1st time brewing question

[bn163]

plan to brew my 1st batch this weekend (northern brewer, extra pale ale). will be using a converted keg for my brew kettle. brew kit instructions say to use 15% to 25% less bittering hops when doing a full-volume boil. should i follow this instruction, or add the total amount (2oz cascade) of bittering hops? if i follow the instruction, would it be worthwhile to save the hops & add to the secondary?

 

[Ichi-Go]

I would add them all. You have them so why not. It might not be an "extra pale ale" but it should be awesome.

 

[Arkador]

follow that if you want your bitterness to match the style guideines. If you want it hoppier than the recipe lists, use it all.

the reason is.... Hops are better utilized the less malty the boil is. Since you are going to have twice as much water, more alpha acids are going to be extracted, increasing the bitterness.

 

[skyzo]

It really depends on what you want from it. If you want the extra IBU's then just go ahead and throw in the full amount, but Id recommend just following what the kit says and ten decide to dry hop or not later.

 

[whoneedsabeer]

Welcome to the obsession!

If doing a full boil, your hops utilization will be greater, so your IBUs will climb above what the recipe/style calls for. If you post up the recipe with AA units on the hops you have, someone can tell you how much you should add to get to your desired IBU level.

As far as adding (i'm assuming) pellet hops to the secondary, I'm not sure. It would make for a lot of pellet trub I'm guessing, but I suppose it would add some aroma too.

 

[TBrosBrewing]

Short answer: you can do either. If you add the hops to the boil, depending on where in the boil you can add more bitterness or flavor. Or, you can add your leftover to the secondary for a small dry hop for 4-5 days. They both would be a good choice.

 

[randyisrad]

More hops the better
You're not gonna mess it up if you use more hops. I buy my hops in 2 ounce packets, if i have any left over, i just toss them in at like 5-15 minutes.

 

[Yooper]

I LOVE hops. Love them. But I wouldn't recommend to chuck 'em all in, recipe be damned.

The reason is simple- you get more bittering with a full boil from the same number of hops. Now, bitter is often good. But if it's too bitter (and it can be up to 25% MORE bitter), then the flavor and aroma hops and malt are out of whack.

I'd suggest either posting the recipe, and one of us can run the recipe for you and take a look and give our suggestions, or you can input the recipe into some brewing software and see what the changes might mean. If it's a 10% difference, I'd probably let it go. If it's a 25% difference, I'd probably reduce the bittering addition.

I might add the "extra" hops to the flavor, aroma, or dryhopping addition if it fit. Or I would just save them in the freezer for another recipe.

 

[mikebiewer]

From one beginner to another.

You have many options in front of you which can make this whole process more confusing than it needs to be and could end up affecting your process as a whole.

I vote, keep it simple, and just do what the recipe says. If you want more hops, add them next time.

Either way, its going to be good because you made it.

 

[kryolla]

I'd suggest either posting the recipe, and one of us can run the recipe for you and take a look and give our suggestions, or you can input the recipe into some brewing software and see what the changes might mean. If it's a 10% difference, I'd probably let it go. If it's a 25% difference, I'd probably reduce the bittering addition.

I might add the "extra" hops to the flavor, aroma, or dryhopping addition if it fit. Or I would just save them in the freezer for another recipe.

+1 if the difference is less than 5 IBU I dont think you will notice a difference