Am I the only one that uses a lot more hops than most recipes I see?

[rtracer]

Spending hours browsing old threads on here and other sites(how did we know anything before Goggle), I see lots of recipes and I'm always thinking how little hops that are use, and most with heavy 60 minute additions.

I guess its a function of both personal preferences and the changing times.

For instance, I just read a thread from 2011 where the OP posted a SMaSH recipe that consisted of 10 lbs 2 row, 2oz Cascade@60 .5 @30 and .5 @ 10.

I admit I overdo hops and its mostly all late addition.

I brewed my (ever changing hop schedule)Pittyhuahua Pale Ale today.
10.5 Pale 2 row
1 20l Crystal 2 row
.5 warrior 60
1 Cascade 10
1 Columbus 5
1 Cascade 5
2 Columbus Flame out
2 Cascade Flame out
2 Citra Dry(last time was 3oz Citra dry, no Amarillo)
2 Amarillo dry

I mean, that looks like a crazy way over hopped brew, but it is always fantastic to me, and I get rave reviews.
And my IPA contains 4.5 more OZ's of hops
I don't know, am I crazy, wasting money or what? LOL

 

[Erik_Mog]

The last IPA I brewed used 14oz of hops for a 5.5gal batch. It was 1oz Centennial@FWH, 1oz Centennial@60min, 4oz ea. of Amarillo and Cascade in a 45min Hop Stand at 170F, then 2oz ea. of Amarillo and Cascade dry hop. It's not just you LOL.

 

[JimRausch]

Yep, You are the only one who has ever changed up a recipe.
But seriously, as you hit upon, "Hop times, they are a changing". (sorry Bob)
Do what you like. If you were to cut back, it wouldn't be the same and you probably wouldn't like it as much.
I think the key is, you aren't using much for a bittering charge, and backloading aroma and flavor hops. It does seem like a common modern trend.

 

[petrolSpice]

Nothing wrong with go big on the hops if you prefer that.

I would say you are probably out of the "acceptable range" for that style of beer however. Seems like it would be more like a session IPA with all of those late and dry hops.

 

[mikeburns]

This is an interesting post and a question I too have been having. Seems the lupulin shift has become more apparent. Pale Ales are now being hopped like IPA, IPAs have had a shift towards a little less bitterness and more flameout/dry hop additions and IIPAs are crazy now. Its funny though, I only started brewing a year or so ago and could never recreate IPA at home with many online recipes for so called 'classic' IPAs (DFH60, Bells 2 hearted etc). As soon as I started upping the hops (double in most cases what the recipe called for, sometimes more) I finally started to taste that 'IPA' taste I got from commercial breweries flagship IPAs.

Admittedly I live in NZ so don't have access to these American IPAs in their freshest form. I also didn't think much of DFH60 when I had it the first time and felt it was lacking in hops LOL. We have local IPAs like Epic Hop Zombie and Liberty Knife Party that are much more in line with my tastes for hops e.g. Massive in all ways. The only way to replicate these modern American style IPAs is to up the hops in a big way.

Either the shift has happened fairly recently or alot of these earlier recipes are actually not correct. This could also be to do with efficiency etc. Its likely these breweries recipes have been tweaked over the years as well to match this lupulin shift in drinkers palettes.

Another thing to think about is the effect of oxygen at the homebrew level. As soon as I started kegging I noticed that the hop presence was so much more in your face in all regards and for much longer. I think in some cases bottlers probably over do their hops in order to combat the loss and influence of oxygen.

Just my 2 cents of course. A very interesting subject though, glad you brought it up!

 

[day_trippr]

Meh, 60-something IBUs and a middling FO/DH schedule.
Weak sauce.
It'd barely make a pale ale here, nevermind an IPA.

Cheers!

 

[popgunandy]

To each their own, eh? There's nothing wrong with a recipe you enjoy and your friends like. There's lots to be proud of when that happens.

I enjoy some commercial beers like Pliny that have loads of additions. But I don't feel confident enough in my knowledge of hops to try it. One or two additions is my max.

 

[WBCo]

Nope, I go nuts with hops as well, especially the expensive ones. You don't happen to have a Pit and a Chihuahua do you? (Asking because of the beer name)

 

[brewcat]

Depends on style. Most of what I brew isn't hop heavy and extra hops would detract from the beer.

 

[kh54s10]

For me it also depends on the style. My pale ales are getting more hops than I used to use but a Stout still doesn't use much in the way of hops. I have done some with only a bittering hop.

 

[Brewenstein]

Brewing a porter tomorrow with one ounce of Nugget at 60 minutes. Then brewing a black IPA with 14 ounces of hops. Most at FO and then a hops stand. Plus 3-5 more ounces for DH. IBUs will be a little on the high side, but I like the flavor that you get with big late / FO / hop stand additions. And it is much easier to justify when you buy in bulk and have pounds of hops in the freezer.

So no, you are not the only one.