Hops for Saison recipe

This weekend I will be brewing (hopefully) a saison similar to the one I made last year. It's pretty straightforward as far as recipe goes and I'm using the Wyeast Belgian Saison strain of yeast. (The specialness of it comes from the rhubarb that gets added to the secondary.) The snag is that I didn't really think through the hops situation until last minute and it is quite a hike to the LHBS, so I'm looking for advice.

I think the recipe is pretty standard with 80% pils malt, 10% wheat and 10% Munich or something real close to that.

The hops options I have are Warrior, Saaz, Tradition and Hersbrucker and I'm trying to get something that compliments the rhubarb nicely (or at least doesn't conflict with it...)

I'm wondering if using Warrior for the bittering hop and Hersbrucker for later additions would be a good idea or if I should try some other combo of the above, or if I should suck it up and drive for hops and figure they will cost something like $20 when gas gets included into the equation.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

If you wish to make something traditional then I would go with the Noble hop varieties that you have on hand for the bittering hops. Both the Saaz and Hallertau's that you have should work fine.
If you wish to make something completely unorthodox and radical, then experiment with the Warrior. Most of all have fun and make some beer.

Glibbidy said:

If you wish to make something traditional then I would go with the Noble hop varieties that you have on hand for the bittering hops. Both the Saaz and Hallertau's that you have should work fine.
If you wish to make something completely unorthodox and radical, then experiment with the Warrior. Most of all have fun and make some beer.

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Thanks for the advice! I'm wondering how much of an effect the Warrior would have on the flavor if I used it at say 60 minutes. I don't have a lot of experience with Warrior as a bittering hop and would like to know how much of a flavor it might impart. Any thoughts?

Warrior is fairly neutral at 60min, it doesn't really add much flavor in my opinion, just bitterness. A little goes a long way, however! Pay attention to your IBUs.

Saaz will give you a little more spicy flavor as a later addition hop, Tradition is sweeter, Hersbrucker is sort of in the middle of them. I hear the word 'grassy' used with it, whatever that means.

I think that Warrior is great in a traditional APA or IPA where is shines nicely. Considering the style you plan to brew I'd stick with the Saaz or Hallertaus.
Remember though the sky is the limit, so feel free to experiment, and keep in mind the Warrior traditionally has a high aau so you certainly won't need very much.