Where'd you get the coconuts?

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Zymurgrafi

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ARTHUR:
We found them.
SOLDIER #1:
Found them? In Mercia? The coconut's tropical!
ARTHUR:
What do you mean?
SOLDIER #1:
Well, this is a temperate zone...

Oh, oh um. Homegrown hops that is...

Made a SMaSH, actually 2 of them. Each with Marris otter then homegrown Centennial for one and an unknown homegrown hop for the other. I used homegrown for all additions. Bittering, flavor and aroma. I wanted to see how well they would bitter. Was fairly low but still got the job done.

The Centennial brew tastes like coconut! Never tasted that before in a hop.

Well, two mitigating factors to consider, a)my taste buds may be shot to hell and b) I may or may not have confused the brews whilst boiling and added the wrong additions to the wrong brew... :drunk:

I guess I would not recommend a "serious scientific" experiment whilst imbibing. :drunk:

Regardless it is a very coconutty flavor. The other one which is supposed to be the feral/wild hop is not particularly remarkable flavor wise. Not bad, just not distinctive.
 
I blame it on the non migratory african swallow! Actually Spamalot is in town so I have had this on the brain for a while....
 
Are you suggestin' coconuts migrate?

So you used an unknown variety, did you? Interesting. Round here, hops grow wild all over the place. I kept meaning to harvest some, but...I got a couple of rhizomes instead. :D

I'm gonna grow 'em and see what happens. The wild plants grew tiny cones lousy with seeds. Dunno why; pollination? Anyone?

Please let us know what transpires with your brews.

SOLDIER #2: It could be carried by an African swallow!
SOLDIER #1:
Oh, yeah, an African swallow maybe, but not a European swallow. That's my point.
 
Okay, I just tried the "other" again. It too tastes like coconut. I got my wifes opinion and she agreed. Probably would have been better if I did not tell her what I tasted first. Man, I suck at this "scientific" stuff. :cross:

Anyway, so there may be more credibility to my taste buds. I am guessing I must have definitely mixed up my additions. I had both pots going at the same time.

Yes, I grew Centennial and Cascade from purchased rhizomes. A buddy of mine found some hops growing at the place I used to work at. It was at one time a farm. So we both planted some rather healthy chunks o' rhizome that he dug up. They went apeSh!te! Had a pretty substantial harvest the first season. I was guessing they may be cluster as that was at one time the prevalent hop variety. That and they smelled fairly "dank" perhaps "catty" when rubbed fresh.

So, apparently, If I want a coconut character I just need to mix my Centennial with this other hop.
 
oh and,

SOLDIER #2:
Wait a minute! Supposing two swallows carried it together?
SOLDIER #1:
No, they'd have to have it on a line.
SOLDIER #2:
Well, simple! They'd just use a strand of creeper!
SOLDIER #1:
What, held under the dorsal guiding feathers?
SOLDIER #2:
Well, why not?
 
crap, now that i think of it. I really hope it is the combo of the 2 and not the centennial. I used a good amount of my cascade and centennial in my barley wine baby

Oh the humanity! Coconut barley wine!!!
 
Interesting, indeed! So the rhizomes were from a hops farm, or a farm that used to grow hops, eh? Neat. Probably were Clusters or a variant.

Nothing wrong with coconut in a barleywine, IMO. The flavors are complex in a BW, which means that even if you did end up with "Coconut Cascentennial", the flavor should be blended somewhat with other esters and stuff.

DENNIS: What I object to is you automatically treating me like an inferior!
 
I don't like coconuts. Can I get it without coconuts?

On farther reflection I think that character was more pronounced as they are a bit on the sweet side due to a lack of bittering from using strictly homegrown. My wife even commented that it smelled sweet before tasting.

The odd thing was at bottling the uncarbed beer tasted sort of reminiscent of an American light lager, not as sweet and malty as it is now. Lessons learned from this experiment? Bugger all, hell if I know!?

ARTHUR: Well, I AM king...
 
I want a coconut. :(

This sounds really good. Now I will have to make a coconut pale ale. Damn you. :p
 
i think that what you are saying tastes like coconut is probably a common off-flavor

do a search for examples of off-flavors; you can find lists of things that taste similar to certain beer off-flavors

did you dry these hops? and if so, what was your method? according to Radical Brewing by Mosher, hops need to be dried until the stem going through the middle of the cone is brittle enough to snap

that being said, i did just try Sierra Nevada Wet Hop Harvest Ale, which is made with un-dried hops, and i loved it-definitely no coconut flavor, just a really full, complex, broad hop flavor
 
i think that what you are saying tastes like coconut is probably a common off-flavor

do a search for examples of off-flavors; you can find lists of things that taste similar to certain beer off-flavors

did you dry these hops? and if so, what was your method? according to Radical Brewing by Mosher, hops need to be dried until the stem going through the middle of the cone is brittle enough to snap

that being said, i did just try Sierra Nevada Wet Hop Harvest Ale, which is made with un-dried hops, and i loved it-definitely no coconut flavor, just a really full, complex, broad hop flavor

It is not an off-flavor. As long as I have been brewing I have not come across a flavor like this. I have experienced most if not all off-flavors either in my beer or someone else'. It tastes fine and is not overpowering coconut wise. Tastes like beer but with a slight coconut flavor.

My hops are also certainly well dried. I believe it is just this particular combination.
 
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