nigel31

Recipes 

Hi All,

I recently made a wee heavy that contained 12 lbs. of LME plus steeped grains (it's still fermenting). (A lot of sweetness--tha's the whole idea.) The recipe/kit called for 1 oz. of Northern Brewer hops at the beginning (60 mins.) of the boil, which I duly added.

Just wondering if anyone's got an idea as to how such a big, sweet brew would taste with 1/2 an ounce or with NO hops at all. I mean, 1 oz. of lowish-alpha hops boiling for 60 minutes against all that sweetness can't have a massive impact on flavor, can it?

Thoughts anyone? More than anything, I'm curious. (And admittedly am not a hophead.)

Cheers.

carnevoodoo

Recipes 

Bitterness is used to balance out the beer. It can become just too sweet without it. Granted, some people like big malty beers.

There is also a drink called gruit, that is just beer with herbs instead of hops. They can be very interesting.

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Orfy

Recipes 

Try it.

Some thoughts.

1. It won't be beer.
2. It won't be balanced.
3. It will lose some preservative properties.
4. If you like it cool. It's your beer.
5. Let us know how it goes and what you think of it.

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wetherel

Recipes 

I made about 6 sours without hops, using different bacteria and Brett strains. I did it mostly to learn about the aromas of the strains without have the hop aroma hide it. Then I moved up to 10IBUs and then up to 20IBUs with my favorite strains. I continue to like them better with more IBUs, hop flavor and aroma, though they are certainly not bitter and the smell is only mildly hoppy. So far for me, I can make OK beer without hops, but good beer with hops. The only reason I tried this is because the acidity balances the sweetness of the malt in a sour beer. Without the acidity, I think hops become more important for balance.

GilaMinumBeer

Recipes 

For accuracy.

ForRealBeer

Recipes 

^ That was like looking at one of those "what's different in these two pictures" puzzles. But well played.

I would say that hopless beer is a good thought experiment but that at the same time you probably wouldn't want a couple cases of it laying around to drink. But hey nothing is stopping you from doing it if you want to find out why hops are a part of the heart and soul of beer.

Maybe then make a gruit, which uses herbs and spices instead of hops.

That would be a pretty instructive pair of brews, I'd say, and no one will lose an eye if you try it out!

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nigel31

Recipes 

Hey, who added the Malta Goya bit to Orfy's quote? Funny, 'cause I'm a huge fan of the stuff. It's true, but I'll probably get flamed for it! If I could make a beer that tasted close to malta but was alcoholic, I'd be pretty happy. The main difference is that there's no yeast--hence, no alcohol--in malta (well, and precious little hops, too).

If I do it, I may do a 2-gallon batch (or something) and it won't be right away. And I'll certainly pony up the info for the benefit (or laughs) of all.

Pivot

Recipes 

I disagree that it won't be beer. It was still called beer before hops were discovered for use in beer. I bought come beer made in Scotland a few months ago that are supposed to be historical recipes. all 4 different beers i got didnt have hops, but had other things like pine needles and heather in its place.

No they didnt have hops but they were all fantastic beers.

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Kolsch

Primary
Dark Belgian, Hobgoblin Clone

Kegged
Dark Ale

Bottled
Fruit Braggot, EdWort's Apfelwein, Coffee American Stout

JiveTurkey

Recipes 

I agree; we don't all have to obey German law.

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Aging for 1 Year: #1 LHBS Standard (Dry) Stout
In bottles: #2 Honing Wit (Belgian Wit Bier w/honey); #3 Be Hoppy, Not Bitter ("Oregon" Pale Ale: APA using Oregon-inspired ingredients and lots of late-addition/dry-hops); #4 American Red-Head (Irish Red made from American ingredients); #5 Student Power Orange Ale (Orange-hued amber ale for a wedding)
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On deck: [Thinking about it]

mullenite

Recipes 

Malta has hops. So not very accurate.