Your Favorite Underappreciated Hops

With all the pellet release hype going on I'm wondering what your favorite unsung hero of the hop world is and for what style beer.

I've got a Brewer's Gold and Strisselspalt Biere de Mars lagering for about another month that smells heavenly.

Brewer's Gold has intrigued me for a while, as well as Pacific Gem. I'm planning a black IPA around them to see if I really do get a black currant / blackberry character.

Just started playing with brambling cross, I like it alot

Ditto on Bramling Cross. I would have to say Nelson Sauvin and Summit; I like those in small doses combined with other hops when dry hopping.

northern brewer-as a dry hop, most people usually use it for bittering but has an amazing aroma well suited for english ales

Saaz

You know with all the simcoe, citra, centennial, and amarillo love going around, it's been a long time since I've brewed a cascade heavy beer. Wondering if I should stock up on some cascade since the price is right and I don't have to fight to find it...

I really like cascade..... And I know it isn't a single hop, but I have a house IPA wih zythos hop blend that is rockin'. Tasty and easy to use.

Southern Cross (NZ)! Can't say enough.

Summit is very nice also.

I love Challenger. It goes in all my hippy English ales.

Another I really like is Northern Brewer. I don't care for it alone but it adds complexity to any hoppy beer.

Northern Brewer. Makes a great SMaSH with Vienna malt.

Saaz

Willamette and fuggle

Cascade for me

Billybrewer09 said:

Willamette and fuggle

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Interesting, I have a Willamette SMASH going right now and next planned beer will be all Fuggles.

I'm going to vote for Cascade. It's the veteran American hop surrounded by all the "new" hotshots (Amarillo, Simcoe, Citra, etc.). I made an American Stout earlier this year and hopped it like a Black IPA with all Cascade in the late additions. That was a wonderfully aromatic and tasty brew.

That being said, I'm super excited that I was able to pick up a pound of 2012 Simcoe.

Galena and saaz

Motueka. It's a great New Zealand hop that I first tried when I brewed SD Slims Lemon Lime Hefe. Since I've used it in Blondes and IPAs. It has an awesome and unique flavor/aroma.

There are so many hops!

Nugent said:

Northern Brewer. Makes a great SMaSH with Vienna malt.

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Now I'm going to have to try that. I love northern brewer! Gets my vote.
Plus I just tapped a batch of all Vienna w/citra,nelson, and simcoe, just enough to balance the malt. Delicious! I may stop buying 2 row!

Brewed a smash pale ale with warrior hops. Warrior has a groovy aroma as it came to my surprise.

Aunt_Ester said:

Brewed a smash pale ale with warrior hops. Warrior has a groovy aroma as it came to my surprise.

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I've been bittering with warrior, never tried it as an aroma hop. How does it smell/taste in a brew?

Nugget and Summit

I like citra



....ok just kidding, for me it's Cascade. It is a do anything hop. Porters, stouts, barleywine, and IPA's/IIPA's it works in all those beers.

mb82 said:

Cascade for me


Interesting, I have a Willamette SMASH going right now and next planned beer will be all Fuggles.

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I made a beer with pale and rye malts, t-58, and willamette that came out really nicely. And at $.85/lb for malt, under $1/oz for the hops, and $2 for the yeast it was well under $20 for the batch with all the other costs factored in.

Who doesn't appreciate Saaz? That's not cool. I've got an all Saaz strong golden ale lagering.

bellmtbbq said:

Southern Cross (NZ)! Can't say enough.

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hush

Apollo and Horizon are excellent. Apollo is citrusy/dank/piney, Horizon is grapefruity/smooth/clean, both are highly aromatic. But neither of them are talked about as much as the typical C hops or Simcoe/Amarillo.

Styrian Goldings in a Bitter or pale (think GI Honkers Ale)

Styrian Goldings is way under-appreciated and is good in so many beers

I've been playing with Sorachi Ace on and off for about a year now. It's like soy sauce or reverb. A little too much is a lot too much. But just a touch (rarely more than 20% of the entire hop total) at 5 min gives a really interesting, distinctive dill flavor that I find really intriguing. I like maybe an ounce in a hoppy wheat or an ounce and a half in a C-hop IPA.

I'm a big fan of Tettnanger. The Riwaka hop of New Zealand is one of my favorites. It's a smooth one and great dual purpose variety.

OldWorld said:

I'm a big fan of Tettnanger. The Riwaka hop of New Zealand is one of my favorites. It's a smooth one and great dual purpose variety.

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How would you describe riwaka? Maybe folks can describe these hops rather than just list them.

Centennial. I just can't appreciate it enough!

theblaster said:

I've been playing with Sorachi Ace on and off for about a year now. It's like soy sauce or reverb. A little too much is a lot too much.

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x2

Did a Saison recently and dry hopped with a "little too much" Sorachi.....lemon pickle bomb! It is mellowing a bit with age but I will never make that mistake again.

If we're focusing on under-appreciated hops, Perle tops my list. Medium alpha, relatively neutral, and CHEAP in bulk.

I often wonder if Rogue uses them so often because the marketplace doesn't have much demand for them.

Franc103 said:

If we're focusing on under-appreciated hops, Perle tops my list. Medium alpha, relatively neutral, and CHEAP in bulk.

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Yep, good hop. I use it in 2 of my recipies, one of which gets brewed monthly. I use about 4 lbs. a year.

I'm also a huge fan of Nelson Sauvin hops.

I bought some Comet hops last fall for $5/lb. Wow they make a delicious IPA if ever there was. I am going to get more of them.
Fruity, almost like a subdued Amarillo.

othellomcbane said:

Brewer's Gold has intrigued me for a while, as well as Pacific Gem. I'm planning a black IPA around them to see if I really do get a black currant / blackberry character.

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Pac Gem and Motueka are really nice, unique hops. They'll give a character you don't find in almost any other hops. Nice and melony, tropical, some citrus. I'm a big fan of both and make a hop-burst PA with them (in my recipes)

Mine is Nugget. I just love that hop. So pleasing, floral, slightly herbal, it's almost noble. I used Tettnang yesterday on a Munchener Helles and thought, "This smells a lot like Nugget". I buy it by the pound and use it for bittering, flavor, and aroma, depending on the recipe. Made a nice all Nugget IIPA (in recipes) that I love.

cascade is still one of my favorites in commercial beers, and I use it often. Perle and Columbus can work in so many things.....and unappreciated Cluster is a great bittering hop, gives a nice herbal familiar foundation.

rossi46 said:

Yep, good hop. I use it in 2 of my recipies, one of which gets brewed monthly. I use about 4 lbs. a year.

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What's the recipe?