TL;DR - Do Willamette hops normally smell strongly of a chemical?
Full story:
My local HBS has a really knowledgeable owner. Dude is basically a scientist.
I bought some fuggles from him one time, and I thought they tasted stale. Never mentioned it to him. I thought maybe I just don't like fuggle. His hops storage is an upright freezer, and there's lots of old, caked ice all over the shelves. In serious need of a defrost. Some bags of hops get stuck in the frost. Wondering if that's kosher or not. Can the hops get freezer burn?
I love hops. I have popped whole leaves in my mouth and chewed for a while. I eat a pellet on brew day, then keep it my cheek while I drink a home brew. I live in the PNW, so I'm intrigued to use hops from my area.
Last weekend I bought four ounces of Willamette, and they stunk like paint with a hint of something rotten. I've been brewing for five years, and I have never smelled hops so disgusting. The HBS is 40 minutes from me, so I called first, and he said to bring them in. I drove all the way into town, he sniffed the bag, and said he didn't smell anything. *ANYTHING*
I've bought lots of hops from him over the years, but fuggles only once, and Willamette only once.
He told me I probably didn't like either of them because they are both from the noble hop family. He said they're for American pislners and used as a preservative, not really for flavor. I only make reds and IPAs, so I kinda buy his explanation, just for lack of exposure to the product, but I'm also on the fence that the dude's sniffer is on the way out. He has helped me so much with advice over the years, that I don't dare disrespect or argue with him. I need your insight.
Do hops go bad? Do Willamette hops stink of chemical in comparison to hops such as citra, centennial, and magnum?
So confused right now.
Full story:
My local HBS has a really knowledgeable owner. Dude is basically a scientist.
I bought some fuggles from him one time, and I thought they tasted stale. Never mentioned it to him. I thought maybe I just don't like fuggle. His hops storage is an upright freezer, and there's lots of old, caked ice all over the shelves. In serious need of a defrost. Some bags of hops get stuck in the frost. Wondering if that's kosher or not. Can the hops get freezer burn?
I love hops. I have popped whole leaves in my mouth and chewed for a while. I eat a pellet on brew day, then keep it my cheek while I drink a home brew. I live in the PNW, so I'm intrigued to use hops from my area.
Last weekend I bought four ounces of Willamette, and they stunk like paint with a hint of something rotten. I've been brewing for five years, and I have never smelled hops so disgusting. The HBS is 40 minutes from me, so I called first, and he said to bring them in. I drove all the way into town, he sniffed the bag, and said he didn't smell anything. *ANYTHING*
I've bought lots of hops from him over the years, but fuggles only once, and Willamette only once.
He told me I probably didn't like either of them because they are both from the noble hop family. He said they're for American pislners and used as a preservative, not really for flavor. I only make reds and IPAs, so I kinda buy his explanation, just for lack of exposure to the product, but I'm also on the fence that the dude's sniffer is on the way out. He has helped me so much with advice over the years, that I don't dare disrespect or argue with him. I need your insight.
Do hops go bad? Do Willamette hops stink of chemical in comparison to hops such as citra, centennial, and magnum?
So confused right now.