Hop Experiment and Splitting Batches

[rjthomas21]

So I want to begin to understand the different flavors that each hop provides beyond what I smell when I open each package. One way I thought about doing this was to mash a relatively simple IPA and then split the runoff into 5 different batches and boil them separately with different hop schedules. That way I can have a taste test later and the only different is the hops I added.

Has anybody done something similar before or does anybody have any suggestions or tips on how to do this? There are a few considerations I know that I need to address.

First, I imagine the grain bill should be relatively simple, maybe even frame this up as a SMaSH recipe. Does anybody have any suggestions for a recipe that would allow the hop flavors to really shine through? Also, what type of hops should I consider using? I imagine Centennial and Cascade are two I should focus on but are there any other popular hops used in IPAs or Pale Ales that I should include? If there aren't 5 classic/good hops to include I was thinking of having one gallon being a dry-hopped gallon and I can compare it to a gallon that wasn't dry hopped.

Second, my game plan was to perform one mash and collect 7-8 gallons of runoff from there and then split it up into 5 batches for separate boils. Realistically, I can boil three pots at once on my stove/burner so there will be some wort that will need to sit out for ~60 minutes. Is there any issue with letting the wort cool down some after mashing until room opens up on the stove?

Any other considerations I might need to take into account? Any thoughts or suggestions are welcome!

 

[Xpertskir]

If I were to do it my thoughts would be the following

Simple grain bill base malt, crystal 10-40, dextrin malt, gravity somewhere between 1050-1065

Hop schedule, standard 60 min(change this to keep IBUs the same between varieties), 5 min, flameout. I'd use a good amount of hops to emphasize the flavor

Id start like a normal 7 gallon batch(or whatever the pre boil amount of wort you want to have) and run of everything and sparge into one large pot. Bring that to a boil to stop conversion and to thoroughly mix wort. Then you can split it off into diff pots and bring back to a boil. As long as you stop conversion and mix it thoroughly, you can let the wort cool and sit around waiting for it's turn to boil.

 

[brewmeister13]

I actually am just finishing up my first batch of hops 101. I used Simcoe, Centennial, Motueka, Nelson Sauvin, Glacier and Citra.

For me it was important to have very repeatable conditions, so I cheated and used pale extract. I plan to run this with 30-40 different hops and to also use this format to practice blends in the future.

I too figured a simple grain bill was the best. I went with 90% DME to 10% English Crystal 10-20L. To make sure the Crystal was consistent I steeped everything in my large BK and then drained into my stove top pots. For the hops I stayed consistent in my additions, except for the bittering addition. Bittering was variable to keep the IBU's at around 40. I chose not to go higher, because I wanted to be able to distinguish the bittering properties and felt that I high number might cover up some of the flavor as well. Not sure if this was true, but it worked really well for me. I've only had the Simcoe and Glacier so far, but it worked great. The simcoe was awesome and the Glacier was worth the test (not IPA material IMO, but I'm sure it has its place).

So here was my frame recipe:

90% DME or base malt
10% English Crystal 10-20L

Variable amount (60 min)
.15 oz (30 min)
.25 oz (FO)

.5 oz (dry hop 7 days)

WLP001

One thing I noticed was that the carbonation was uneven between the Simcoe and Glacier. I bottle conditioned and with such a small quantity it is easy to get variation I feel.

 

[brewmeister13]

Oh and the OG was about 1.054 on all of them (within a thousanth one way or the other) and FG was 1.012 (a bit sweet and you may want to cut back a touch on the crystal if you like it really dry).

 

[tnlandsailor]

If this is pure research, the extract method that brewmeister13 is advocating is the quickest and easiest method. You can brew very small batches and make the most of your ingredients. I would probably opt for 1 gallon batches and get some friends help you taste and evaluate.

 

[brewmeister13]

One thing I noticed was that the carbonation was uneven between the Simcoe and Glacier. I bottle conditioned and with such a small quantity it is easy to get variation I feel.

scratch this. I'm an idiot. I realized that I accidentally tried to cap twist off bottles. I must have missed them when I was cleaning (I have friends save me bottles). Luckily there was only 1 of each type uncarbed due to this.

 

[grathan]

Another idea would be doing a large batch with a homebrew club. I did this once. Collected wort from a local brewery and the 2 cases worth of brewers picked a unique variety from the hop pile each.

Another idea. Boil and cool the hops perhaps even on a different day in just water and store each in its own container and then split the unhopped wort and mix with hop waters and ferment. Or maybe even do the hops after fermenting.

 

[brewmeister13]

Another idea. Boil and cool the hops perhaps even on a different day in just water and store each in its own container and then split the unhopped wort and mix with hop waters and ferment. Or maybe even do the hops after fermenting.

I don't know if I am remembering this right, but if you boil hops with no wort sugars you will get a vastly different end result (bitterness, taste) than you would in a traditionally hopped beer. This is why people who do extract add at least part of the extract to the full boil. I believe part of it has to do with the pH of the water vs the pH of wort. As well as how the different oils in the hops interact with the sugars in the wort.