind of an acquired taste and many people do not care for them. It's been AWHILE since I used them. When I make something like a bitter or ESB, I will bitter with whatever I have handy which (for ales) is usually Nugget, Northern Brewer or Horizon. All high-alpha and all neutral-tasting. Then I'll add the late hops between 10 minutes left and maybe 2 minutes and it's typically 2-3 ounces total... EKG or "Golding" or "US Golding". Side Note: I saw some "Goldings" at MoreBeer and they were their Artisan brand of hops. These hops were trash. I could tell as soon as I opened the package. Dry-looking, faded color, very little aroma and what you could smell was questionable. I think I used them along with some other hops I had and the beer wasn't great and I believe it was those hops that caused it. I also had some very poor hops from Farmhouse in Wisconsin. I'm not bashing these guys and I could have just gotten some bad bags of hops. But Hop Heaven and YVH are "hop people" and they're going to do it properly and it's not like the price is crazy. It's remarkable when you open a bag of hops that is in really good shape. The color, the stickiness, the aroma. That's going to translate into remarkable beer, IMO so that lesson (with the Artisan hops) stuck with me. No more hops from homebrew supply places. Hops need to come from a hops place. |
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Post by brewbama on Mar 22, 2022 18:33:10 GMT -6
… But Hop Heaven and YVH are "hop people" and they're going to do it properly and it's not like the price is crazy. It's remarkable when you open a bag of hops that is in really good shape. The color, the stickiness, the aroma. That's going to translate into remarkable beer, IMO so that lesson (with the Artisan hops) stuck with me. No more hops from homebrew supply places. Hops need to come from a hops place. 💯 when you buy from YCH, YVH, Hop Heaven (other?) you’re buying a known harvest year. That’s one reason I *try* to plan a year’s worth of brews — so I can buy the current harvest year from those guys. |
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Post by tommymorris on Mar 22, 2022 19:15:43 GMT -6
… But Hop Heaven and YVH are "hop people" and they're going to do it properly and it's not like the price is crazy. It's remarkable when you open a bag of hops that is in really good shape. The color, the stickiness, the aroma. That's going to translate into remarkable beer, IMO so that lesson (with the Artisan hops) stuck with me. No more hops from homebrew supply places. Hops need to come from a hops place. 💯 when you buy from YCH, YVH, Hop Heaven (other?) you’re buying a known harvest year. That’s one reason I *try* to plan a year’s worth of brews — so I can buy the current harvest year from those guys. I need to learn to throw out old hops. Then again a few months ago I opened a bag of 2016 Centennial. I had planned a brew but didn’t realize how old they were. When I opened them they smelled awesome. So, I used them and the beer was great. They were in the original package from Hop Heaven. |
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Post by Ken on Mar 22, 2022 20:26:30 GMT -6
💯 when you buy from YCH, YVH, Hop Heaven (other?) you’re buying a known harvest year. That’s one reason I *try* to plan a year’s worth of brews — so I can buy the current harvest year from those guys. I need to learn to throw out old hops. Then again a few months ago I opened a bag of 2016 Centennial. I had planned a brew but didn’t realize how old they were. When I opened them they smelled awesome. So, I used them and the beer was great. They were in the original package from Hop Heaven. If they're stored properly I think they can still be okay years later. O2-purged bags in the freezer and also original packaging is excellent. Also, throw out old hops and also recognize when hops are just not at their peak regardless of age. I bought hops (Hallertau, I think) from Farmhouse. It may have been an 8-ounce bag. I planned the beer and opened the bag of hops to weigh them out. They did not look very good and they had that 'stinky gym sock' smell. I was not happy but I had no other hop option for that particular beer. I used the hops and the beer tasted like 'stinky gym sock'. I should not have used them. If they don't smell good out of the bag or in your hands prior to adding them to the boil then they're not going to make good beer. If we're talking about pellets, crush a couple in your hands and smell it. Good? Good. Bad? Don't use them. Lesson learned. I have some GREAT Liberty hops from YVH right now and every beer that has come to the taps (with Liberty) has been stellar. |
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Post by Megary on Mar 23, 2022 12:27:31 GMT -6
I just created accounts with YVH and YCH. As of right now, it appears that Yakima Valley has a better selection of small (2oz) packages for the homebrewer. For those familiar with these sites, is that usually the case or can this be cyclical?
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Post by tommymorris on Mar 23, 2022 13:40:19 GMT -6
It seems like YCH offers a limited selection on their website. They can have good deals though. I think YCH is common in retail so the website might be less important to them. YVH on the other hand is a full service internet hope supplier so they have a lot of variety.
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Post by Ken on Mar 23, 2022 13:48:08 GMT -6
I always mention YVH but YCH are good too as long as they have what you want, etc. That said, the vast majority of my hop buying has been through YVH and HH. YVH has great selection, different sizing package-wise (I used to be a strictly 1-ounce bags type of brewer... now I'm half-pound or full pound all the time) and the hops I have received from both YVH and HH have been excellent whether the hops are from the US, England, Germany, etc.
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Post by cliffs on Mar 23, 2022 15:40:46 GMT -6
Willamette is my favorite english hop, even though its grown in Oregon.
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