What form of hops do you use? pellet/plug/whole

The guys at the local brew store keep telling me that people only use whole hops for aroma when dry hopping. Many people online seem to use whole hops.

Are they guys at the local brewstore just pushing pellets on me because that's all they carry? What form of hops do you use for bittering (60 minute), flavor (15 minutes) and aroma (end of boil and dry hopping)?

Also, if you use whole hops, where is the best place for me (in VA) to order them online in small amounts for 5 gallon batches?

Pellets are fine. I've never used plugs, but I've used every other form. Fresh hops are best for aroma, but only available during the harvest. Other than that, it doesn't matter.

Pellets are fine, and supposedly hold up better over time (if you decide to buy in bulk at some point). Whole hops absorb more wort, which can be a real issue if you're doing something like an IPA. It's also usually easier to find the less-common varieties in pellet form.

thanks. i was doubting what the brewstore had told me because i can't taste any hop flavor in the fat tire clone i make. i even added some pellets at flameout one time.

so, you are saying that pellets will make a great Founders Centennial IPA clone, 60 IBU?

when is the right time to buy hops, in terms of harvest/freshness?

I tried whole hops a few brews ago because I heard they had superior flavor vs. pellets. I personally found that to be untrue, their was no noticeable difference in my APA w/leaf hops and the identical recipe w/pellets. Storage also becomes an issue when your buying pounds of hops at a time, leaf hops take up 10 times the amount of space that pellet hops do. I know I seem one sided here but my particular experience has led me to be that way.

thanks! end of discussion.

i'm new to brewing, and i just wanted a few valid opinions from someone other than the person selling me the pellets.

I use pellets mostly, for convenience. Our small freezer got crowded fast when I put a pound of whole leaf cascade in that mofo, but in general I have no preference. Whether or not I should is for someone more experienced than myself to decide.

My system doesn't like pellets at all and I don't see me using pellets for any step anytime soon. And I can get pellets for free.

I use a Kettle Screen and those pellets clog it.

Right now is when you want to get fresh hops as the new crop just got picked. I picked up a pound of Centennial and a pound of Cascades last week and they were super fresh and yummy. I had the urge to smoke them.

whole hops only for me. I don't like using or cleaning hop bags so I use a kettle screen to filter out my whole hops.

Pellets here. Take up 1/5th of the freezer space. Less wort absorption. I've used whole but personally haven't seen any benefit in doing so. Made plenty of super flavorful/aroma beers with pellets.

I think whole hops are way superior than pellets. First off there's a harsher bite from pellets that I don't get from whole hops. Also I think some of the finer aromatics are lost when you pulverize hops. If you ask me it's common sense. Anything that is processed is of a lesser quality. The industry wants you to believe that there is no quality difference between whole hops and pellets. This is mainly due to the fact that whole hops take more storage space and transportation/shipping costs are higher. I, for one, am not buying this rhetoric and I purchase whole hops when I have a choice.

shoot. i thought the verdict was in, then the whole hops people show up again and say it's peak hops season right now.

i may have to attempt a Stone 11th anniversary Black IPA or Founder's Centennial IPA next if i can get my brewhouse efficiency improved tomorrow.

I prefer pellets. I thought I preferred whole. It turns out that they absorb lots of wort and make a mess (at least in my system). Pellet hops seem to net more flavor with none of the fuss.

Dogphish said:

shoot. i thought the verdict was in, then the whole hops people show up again and say it's peak hops season right now.

i may have to attempt a Stone 11th anniversary Black IPA .

Click to expand...

You mean Cascadian Dark Ale right ?

cascadian dark ale? i'm not familiar with that. please explain.

in the 6 years i've been brewing, i've always used pellet hops. never really gave a thought to trying the use of other forms of hops.

Has there actually been much scientific research into how much of the aroma and flavor compounds are changed during the "pelletization" process? I bet the perceived difference is way larger than the reality of the matter. People like to cling to the bizarre belief that anything "natural" must be superior to anything that isn't.