zeg
Well-Known Member
Over this fall and winter, I'm planning to brew a Doppelbock and then a Bock. While I'm waiting for the Vienna lager to finish primary so I can get these started, there's nothing much to do except obsess over the recipes... So here's a question that came out of that.
Do I need to worry about what kind of hops I use for these beers?
Obviously, these are malty, not hoppy, beers. Aside from some varieties of hops that can give very harsh bitterness, my general understanding is that the impact of the bittering hops on flavor is minimal. However, the recipes and guides I have found all recommend using noble hops for these.
Currently, I have large stashes of Brewers' Gold, Willamette, and Spalt Select hops. My original plan for both the Doppelbock and the Bock was to use a 60 minute addition of Brewers' Gold and leave it at that. Browsing through various recipes, it seems that most are using hallertau, perle, and/or tettnang, sometimes with a 10 or 15 minute addition.
Is there any reason to change plans? I'd like to use up my stash of hops, but given the time I'm going to invest in these beers, I don't mind dropping a couple bucks on some noble hops if it's going to make a noticeable difference. If it doesn't matter, though, no sense letting the hops sit in my freezer any longer than they have to. Any thoughts?
Do I need to worry about what kind of hops I use for these beers?
Obviously, these are malty, not hoppy, beers. Aside from some varieties of hops that can give very harsh bitterness, my general understanding is that the impact of the bittering hops on flavor is minimal. However, the recipes and guides I have found all recommend using noble hops for these.
Currently, I have large stashes of Brewers' Gold, Willamette, and Spalt Select hops. My original plan for both the Doppelbock and the Bock was to use a 60 minute addition of Brewers' Gold and leave it at that. Browsing through various recipes, it seems that most are using hallertau, perle, and/or tettnang, sometimes with a 10 or 15 minute addition.
Is there any reason to change plans? I'd like to use up my stash of hops, but given the time I'm going to invest in these beers, I don't mind dropping a couple bucks on some noble hops if it's going to make a noticeable difference. If it doesn't matter, though, no sense letting the hops sit in my freezer any longer than they have to. Any thoughts?