Oktoberfest Hop Schedule Critique

Looking to brew an Oktoberfest this weekend. Already have a large starter going. I made the AHS kit a while back but want to use the hops I have already in the freezer(Tettnanger and Saaz).

8lbs williams german gold (50/50 2row/munich) malt boil for 60
mash:
8oz crystal 10
8oz caramunich
8oz vienna malt
1 oz Tettnanger 3.4% 60 min 10.3ibu
1 oz Tettnanger 3.4% 30 min 7.9 IBU
1 oz Saaz 3.5% 10min 3.8 IBU

Calc OG 1.062 22IBU

I previously made the AHS Oktoberfest which had 1oz perle @60 and 0.5oz hallertau at 15 & 5 mins which was good. i was looking for something along those lines and I love Saaz.

Can anyone provide feedback on my hop schedule in particular?

Thanks!

Looks good to me. Pretty close to what I use with good results.

Thanks for the imput! It looked like alot of hops for an Oktoberfest so its nice to hear it should be alright. I hope to remember to post a follow up in 2-3 months!

3B. Oktoberfest

Aroma: Rich German malt aroma (of Vienna and/or Munich malt). A light to moderate toasted malt aroma is often present. Clean lager aroma with no fruity esters or diacetyl. No hop aroma. Caramel aroma is inappropriate.

Appearance: Dark gold to deep orange-red color. Bright clarity, with solid, off-white, foam stand.

Flavor: Initial malty sweetness, but finish is moderately dry. Distinctive and complex maltiness often includes a toasted aspect. Hop bitterness is moderate, and noble hop flavor is low to none. Balance is toward malt, though the finish is not sweet. Noticeable caramel or roasted flavors are inappropriate. Clean lager character with no diacetyl or fruity esters.


I usually don't even bother with aroma or flavor hops and let the malt shine through.

MC

Combine the 10m and 30m additions into a single 20m addition. I wouldn't use saaz in an octoberfest. It's peppery. Use hallertaur or Tettnanger or even east kent goldings or something else without any distict flavor. I use Northern Brewer (high alpha, but if careful can do it all). Good luck.

I know alot of true oktoberfests don't have late addition hops. I likely wouldn't consider but I liked that AHS recipe with the 2 late additions(but it was hallertauer.). Plus i kind of went overboard on buying saaz. I do have some mittelfruh,
Would that be a better idea for the late addition? Or what about spalt for bittering and my hallertauer for later additions? I also got some sterling but that's similar to saaz if I'm not mistaken.

davemattb said:

I know alot of true oktoberfests don't have late addition hops. I likely wouldn't consider but I liked that AHS recipe with the 2 late additions(but it was hallertauer.). Plus i kind of went overboard on buying saaz. I do have some mittelfruh,
Would that be a better idea for the late addition? Or what about spalt for bittering and my hallertauer for later additions? I also got some sterling but that's similar to saaz if I'm not mistaken.

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Yes, an of those German hops would be better than the saaz. But you know, brew what you like. Just be careful not to walk over the light malt flavor since that is what characterizes an ocfest.

davemattb said:

I know alot of true oktoberfests don't have late addition hops. I likely wouldn't consider but I liked that AHS recipe with the 2 late additions(but it was hallertauer.). Plus i kind of went overboard on buying saaz. I do have some mittelfruh,
Would that be a better idea for the late addition? Or what about spalt for bittering and my hallertauer for later additions? I also got some sterling but that's similar to saaz if I'm not mistaken.

Click to expand...

I echo what the last guy said, brew that hop schedule and see how it turns out. Maybe youll love it, maybe youll think it needs tweaking. Thats the beauty of brewing, you can always adjust.

Youve probably had it before, but Sam Adams Oktoberfest uses late hop additions, so pick one of those up if you want a gauge on whether you will like that interpretation. They probably didnt use Saaz however.

Good luck! Post the results.

Thnks for the honest feedback. I agree that it's fun to experiment. However, it sounds like saaz is not my best choice. I got some replacements in the freezer. I'll figure how to tweak it and update we I do. My extract was supposed to be shipped today but its a no show. FedEx still ships Saturdays though if I'm not mistaken.

Decided to bitter with 1oz sterling for 60 mins then 1 oz tettnanger at 20,10. Into carboy and cooled to 46 and pitched 820. Now the long wait! Thanks guys.

davemattb said:

Decided to bitter with 1oz sterling for 60 mins then 1 oz tettnanger at 20,10. Into carboy and cooled to 46 and pitched 820. Now the long wait! Thanks guys.

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...and how did it turn out?

Haha I forgot to respond. I don't remember entirely. But I remember preferring the AHS recipe over mine for what it's worth. However, I also learned that maybe I'm just not a huge fan of OFest? I also need to try one all grain because I believe the beer was a little sweet because of the extract...


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On my Oktoberfest I did 1/2 oz of Hallertau Mittelfruh at 15 min and 1/2 oz of Tettnanger at 5 minutes in a 5 gallon batch. I look at guidelines as exactly that, guidelines. They aren't set in stone rules. I'm also not entering my beer in any competitions so personal preference to taste gets the priority. Don't ever be scared about going outside established guidelines. If you like it, use it.

Roundhouse said:

On my Oktoberfest I did 1/2 oz of Hallertau Mittelfruh at 15 min and 1/2 oz of Tettnanger at 5 minutes in a 5 gallon batch. I look at guidelines as exactly that, guidelines. They aren't set in stone rules. I'm also not entering my beer in any competitions so personal preference to taste gets the priority. Don't ever be scared about going outside established guidelines. If you like it, use it.

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Well said, if it isn't a competition beer personal preference should always be the priority.