What to do with fresh hops?

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Hoppus_Poppatopolis

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A friend gave me about 5 oz. of hops flowers from her vines.
What do I do with them? Lay them out on cookie sheets and dry them?
Vac pack them and put them in the freezer?

I have no idea what type of hops they are but they were grown in south eastern PA, specifically in Lancaster County. Any odds on what kind they might be?
 
Lay them on a screen if you can. If they're on a cookie sheet, just make sure you rotate/stir them pretty regularly.

If you have access, yes, vac seal and freeze.

As far as what variety, no telling. Just make a tea and see what flavors you can pick out. And, use them only as flavor/aroma hops as you have no idea what AA's might be.
 
Yep i would just dry them out, your not going to get much out of 5oz of wet hops probably around an oz. Since you don't know what they are give them a smell and see what kind of properties they have, are they citrusy? Earthy? Piney? I'd use them as a flavor aroma hop in whatever style you deem appropriate. Since you don't know the alpha acid content I'd stay away from using them as a bittering hop.
 
I put them on a screen to dry:



I like the advice to use them for flavor/aroma. I don't find the aroma to be all that strong but you can definitely smell them. Describing the aroma is hard for me; I'm not that good at that sort of thing. I'll have to have a serious smell session and report back.

I also got some vines to plant so we'll see how that goes.
 
I would describe the aroma as sort of piney/woody with a hint of tangerine. Sounds like something a wine snob would say. Aroma is not strong.

I think I might just brew a light ale, divide into one half and two quarters and add at 60, 30 and 10 just to see what I get. Or maybe I'll divide it in half first and then brew a 2.5 gallon batch and vac/freeze the rest.
 
Wow, those hops are burnt. You have a lot of browning going on. Looks like they were picked too late. You could still use them, but they might have less aroma (especially since you've already said aroma is not too strong).
 
Yeah, I was wondering about that too. I think it looks a little worse in the picture than it really is but we'll see.

I planted the vines today so I won't get excited until I can harvest my own.
Next year perhaps?
 
Yeah, those were picked late.

Fresh, un-kilned hops give the most distinctive flavor to beer you'll ever experience. If you get your hands on more of them next year, definitely use them fresh and un-dried. Add them at a late flavor stage and aromatic stage.
 
Yeah, there are a few breweries that are getting into the "fresh hop" beers. They have a different taste, and good if you are a hop head.

So, if you're due to brew, go for a fresh hop ale!

~r~
 

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