Homegrown Nugget Hops

Below is a pic of some cones on one of my two Nugget plants. This is their third year and I've really been tending them well this year. The cones are larger than ever before and there are definately more of them. I'm really excited!

My plan is to pick individually each cone at its peak over a period of about a month. Last year I did this and dried them in batches and ended up with a fair amount of dried hops. Instead of drying them, I'm planning on freezing them immediately after picking in a vacuum bag. My hope is to collect enough to do a 5 or 10 gallon batch of a wet hopped harvest ale. Any thoughts or advice on this idea? Any good base recipes for a nice malt profile that will accent the wet hopping?

That's a Fine looking vine sir. My (2nd year) nugget plant is going crazy, too. It has so many more cones than my other plants...

I'm new to hop growing, so I'm not really sure what to do with this plant, though. Some of the cones look ready to be picked, but others are still puny. Sounds like it's ok to pick them in phases as they ripen?

I've been contemplating a good recipe for these hops for a while, and I think I'm going to go with a Nugget Nectar clone (Troegs Brewing Company, Nugget Nectar Ale). The grain bill on that site seems straight-forward, and it definitely showcases the hops.

I'm thinking of using these either in Jamil's American Amber Ale - JZ Amber - Red Rocket Clone by replacing all but the first hop addition with my nuggets.

Or maybe Denny Conn's Rye IPA - https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f69/denny-conns-wry-smile-rye-ipa-84515/ by replacing all the hops with my nuggets.

Wry Smile sounds delicious.

Have you done an all Nugget beer before? I'm wondering what the flavor profile may be. I've been told 'piney'.

hamilt22 said:

Have you done an all Nugget beer before? I'm wondering what the flavor profile may be. I've been told 'piney'.

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No, I haven't ever used Nugget Hops before. My wife actually bought and planted the two plants we have as an ornamental addition to our herb garden (lucky me). Last year I harvested and dried about 3 oz. (dry weight) total. I still have those in my chest freezer in vacuum sealed bags. I'm planning on using last year's dried for the first hop addition and this year's harvest as the late hop additions.

It'll be interesting!

I made a maris otter and nuggett SMaSH with my harvest last year and it did turn out well. There is this odd sweet taste from the hops that I can't really describe but is present in the after taste. It does have nice aroma.

As far as freezing them I am not an expert but you might not want to freeze them without drying them first. I have always understood that wet hop was used right away.
I may be wrong won't be the first time.

I am also planning a wet hop ale with my nuggs and my centenial this year. I'm pretty exited. Good luck with yours.

Freezing fresh hops works, but the hops turn into sludge. So, be ready for a tasty mess.

Had an all-Nugget IPA two years ago at the Tastival. Real fine.

Well. Sounds like an all Nugget IIPA is in order!

Maybe I'll throw in all 8 hop cones from my Cascade vines...

I found a hop vine from an abandoned property - I took a few rhizomes and put them on the edge of my vegetable garden with the intention of eventually combining them with some home grown organic barley to make some "caveman beer." This is my question - can anyone tell what kind of hops it is from a photograph?

I am planning to do 3 wet hop red ales this harvest: cascade, tettnanger and nugget. The Tettnangers ripen first, then cascade and finally nugget. So, I will do a batch a week. I will let you know how the Nugget turns out. I have never used the nuggets wet either. (I also like to blend these beers-I love the cascade/tettnanger combo) Instead of "cherry picking" the ripe hops and freezing them wet, I like to dry the early ones and wait until the rest of the bine is ready to be harvested in one shot and use those hops for the wet hop beers. I love the process of getting the mash going and then picking fresh hops during the brew...its about as fresh as you can get. I am interested to hear how the "fresh frozen" hops are.

Parnell-this is a topic that comes up often. Hopunion.com has some good resources. Good luck

Tim

I'll be sure to let everyone know how it works out. I'm leaning towards the Rye IPA. Lately I've really been enjoying Terrapin's Rye IPA which is a local beer for me out of Athens, GA.

I picked the first round of Nuggets this weekend. I used the ziploc vacuum bags for the first time and I'm impressed. Easy to use, developed a nice tight seal and has held for the first few days.

Parnell said:

I found a hop vine from an abandoned property - I took a few rhizomes and put them on the edge of my vegetable garden with the intention of eventually combining them with some home grown organic barley to make some "caveman beer." This is my question - can anyone tell what kind of hops it is from a photograph?

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Not just a photograph, but aroma and a picture would give someone with good hop knowledge a better chance at figuring it out. Post a picture of a mature cone anyway and see what you get.

I too, would be interested in the "freezing of the fresh hop" technique. I have first year Chinook and Centennial, but the cones are growing at different rates. So I am pretty sure some will be ready before others.
I want to make a fresh hop IPA, but don't know how to do it if all the hops aren't ready at the same time....
hmmmm???

macabra11 said:

I too, would be interested in the "freezing of the fresh hop" technique. I have first year Chinook and Centennial, but the cones are growing at different rates. So I am pretty sure some will be ready before others.
I want to make a fresh hop IPA, but don't know how to do it if all the hops aren't ready at the same time....
hmmmm???

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Same exact problem. I figure try it and see. I'm only going to do a 5 gallon batch, so if it's awful, at least not too much wasted. Besides, the most expensive ingredient, the hops, are going to be free on this batch!