Substituting Hop Varieties

I'm mostly through reading Brew Your Own British Real Ale (Wheeler & Protz), which is a great read. In the chapter about hops, they discuss alpha acid in hops, and which hops are typically used at which stage in the brew process. I'm looking to brew a classic British bitter next, so I'm interested in the particulars of hop substitution.

Some of the recipes I'm interested in use Target hops, which have an outrageously high AA content (11.2) as the bittering hops. As I understand it, this is mainly a cost concern - Target hops are dirt cheap, compared to the more than double quantity of Goldings or Fuggles that would be used in their stead. However, Target and other high AA hops seems to be of lower quality and have harsh flavors and aromas.

It seems to me that if I can afford to brew with Goldings or Fuggles instead of Target (observing the proper equation to determine quantity, of course), that would almost always be a better choice. True, I might not completely match that Fuller's flavor, but it could only be better.

Thoughts?

BrothersTrout said:

It seems to me that if I can afford to brew with Goldings or Fuggles instead of Target (observing the proper equation to determine quantity, of course), that would almost always be a better choice. True, I might not completely match that Fuller's flavor, but it could only be better.

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Better is subjective, I suppose, but bittering hops shouldn't be contributing significant amounts of flavor.

Otherwise, yeah, pretty much. I use all EKG in my ESB. The Target would almost certainly give me more bitterness than I'd want, and I don't like having hops lying around (it makes it too easy to start brewing again!)

TBL, I think you're becoming my new best friend

Thanks for the guidance. I think I might just avoid the Target for now, and see if I like what I get. That's what it's all about, anyway!

Target is a fine hop. To my palate, the flavor and aroma are not as refined as Fuggles, much less Kent Goldings.

As TBL wrote, hops boiled for an hour or more theoretically shouldn't impart flavors or aromas to the finished beer. This is indeed more often than not the case. There are some varieties of high-alpha hops which impart flavor no matter how long you boil them. The high-alpha American "C" hops spring to mind. I can always taste them.

You're right - if you can afford to bitter with classic English hops, by all means do so. I prefer to follow the commercial trends in my Real Ales, however, since I shall always compare them to commercial examples. And since commercial Real Ale brewers use high-alpha hops like Wye Target for economy, whyever shouldn't I? Especially with the 400% increase in prices!

I like Target to bitter my Bitter (when I can get them), and Goldings at flameout. My Bitter recipe is dead simple, proven to be yummy, and I can even crank out an all-grain batch in a short time. I have to brew my Bitter and Mild quite a lot, so as to always have some one hand; it's just too easy to drink the stuff!

Cheers,

Bob

BobNQ3X said:

My Bitter recipe is dead simple, proven to be yummy

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Not to steal the thread here, but do you have this recipe posted some where? I was drinking some Black Sheep ale the other night and now I have a taste for a nice simple English Bitter.

And even more off topic - its nice to see another Keystone Homebrew Supporter. I'm lucky (or unlucky if you figure in temptation) to be within 15 minutes of the store.

Keystone rocks! It takes me about 20 minutes to get to the Bethlehem store.

I don't have it posted anywhere at the moment. Do you want a straight recipe, or just the gist of it? Here's the basics: Target an OG no higher than 1.038. Balance UK 2-row (I like Maris Otter), 10% 55L Crystal, 10% sugar (I like Demerara). Target ~28 IBU for bittering, one boil addition and Fuggles or EKG to taste at flameout. Of course, an English ale yeast is de rigeur.

If you want the exact recipe, I can post it. I figured I'd give you the opportunity to finagle your own based on your efficiency.

Cheers,

Bob

BobNQ3X said:

If you want the exact recipe, I can post it.

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Yes, please do! I'm a newbie, but I want to do a bitter from all grain, so if you've got a recipe that works, I'd love to see it in its entirety!

Flavor/aroma of a bittering hop doesn't matter much, it all boils out. Some people find the high cohumulone levels typical of a big bittering hop rather harsh. Northern Brewer might be a good choice. It runs 9-10% AA and has a cohumulone percentage similar to Fuggles.

BrothersTrout said:

Yes, please do! I'm a newbie, but I want to do a bitter from all grain, so if you've got a recipe that works, I'd love to see it in its entirety!

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Okay, here you go. This recipe has been brewed on many different occasions. It was originally designed using Foster's Pale Ale and Daniels's Designing Great Beers. Good session ale, not too bitter, flavorful enough that you know you're drinking it, but not enough to overwhelm the palate. I find an Imperial pint of this in my left hand is the perfect counterbalance for my darts-throwing hand.

Sebastian's Special Ale

A ProMash Recipe Report

BJCP Style and Style Guidelines
-------------------------------

08-A English Pale Ale, Standard/Ordinary Bitter

Min OG: 1.032 Max OG: 1.040
Min IBU: 25 Max IBU: 35
Min Clr: 4 Max Clr: 14 Color in SRM, Lovibond

Recipe Specifics
----------------

Batch Size (Gal): 5.50 Wort Size (Gal): 5.50
Total Grain (Lbs): 7.25
Anticipated OG: 1.038 Plato: 9.39
Anticipated SRM: 8.2
Anticipated IBU: 24.6
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75 %
Wort Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Pre-Boil Amounts
----------------

Evaporation Rate: 15.00 Percent Per Hour
Pre-Boil Wort Size: 7.10 Gal
Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.029 SG 7.33 Plato


Grain/Extract/Sugar

% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
10.3 0.75 lbs. Crystal 55L Great Britian 1.034 55
82.8 6.00 lbs. Maris Otter Great Britain 1.037 4
6.9 0.50 lbs. Demerara Sugar Generic 1.041 1

Potential represented as SG per pound per gallon.


Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.00 oz. Goldings - E.K. Whole 4.75 0.0 0 min.
0.50 oz. Target Pellet 10.00 24.6 90 min.


Extras

Amount Name Type Time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
0.25 Tsp Whirlfloc Other 15 Min.(boil)
0.25 Tsp Yeastex Other 15 Min.(boil)


Yeast
-----

DCL Yeast S-04 SafAle English Ale. Ferment at 68degF until complete. S-04, otherwise known as Whitbread, doesn't ferment as dry as Nottingham, leaving some residual sugars for body and a nice estery character. Rack to bright tank and fine if desired; otherwise, fine in cask/keg.


Mash Schedule
-------------

Mash Type: Single Step

Grain Lbs: 6.75
Water Qts: 9 - Before Additional Infusions
Water Gal: 2.25 - Before Additional Infusions

Qts Water Per Lbs Grain: 1.33 - Before Additional Infusions

Saccharification Rest Temp : 150 Time: 60
Mash-out Rest Temp : 168 Time: 10
Sparge Temp : 175 Time: 10 (batch sparge)


Total Mash Volume Gal: 2.78 - Dough-In Infusion Only

All temperature measurements are degrees Fahrenheit.

Carbonate to ~1.8 volumes and serve on draught. Use your favourite calculator to figure this. I use Demerara sugar to prime. Fine the beer while racking and monitor conditioning closely to ensure correct carbonation.

Frankly, the hardest part of brewing Real Ale is cellarmanship. I highly recommend getting the CAMRA book on the subject.

Hope the recipe works for you. If it does - or if it doesn't - kindly inform me!

Cheers,

Bob