Belma Hops

CornyKegs 728
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AnOldUR said:
Pick a category, say 6D, and all send to the same competition?
The only caveat being that we use Belma as the dominant hop.

Maybe one of the AHA Club-Only competitions. (Pretty sure HBT is a AHA club.)

Then post score sheets and recipes in a new thread here on HBT.
Plus we'd get to see how we do as a club.
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The only drawback to entering it in a "Club only competiton" like the one that you listed is each club is limited to just one entry. The club I belong to enters all of the "Club Only Comps", but we have our own contest internal to the club to determine which beer is going to be sent.
 
KurtB said:
The only drawback to entering it in a "Club only competiton" like the one that you listed is each club is limited to just one entry.
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Oops! Should have read the rules first. :rolleyes:

Suppose we could pick another AHA sanctioned competition off the calendar to send to.

Anyone know of a good one that would work for us?
 
jammin said:
If we slated it for 2 or 3 months out I could easily be in.
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That would probably be for the best, no? Give everyone time to get a handle on what Belma brings to the table.

jammin said:
One idea would be to agree on a similar recipe so we can try different takes on it. Allow everyone a little wiggle room on actual grains and yeast. Like say all should use some variation of california ale yeast (S05/1065/001/Denny's etc) or maybe an English yeast. Aim for +/- 5 points on a 1.060 beer. 85% 2-row (from Marris Otter to Pilsner) with the remaining 15% open to interpretation.
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AnOldUR said:
Pick a category, say 6D, and all send to the same competition?
The only caveat being that we use Belma as the dominant hop.
Click to expand...

Not a fan of this idea. The idea of doing a Belma bottle swap is cool because it allows everyone to get creative, so we get to see everyone's individual interpretation of the hop and get a feel for how it works in different applications. The idea of getting to try one person's IPA and then another person's saison, then another person's stout tickles my fancy. The idea of trying three samey wheat ales/pale ales/whatever does not.

I would be all for having a single hop restriction on a Belma bottle swap, but after that let people go nuts and brew whatever they feel like.
 
^so you want to send out bottles to multiple participants? I'm down with that, but shipping might start adding up.

I'm cool with different styles and single hop too!
 
Hm, that's true. Depending on how many people are interested in doing a bottle swap maybe limit this to 3 (or whatever, arbitrary number) bottles from every individual person? Might require a little extra coordinating, but I think it would be worth it.
 
SixStringBeer said:
Hm, that's true. Depending on how many people are interested in doing a bottle swap maybe limit this to 3 (or whatever, arbitrary number) bottles from every individual person? Might require a little extra coordinating, but I think it would be worth it.
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We are doing this for the 12 beers of Christmas. Three beers to everyone on the list. I just sent out 9 boxes and it was $103 for shipping, ranging from $9- $16 depending where people are located.

Just thought I would share some info, since this seems like something I would like to do as well.
 
Did the belma whole hop thing. DIPA was the intent.

15# two row
1#crystal 40
.5 cara pils
2 oz magnum 60
1oz belma @30
1oz belma 15
1oz Belma 10
1oz Belma 5
1oz Belma flame out
2 oz Belma secondary

Came out ok, Berry'ish kinda wine/strawberry/berry aroma, same strawberry/berry/mute pineapple/sweet taste. Kinda weak for how much I used. But, its liked and totally drinkable, just not a centennial/cascade type pungent hop.
 
Just dry hopped today. Doing 3 oz Belma for two weeks since reports are that it's weak. I'll lose a little beer, but oh well.
 
All right, "Velma" went into the keg last night. Huuuuuge strawberries and cream aroma when I racked it out of the bucket, the entire basement smelled like it for at least a half hour. Also pretty strong grassy smell but I'm hoping that subsides within the first 2 weeks to smooth out to a creamy, fruity, malty beer.

The difference in my late-hopped Rye IPA between Day 7 and Day 14 was night-and-day in terms of hop flavor vs. grassiness, so I'm hoping the same holds true for this batch.

Update in another week or two weeks, once it has found its feet.
 
Just bottled a smoked IPA that used Belma exclusively. Did 1.5 oz FWH, 1.5 oz cube hop (I no-chill), and 3 oz dry hop for 8 days. The hydro sample at bottling had nice bitterness, but I really couldn't taste the hop flavor. Not willing to say Belma is too subtle for smoke until I can verify with a carbed, conditioned sample.
 
Just tried my APA at 3 weeks conditioning. Hop schedule and grain bill are posted in this thread. WOW. Obviously Belma is not a dominant hop, as posted here by many, but it plays incredibly well in the sandbox w/ citra and cascade. My friends' only comments are that the aroma might actually be TOO intense. Definite strawberry presence which is clearly from the Belma. It literally smells like Hawaiian Punch. My friend (cicerone) placed it just below fresh Zombie Dust on his all-style beer rankings. Can't complain about that.
 
Thinking about doing an 100% Brett IPA with wlp644. Little chinook, some amarillo and a whole lot of belma. Is it possible to make a beer too fruity? lol
 
SavoryChef said:
We are doing this for the 12 beers of Christmas. Three beers to everyone on the list. I just sent out 9 boxes and it was $103 for shipping, ranging from $9- $16 depending where people are located.

Just thought I would share some info, since this seems like something I would like to do as well.
Click to expand...

I was thinking more 1 beer per person, 3 beers (or however many, again, arbitrary number) out total. So not everyone is going to get everyone's beers necessarily, but everyone can expect a healthy sampling of beers.

Depends what everyone is comfortable doing as far as paying for shipping goes I guess.
 
I'm thinking perhaps, everyone interested, post up.. Make another thread perhaps in the share forum for the Belma deal.. Lets limit it to.. say.. 10-15-20 folks, if that many will brew with the Belma.

I say everyone will make a trade with.. 2 people, but allow it to all over lap, perhaps do it by location, so shipping isn't insane for someone from CA to ship to NY.. But GA can ship to CO and VA, and it wouldn't be killer.

We can have it all spread out, and people can of course, include extras if they so choose.. perhaps a local craft, or another HB.
 
FATC1TY said:
I'm thinking perhaps, everyone interested, post up.. Make another thread perhaps in the share forum for the Belma deal.. Lets limit it to.. say.. 10-15-20 folks, if that many will brew with the Belma.

I say everyone will make a trade with.. 2 people, but allow it to all over lap, perhaps do it by location, so shipping isn't insane for someone from CA to ship to NY.. But GA can ship to CO and VA, and it wouldn't be killer.

We can have it all spread out, and people can of course, include extras if they so choose.. perhaps a local craft, or another HB.
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RSVP within 2 weeks? Bottles must be sent by end of February?
 
Does anyone know how we could all taste them together? Chatwise or skype? Can you do big group calls that way?

I'm up for however many as the group limit, I'd like to get send at least 3 and no more than 5 beers. How do we figure out who to send to/who to ship to? All the same or all different?

As many beers as there are in this thread, I'd vote for sending out any beer with Belma, no further restrictions. I've got two now that I think should be pretty fine.
 
Hernando said:
What are the thoughts on using this in a farmhouse or saison?
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This was what immediately came to my mind as well since I recently had a Saison made w/ pineapple at a local brewery...and it was amazing! Not overpowering, but definitely present. Did you make this beer?? How was it? What other hops did you use?
 
Okay, so I checked my gravity from my 'Belma's Galaxy IPA".

1.067 to 1.010, it's pretty much done. Drinking my gravity sample, I got these notes:

I decided to use Belma in all different areas, as well as using leaf and pellet.

I used leaf to FWH it as my bittering hop.

This is a great bittering hop, it lingers thoughout the sip. Smooth bittering note upfront, and has that oily lingering bitterness on the back end. I actually REALLY like that in my IPA's and this one does it well!

Aroma: I used pellets in the boil, and added them for flavor and aroma, along with some Galaxy, and a smidge of Cascade at 7 minutes to round the profile and link the two. I also used leaf at flameout.

The aroma is great, and I haven't dry hopped it yet. Smooth ripe melon, like cantaloupe, maybe a tart strawberry, overripe pineapple with lemon, orange, and a earthy, almost dry twang to it. Like eating a spring/summer fruit cup pretty much.

Taste pretty much mirrors the aroma of it, I get a dry finish on the beer, despite a 152* mash temp, and the 1.010 gravity. It's a very great balanced IPA.. One of my better hop balances that I've done. I'm really liking Belma as the bittering hop here. I can't really say the "flavor" of using it as the bittering hop helps, but I get an ultra smoother bitterness early, then it moves away for the flavor. At the finish, it dries up, and gives a really nice smooth, yet firm bitterness. I really, really like that. Lingers on my tounge for quite a while actually. You know you just drank a bitter IPA.

I'm impressed so far. I plan to dry hop with Belma leaf, and probably the last half ounce or ounce of Galaxy I have. So far, the two hops really mingle well!

7.5% ABV leaves enough residual sweetness there to really round the package out. I might enter this in a local HB comp. Used BRY-97 yeast, which is suppose to knock out hop flavor/aroma due to it's heavy flocc ability, but this didn't put a dent in the beer!
 
Ditto FATC1TY on the bittering and aroma.

On the swap - what have decided? Ship 3, get 3? Limit on participants? Any style/ingredients, just has to have some Belma in it? When are we aiming to ship? Mid January or sooner? Is it just me, Jammin, and FAT so far? Sixstring, not sure on shipping to Canada, sounds spendy. Hopefully you've got a few interested countrymen on here.
 
I'd say we get enough people together, maybe shoot for Feb time frame, let the holiday move in and out and people can brew, and bottle and get an idea of what to make.

Belma has to be the predominant hop in the mix, but can be used with other hops I think. No need to do SMASH Belma beers!
 
Just bottled my Warrior-Citra-Belma IIPA with a relatively clean grist and London Ale 1028 yeast. 85 IBUs but smooth and dry. Dryhopped 7 days. The dryhopped help the fruity tropical flavors to pop again.

Pre-carbed sample tastes spicy, fruity, tropical, pungent, and grassy. Some pineapple, orange zest, strawberry, and freshly mowed grass in there. Completely different than a Citra-Amarillo mix, where you get more of a dominance of fruity tropical mango and lychee without any spicy peppery grass. I do not recommend Belma for dry West Coast American IIPAs, because it's just too weird of a hop flavorwise for this beer style and not very potent on the nose. I will definitely drink and enjoy all of this... but it's just not an A+ in terms of hop combo.

Bottling the same beer with American Ale yeast tomorrow. Will update with more tasting notes.
 
10# 2 row
.5# victory malt
.5# crystal 10
6oz belma @10
5oz belma dry hop 5 days
1.048
S05

Delicious, fruity/grassy aroma with a tropical melon and pineapple taste I really like this hop very much. It has some elements of citra and I even got some simcoesque cat piss. According to hops direct it's parents are magnum and kitamidori which are both high alpha bittering and not really intended for aroma so it is interesting to see that it tastes quite fruity and flavorful as opposed to clean or just grassy which I was expecting when I learned the lineage.
 
ipazilla said:
10# 2 row
.5# victory malt
.5# crystal 10
6oz belma @10
5oz belma dry hop 5 days
1.048
S05

Delicious, fruity/grassy aroma with a tropical melon and pineapple taste I really like this hop very much. It has some elements of citra and I even got some simcoesque cat piss. According to hops direct it's parents are magnum and kitamidori which are both high alpha bittering and not really intended for aroma so it is interesting to see that it tastes quite fruity and flavorful as opposed to clean or just grassy which I was expecting when I learned the lineage.
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interesting - it certainly is a clean bittering hop.

crazy APA you brewed there btw
 
jammin said:
interesting - it certainly is a clean bittering hop.

crazy APA you brewed there btw
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I should say that as a boil hop I was disappointed as I did not get any of the flavors I mentioned until I dry hopped, the pre dh beer was definitely clean and grassy but not real fruit character came through until the dry hop, I also did this identical recipe with legacy, I will be kegging that this weekend I hope to have both on draft at one time so I can compare hops being that the rest of the ingredients are identical
 
I found it to have good flavor, and decent aroma before dryhopping. Mine is still in primary, and I'll leave it until maybe mid week next week before moving it.

I will say, that being kin to magnum doesn't come as a surprise. It's a fantastic bittering hop from what I've tasted. Potent, yet tosses a nice fruit element in there.

After hearing people say, "spicy", I guess I do pick that up a shade, only because of that dry twang I get from it..
 
Kegged my Belma/cascade pale ale last night after 3 weeks primary on London ale iii yeast.

Some sort of orange creamsicle coming out of it, still strawberry and a touch of tropical- no spiciness.

I dry hopped with 4 oz of wholes in the keg.

I had added 3 oz of wholes at flameout so well see. I think you need a decent amount with this hop as others have said

I split the batch and hit it with Ardennes yeast - that beer is much more subtle and not any creamsicle flavors

I'm psyched on the pale and the Belgian pale should be a great little session ale
 
shoreman said:
Kegged my Belma/cascade pale ale last night after 3 weeks primary on London ale iii yeast.

Some sort of orange creamsicle coming out of it, still strawberry and a touch of tropical- no spiciness.

I dry hopped with 4 oz of wholes in the keg.

I had added 3 oz of wholes at flameout so well see. I think you need a decent amount with this hop as others have said

I split the batch and hit it with Ardennes yeast - that beer is much more subtle and not any creamsicle flavors

I'm psyched on the pale and the Belgian pale should be a great little session ale
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Dry hop with just belma or did you split with cascade?
 
Edited:
I thought I had already posted this but I guess I never hit the send button.

Finally got the Belmania IPA bottled last week. It is actually a blend of hops but more Belma than anything else. The recipe for 5 gallons is:

12 lb 2 Row
1 lb Carapilis
0.5 lb Crystal 40
0.25 lb Acidulated Malt
1 lb Glucose

2 oz Magnum 60 min
1.5 oz Belma and 0.75 oz Simcoe at 15 min and 1 min
3 oz Belma, 1.5 oz Simcoe and 1.5 oz Centennial dry hop

I put a couple ounces in the frig overnight to taste. Soft aromatic fruits followed by citrus and bitter. A tiny bit of that piney resin but not like I tasted before the dry hop. Fruitiness is more like sweet strawberries and something subtle like melon as someone mentioned earlier. Not really tropical. Really nice. The dry hop had a big influence. Can't wait til it is carbed up.
 
bobbrews said:
Just bottled my Warrior-Citra-Belma IIPA with a relatively clean grist and London Ale 1028 yeast. 85 IBUs but smooth and dry. Dryhopped 7 days. The dryhopped help the fruity tropical flavors to pop again.

Pre-carbed sample tastes spicy, fruity, tropical, pungent, and grassy. Some pineapple, orange zest, strawberry, and freshly mowed grass in there. Completely different than a Citra-Amarillo mix, where you get more of a dominance of fruity tropical mango and lychee without any spicy peppery grass. I do not recommend Belma for dry West Coast American IIPAs, because it's just too weird of a hop flavorwise for this beer style and not very potent on the nose. I will definitely drink and enjoy all of this... but it's just not an A+ in terms of hop combo.

Bottling the same beer with American Ale yeast tomorrow. Will update with more tasting notes.
Click to expand...

The American yeast version was the same recipe, except I used a little less Belma in the dryhop (more Citra). As expected, you get more tropical fruit. But the Belma is still obvious with its spicy wet grass, orange zest, and funky pineapple notes.
 
Popped the cap on a bottle of Belmania IPA tonight. Only 6 days in the bottle. However, its carbonated and completely changed. Now it is more subtle but very nice. Citrus and bitter from the Magnum and Centennial (and I guess a bit from the Simcoe and Belma) but mild bitterness. The beer seems light (despite almost 8% ABV) and has a obviously sweet citrus aroma and a mild sweet fruity hop flavor. Definitely sweet but doesn't seem like malty sweetness, more like a ripe fruit. Really nice but surprisingly mild. However, despite the mild flavor, it packs an alcohol punch as I'm getting to the 10th ounce.

Winner but definitely needs the other hops for support.
 
Tried my all Belma pale ale tonight for the first time and I am not a fan of Belma! Tastes like grass covered strawberries and the smell is just not right. Too bad, the rest of the beer came out well!
 

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