1st season Centennials- onion/garlic odor

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kleinstadt

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I planted 2 rhizomes of Centennials and 2 of Cascade this last spring, obtained from freshops.com.

The Centennials took off like rockets, mainly (I think) because of the greater sun exposure vs. the Cascades.

I've gotten probably a pound off the Centennials, way more than I would have expected.

But, they have this odor that I haven't detected from commerically purchased Centennials. Onion/garlic is the closest descriptor I can come up with, but that's only 75% correct.

My Cascades smell great. Only 2-3 ounces but very grapefruit-y.

My questions:

1) is this normal for homegrown Centennials?

2) should I risk using them in a batch?
 
i was wondering the exact same thing! some of my centennials smell awesome like they should, but some smell like onion/garlic. do they get onion and garlic odor when they are overripe? i'm thinking of brewing a 1 gallon test batch with my homegrown hops.
 
I was listening to a podcast where that is a typcial off aroma/taste when a hop is picked late. I have found it very often in commercial summit in beers like Drifter. I picked it out before I listened to the podcast on hops from the brad smith podcast (beersmith) and was like huh... I guess I was right :)
 
I got my hands on some mystery hops which smelled of onion/garlic. Brewed a 1 liter test batch and it was pretty horrid. I would not recommend using them. YMMV
 
There can sometimes be a lot of variability with the quality of first year plantings. Don't give up until you've gone through a few harvests. And like was mentioned a couple times before, harvest timing can and will have a big impact on what you end up with ~ a couple days too early or late and you can end up with something you don't like. It takes a few years to get a feel for it so don't throw the baby out with the bath water just yet. Rub and smell real good as you're coming up on when you think harvest should be and try to take good notes is about all I can come up with without a lab for testing. Win some, lose some, it's all good!
 
Meh. I picked them too late? ****.

I picked a few ounces much earlier and found they only smelled of grass.

I decided to let them age on the vine quite a bit more, and not pick them until there was slight browning of the tips.

I saw on a YouTube video that picking them with a bit of browning on the tips was ideal. I'm new at this, obviously.

Now I learn that there's a narrow window for the harvest. Oh well. I'm not giving up.

I probably won't risk using them in a batch, but if anyone else has any useful input, I'm all ears.
 
bumping this up, picked our centennials early last week, they smelled great! after drying they smell like a bag of garlic potato chips! i have a also read that garlic/onion notes can be had by harvesting to early. my cascades didnt have the garlic at all, but overall much less odor to them.
 
" i have a also read that garlic/onion notes can be had by harvesting to early. "

early=grass late=onion/garlic/BO
 
Could very well be and these folks have a little more sophisticated testing equipments than I so I'd go with them, but every year for the last 20+, when I get around to taking the poles down in October and smell the ones left on the vine, that's what I get. I'm not a hop expert but used to play one on the railroad, ha! Hoppy Harvest~

Edit: After thinking about it, the cones that are left on the vines are the ones that aren't mature at harvest so they get left behind. Is there a possibility that due to the days getting shorter and the plant's energy moving downward at that time, those 'less than mature' hops tend to remain that way rather than being able to completely ripen and never progress beyond the onion/garlic stage? Something to ponder so now it looks like I need a beer . . .
 
B-Hoppy said:
Could very well be and these folks have a little more sophisticated testing equipments than I so I'd go with them, but every year for the last 20+, when I get around to taking the poles down in October and smell the ones left on the vine, that's what I get. I'm not a hop expert but used to play one on the railroad, ha! Hoppy Harvest~

Edit: After thinking about it, the cones that are left on the vines are the ones that aren't mature at harvest so they get left behind. Is there a possibility that due to the days getting shorter and the plant's energy moving downward at that time, those 'less than mature' hops tend to remain that way rather than being able to completely ripen and never progress beyond the onion/garlic stage? Something to ponder so now it looks like I need a beer . . .
Click to expand...

not sure but it is interesting I must admit. maybe ill brew up a small extract batch with the garlic hops to see how bad they really are.
 
I've only been growing for three years, and I likely haven't totally nailed the perfect time to harvest my Centennial, Cascade and Chinook plants (there's not only the learning/experience curve to ascend; timing can get thrown off because other aspects of life get in the way).

But so far the only time I've detected any garlic/onion notes was on "second harvest" of Centennial cones that were left on the bine too long. I've never gotten even a hint of such aroma from the Cascade or Chinook, regardless of when they were picked. So if I err on the Centennials, it's always to pull the trigger sooner than later. The Cascades and Chinook seem comparatively bullet-proof...

Cheers!
 
Veedo said:
maybe ill brew up a small extract batch with the garlic hops to see how bad they really are.
Click to expand...

If you do and it's anything like my experience, you should plan on a big pasta dinner for the 'uncorking'. Some of the first wild ones I found must have past their 'born on' date. They smelled kinda 'ok', but I was determined to brew with them. Lets just say that the resulting beer would have best been enjoyed with something that pared very well with garlic (not a big paring person~just like IPA's with or w/o anything). Please, don't let me discourage you, I would love to see what somebody else comes up with just to compare notes! Hoppy Brewing!
 
B-Hoppy said:
If you do and it's anything like my experience, you should plan on a big pasta dinner for the 'uncorking'. Some of the first wild ones I found must have past their 'born on' date. They smelled kinda 'ok', but I was determined to brew with them. Lets just say that the resulting beer would have best been enjoyed with something that pared very well with garlic (not a big paring person~just like IPA's with or w/o anything). Please, don't let me discourage you, I would love to see what somebody else comes up with just to compare notes! Hoppy Brewing!
Click to expand...

well thats not good. we had an all citra beer go garlic on us and i didnt like that.
 
I"ve been growing this hop for 7 years now.. i give this hop away and it produces great but has a rotten , garlic , onion smell and flavor. gross!!! I"m thinking of just pulling this hop all together.
 

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