Pacific Gem Bitter recipe critique?

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JohnA111

JohnA111

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Being that its only batch number 3, I thought this would be the right forum as a beginner brewer for some insight. I know I shouldn't be devising my own recipes yet bein a noob, but I used to be a chef and can't help it. 1st batch was a kit Porter that was low on 1 can of LME, turned out 3%ABV bland (drinkable though indeed). 2nd batch is a self devised APA loaded with Amarillo's and Cascades (can't wait to drink, sits in Secondary dry hopping away now witn taste and smell walking toward a Victory Hopdevil-ish beer).

Comments about this brew in the now in the bucket?:

PSB (Pacific (gem) Special Bitter)

70 minute boil

6lbs Extra Light DME
1lb Caramel 25L
1/2lb Roasted Barley 432L
1 tsp Gypsum
1 tblsp Irish Moss at 15 mins in boil

Grains steeped for 30min at 150F

Boil Schedule:
70min: 2lb DME / Pacific Gems (15%AU) .5oz
15min: 4lb DME / Pacific Gems (15%AU) 1oz
Flame Out: Pacific Gems (15%AU) 1oz

Original Gravity: 1.062 @ 60F

Rehydrated Saf 04 pitched at 62F

what else, what else.....


Most everything I could find about PG Hops was mystery and intrigue. Tasted the hydro sample, oh yeah, its gonna be bitter allright and aroma was eh?. PG ain't no Cascade.
 
I can' t critique your recipe, since I've been all-grain from day one, and couldn't even begin to fathom an extract recipe, (for now...I will do one, hopefully soon.)

But I am interested in seeing what others have to say about the Pacific Gem, since I, too, have aquired some, (thank you freshops!). I have an IPA planned for next Sunday, and am currently planning on bittering with them. That's the only inclusion of them in my hop schedule, but I do have to find a use for the rest of the pound. With some of the others that I've picked up from freshops I've made single-hopped batches of pale ale to learn more about them, but have yet to get to the PG. Hopefully some folks will chime in with some good experiences with them, and give me some good ideas.
 
I think probably quite a few people have aquired pacific gem since that is one of the few that is still fairly easy to aquire. I got some from fresh hops as well. I used a half ounce of it in a scottish wee heavy last week, so we shall see how it comes out. From what I have read as far as other people's experiences with it it works pretty well as a bittering hop, but most people don't really enjoy it as a flavor/aroma hop. But keep us updated, and let us know how your all PG brew comes out.
 
imasickboy said:
I can' t critique your recipe, since I've been all-grain from day one, and couldn't even begin to fathom an extract recipe, (for now...I will do one, hopefully soon.)

But I am interested in seeing what others have to say about the Pacific Gem, since I, too, have aquired some, (thank you freshops!). I have an IPA planned for next Sunday, and am currently planning on bittering with them. That's the only inclusion of them in my hop schedule, but I do have to find a use for the rest of the pound. With some of the others that I've picked up from freshops I've made single-hopped batches of pale ale to learn more about them, but have yet to get to the PG. Hopefully some folks will chime in with some good experiences with them, and give me some good ideas.
Click to expand...

I felt ok with the idea of finishing with them too after hearing of blackberryish aromas with citrusy flavor. (Maybe the other way around? whatever.) Not much feedback on results using these hops is to be found around the net. It's bubblin away at the moment so we'll just have to see. :rolleyes:
 
Took the first hydro reading today and it dropped nicely from 1.062 to 1.022 after a week in the primary. I was going to leave it in the primary, but I tasted the sample. Not exactly flowery or citrusy, but that blackberry / rasberry aroma stands out with a swish of the glass. Makes for a strange bitter as its not really too bitter at all - more of a nice brown ale. (Feared this was gonna be too bitter in the end).

Thinking about using the secondary and dryhopping with another ounce of the PG to see if I can get some more of that berry aroma out of it - it goes very nicely with a drier beer such as this having been fermented with the English Ale yeast's slight fruityness.

And I thought the berry thing was a myth...... (I hope its not volatile and disappears with 3 weeks in the bottle :rolleyes:)
 
I racked it to the secondary Friday 3-14 onto another 1oz of PG. The berry smell is even stronger. Bitterness seems just right. I think I'm gonna get some more of these hops.
 
JohnA111 said:
Being that its only batch number 3, I thought this would be the right forum as a beginner brewer for some insight. I know I shouldn't be devising my own recipes yet bein a noob, but I used to be a chef and can't help it. 1st batch was a kit Porter that was low on 1 can of LME, turned out 3%ABV bland (drinkable though indeed). 2nd batch is a self devised APA loaded with Amarillo's and Cascades (can't wait to drink, sits in Secondary dry hopping away now witn taste and smell walking toward a Victory Hopdevil-ish beer).

Comments about this brew in the now in the bucket?:

PSB (Pacific (gem) Special Bitter)

70 minute boil

6lbs Extra Light DME
1lb Caramel 25L
1/2lb Roasted Barley 432L
1 tsp Gypsum
1 tblsp Irish Moss at 15 mins in boil

Grains steeped for 30min at 150F

Boil Schedule:
70min: 2lb DME / Pacific Gems (15%AU) .5oz
15min: 4lb DME / Pacific Gems (15%AU) 1oz
Flame Out: Pacific Gems (15%AU) 1oz

Original Gravity: 1.062 @ 60F

Rehydrated Saf 04 pitched at 62F

what else, what else.....


Most everything I could find about PG Hops was mystery and intrigue. Tasted the hydro sample, oh yeah, its gonna be bitter allright and aroma was eh?. PG ain't no Cascade.
Click to expand...

Your recipe looks much more like a stout to me. For a special bitter, the OG is too high, the IBUs are likely too high, and I've never seen a recipe for bitter with 1/2# of roasted barley.

A Best or Special bitter should have an OG between 1.038-1.045 (even strong bitters top out at 1.060). Alcohol is 4.1-4.8%. Bitterness should be 23-48 IBU. Medium crytals (40 - 60 ºL) are good at 5 - 8%. Some roasted barley or chocolate malt is acceptable, but top out at around 3% of the grain bill. (From Ray Daniels, Designing Great Beers).
 
Well, I'm gonna call it a red bitter even though its out of the guidelines. Turned out fantastic. Subtle aromas and flavors of berry and citrus have an awesome flavor profile. I love these hops, and their availability from freshops.com makes them a good choice for me. From this recipe I plan on definitely doing an IPA with them. They are a pronounced flavor that mellows out just like Cascades do with time. Many have tasted this beer and all agree that its damn good.

So yeah, my experiment is settled, Pacific Gems are awesome IMHO, but are not going to be loved by everyone as a whole. I imagine you might even be able to make a fruit wheat with them, fooling everyone by never adding any fruit. To the skeptics, buy a few ounces and try them out at least.
 
Thanks for the update. I'm planning on making my next APA with Pacific Gem hops exclusively. I'm looking forward to it.
 

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