Hop amounts in IPAs - How hoppy?

[carbon111]

How hoppy is too hoppy?

Is there a "IBU range" for the British IPA and American IPA styles?

I like an IPA at around 60 IBUs but can go much higher, depending on the variety of hops.

Can't stand Simco but some of the other high AA hops are really nice.

I'm working on a homebuilt IPA recipe right now with Galena and Tettnanger...any suggestions are welcome.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

There sure is. Everyone's tastes differ, but start within the style guidelines and branch out from there.

IMO, too hoppy is not possible but plenty of people here disagree.

 

[flyangler18]

There sure is. Everyone's tastes differ, but start within the style guidelines and branch out from there.

IMO, too hoppy is not possible but plenty of people here disagree.

Of course you were the first one to reply.

 

[enderwig]

Keep in mind "IBU range" and "hoppiness" are 2 different things. You can have a very bitter beer with little hoppiness, and vice versa.

 

[ChrisKennedy]

As long as the bitterness and hop flavor balance each other, I don't think you can make an IPA/DIPA that is too hoppy. 16-24oz of hops in 5 gallons is not too hoppy!

 

[ohiobrewtus]

Of course you were the first one to reply.

...and of course I'm replying while putting the finishing touches on Hopacles '09. :rockin:

 

[Hugh_Jass]

...and of course I'm replying while putting the finishing touches on Hopacles '09. :rockin:

I can't wait to be witness to that creation.

....Dr. Hopenstein, you've created a monster.

Home Brew Forums - Registration

to the OP, here's a chart that balances bitterness with OG.

 

[CBBaron]

IMO, too hoppy is not possible but plenty of people here disagree.

+1

I havn't met a too hoppy beer yet. I don't know if it exists.

I have made a couple IPAs where my hop bag was the size of a football (5gal batch) without any complaints. Not yet Pliny territory but very good.

Now I want to get ahold of the hop extracts and oils that Laguntis(sp) uses for their Hop Stoopid. That could allow for some crazy hoppy beer.

Craig

 

[cubbies]

How hoppy is too hoppy? Your tongue will tell you. If you are trying to submit something for competition, then yeah, there are "too hoppy" cases. Especially on the English IPA category. However, as a homebrewer, if you want to put two pounds of Warrior in a beer, and it tastes good to you, then it is not "too hoppy". Tis the beauty of homebrewing.

 

[HenryHill]

There is a thought that using the OG for a relative gauge of IBU bitterness 'balances' the beer. For a 1.078 OG IPA, try a 70-80 IBU, for a 1/1 ratio.

'Hoppiness', as in late additions and DHing, no one can say, due to the differences in each drinker's perceived aroma, and it depends on the hop type.

 

[beerkrump]

The only limit to the amount of hops in my IPA's is my budget.

Although... I've got Centennials, Cascades, and Zeus growing in the garden. If all goes well, welcome to hoptopia!!!

 

[carbon111]

There sure is. Everyone's tastes differ, but start within the style guidelines and branch out from there.

IMO, too hoppy is not possible but plenty of people here disagree.

Thanks for the link! Exactly what I was looking for.

While generally I tend to agree you can't be "too hoppy", it's nice to see what the guidelines are for each style.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

...Not yet Pliny territory but very good...

Meh, Pliny isn't the epitome of hops that it's made out to be.

 

[Yooper]

Meh, Pliny isn't the epitome of hops that it's made out to be.

Oh, I think it's really good! I think that I like Pliny better than Hopslam. I get plenty of fresh hops in each gulp of Pliny.

I really, really like hops. I don't think there is ever a beer I would sip and say, "Boy, that's too hoppy for me". The Pliny clone that's posted (I think by Dude) is really a nice IPA. I made my first batch of that when hops were $1 an ounce, and then hops went up to $4 an ounce! I'd had to have to take out a loan to make a beer, so I'm glad the prices are a bit more reasonable. I'm going to have to make that one again.

Carbon, if you take a look through the recipe database and see the IPAs, you can get an idea of the hopping rates. Even though I'm a hophead, I'm a big believer in balance. When you use tons of hops, you also have use more malt. Even when a beer is a hop bomb, it needs a malt backbone to give it structure.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

Oh, I think it's really good! I think that I like Pliny better than Hopslam. I get plenty of fresh hops in each gulp of Pliny.

I really, really like hops. I don't think there is ever a beer I would sip and say, "Boy, that's too hoppy for me". The Pliny clone that's posted (I think by Dude) is really a nice IPA. I made my first batch of that when hops were $1 an ounce, and then hops went up to $4 an ounce! I'd had to have to take out a loan to make a beer, so I'm glad the prices are a bit more reasonable. I'm going to have to make that one again.

Carbon, if you take a look through the recipe database and see the IPAs, you can get an idea of the hopping rates. Even though I'm a hophead, I'm a big believer in balance. When you use tons of hops, you also have use more malt. Even when a beer is a hop bomb, it needs a malt backbone to give it structure.

Pliny is an absolutley great beer, don't get me wrong. I'd never turn one down - ever. But in 2+ years of people on the board talking it up as a basically the epitome of hop bittereness, it left me disappointed in that area.

Pliny, to me, is a slightly more bitter version of DFH90, but with an incredible nose. It's a great commercial IIPA, but not what I'd consider an overly hoppy beer.

 

[carbon111]

Carbon, if you take a look through the recipe database and see the IPAs, you can get an idea of the hopping rates. Even though I'm a hophead, I'm a big believer in balance. When you use tons of hops, you also have use more malt. Even when a beer is a hop bomb, it needs a malt backbone to give it structure.

Understood. I pretty much figured that's how it is.

The hoppier IPAs also seem to have a higher ABV - is this a "side effect" of the larger malt quantity? Or is it because IPAs can mask more alcohol (so brewers punch the percentage without fear of the beer tasting especially "hot")?

My local brewery, the Diamond Knot, makes a wonderful, really hoppy IPA but surprisinly the IBUs are only in the 40s...I'm thinking that earlier comment someone posted about IBUs not being the only indicator of hoppyness to be right on.

 

[flyangler18]

Pliny, to me, is a slightly more bitter version of DFH90, but with an incredible nose. It's a great commercial IIPA, but not what I'd consider an overly hoppy beer.

I concur, but we differ on a single point - the definition of 'hoppiness'.

Hoppiness, as I define it, is more about hop flavor and aroma vs. the straight forward bitterness.

 

[carbon111]

Hoppiness, as I define it, is more about hop flavor and aroma vs. the straight forward bitterness.

Exactly what I was talking about with the DKIPA - even though the IBUs are only around 40, there's a ton of hop flavor...

 

[ohiobrewtus]

I concur, but we differ on a single point - the definition of 'hoppiness'.

Hoppiness, as I define it, is more about hop flavor and aroma vs. the straight forward bitterness.

I guess so. A 'hop monster', the 'epitome of hops' or whatever moniker you want to attach to the style, to me, is all 3 provided that the bitterness is done correctly. I've had 60 IBU beers that seemed more bitter than beers with a much higher IBU rating. It's all about hop selection and cohumulone % and finding a balance - just like with a grain bill.

 

[Brewmasters Warehouse]

The hoppier IPAs also seem to have a higher ABV - is this a "side effect" of the larger malt quantity? Or is it because IPAs can mask more alcohol (so brewers punch the percentage without fear of the beer tasting especially "hot")?

Hoppier IPA are higher in ABV due to the additional malt to balance the beer out. Even though the point of an IPA is to have hop bittnerness/flavor/aroma you still need a malt backbone to support all of the hop flavor. Without this type of balance the quality of the beer is reduced dramatically.