How much hops is too much hops?

[Argie86]

Hi everyone, Im going to brew 5.5 gallons SMaSH with munich & spalter. My idea is going not too high on ibus (25), estimated OG 1,038 and a 4.2% alc. Can I still use a high amount of hops? Or it will have a bad impact on the beer?

Im going to use 9lbs of munich and 3.5oz spalter.
Additions would be:
1 oz @ 60 min
0.7 oz @ 20 min
0.9 oz @ 5 min
0.9 oz @ 0 min

 

[oceanic_brew]

Depends on what you are going for.

Your 1 oz at 60 should cover the bittering. Save all the rest for whirlpool addition or hopstand.

It'll be a nice experiment, usually don't see that much late hops with a German but it's not unheard of.

1 oz at 60 and 1oz somewhere near end is common.

Good luck

 

[Owly055]

Depends on what you are going for.

Your 1 oz at 60 should cover the bittering. Save all the rest for whirlpool addition or hopstand.

It'll be a nice experiment, usually don't see that much late hops with a German but it's not unheard of.

1 oz at 60 and 1oz somewhere near end is common.

Good luck

I agree on this more or less........... I often look at people's hop schedule and ask "why".... What is gained by the multiple additions during the boil? If I want an intensely hoppy beer that isn't intensely bitter, I'll throw something like Magnum in for bittering and concentrate the rest of the hops in a late addition, and or whirlpool, and dry hopping.
Always remember that anything you smell during the process is LOST...... I want that flavor and aroma IN THE GLASS........not the brew kettle. Brewing is not about aroma therapy.......... or at least I hope it's not. It's about getting great flavor and aroma into the finished product.

I've never had and probably never will have a CPAP machine, but if I did, I'd want to have a hop aroma infusion built in ;-)

H.W.

 

[Gnomebrewer]

So you're looking at an FG of 1.006? That's a really dry beer.
Firstly, 25IBU's in that beer will be quite (but not extremely) bitter. Is that what you want?
Is it a lager or ale? Esters from an ale will balance the bitterness a bit.
As for the late late hopping....that's what experimenting is about! Just understand that most experimenting doesn't turn out how you wanted (don't do it if your pipeline is running low). Stick to a proven recipe if you need beer supplies.

I don't know what that amount of late Spalter additions would do, but I'd be very interested to find out if you brew this - it is a really enjoyable hop!

 

[max384]

Hi everyone, Im going to brew 5.5 gallons SMaSH with munich & spalter. My idea is going not too high on ibus (25), estimated OG 1,038 and a 4.2% alc. Can I still use a high amount of hops? Or it will have a bad impact on the beer?

Im going to use 9lbs of munich and 3.5oz spalter.
Additions would be:
1 oz @ 60 min
0.7 oz @ 20 min
0.9 oz @ 5 min
0.9 oz @ 0 min

Are you using brewing software to calculate your IBUs? Or are you just guesstimating? If you are doing the latter, do yourself a favor and get some software. I use Brewsmith, which, in my opinion, is the best software out there. If you want something free, three are a lot of web based ones out there.

That being said, why the 20 minute addition? If you're already adding hops at the beginning, end, and whirlpool, there really is no reason to add at 20 minutes. If I were you, I'd increase your 60 minute hops to equal the IBUs of your 20 minute addition.

What style are you going for? A Czech pale lager? You have a low starting gravity for 25 IBUs to be in style guidelines for most styles. I'm not saying that you need to fit a particular style to make great beer, but you should have a particular style in mind when you're designing your recipe. You can, of course, deviate from it as you go.

What yeast are you using?

 

[Sillybilly]

I did a munich/spalt "SMASH", but at 2.2%AA, I bittered with magnum so I wouldn't have as much green matter and saved the rest for late additions, as someone had mentioned above.

 

[Morrey]

Are you using brewing software to calculate your IBUs? Or are you just guesstimating? If you are doing the latter, do yourself a favor and get some software. I use Brewsmith, which, in my opinion, is the best software out there. If you want something free, three are a lot of web based ones out there.

I can't agree more that a good program such as BeerSmith is really keen. Always check the AA% on your hops as this can range from one purchase to another. I bought Hallertau recently at 2.5AA while a partial bag in the fridge was 4.7AA. Then you have a real value to work with.

Assuming your Spalter is 4.5AA, you'll get 26.6 IBU's from your proposed schedule. Maybe I'm wrong, but beers like IPA's or hoppy wheat's use a schedule more suited to this time line.

 

[Argie86]

So you're looking at an FG of 1.006? That's a really dry beer.
Firstly, 25IBU's in that beer will be quite (but not extremely) bitter. Is that what you want?
Is it a lager or ale? Esters from an ale will balance the bitterness a bit.
As for the late late hopping....that's what experimenting is about! Just understand that most experimenting doesn't turn out how you wanted (don't do it if your pipeline is running low). Stick to a proven recipe if you need beer supplies.

I don't know what that amount of late Spalter additions would do, but I'd be very interested to find out if you brew this - it is a really enjoyable hop!

Its an ale, yes 1006 is what beersmith says I will get using safbrew BE256, I know it will be higher more like 1008, 1009 (beersmith always overcalculate the FG)
The bitterness ratio in that beer will be 0.65, which is not that high (at least for my taste), my APA are usually 0.70 and my IPA is close to 0.95. But I never brew a beer with that low alcohol.

Are you using brewing software to calculate your IBUs? Or are you just guesstimating? If you are doing the latter, do yourself a favor and get some software. I use Brewsmith, which, in my opinion, is the best software out there. If you want something free, three are a lot of web based ones out there.

That being said, why the 20 minute addition? If you're already adding hops at the beginning, end, and whirlpool, there really is no reason to add at 20 minutes. If I were you, I'd increase your 60 minute hops to equal the IBUs of your 20 minute addition.

What style are you going for? A Czech pale lager? You have a low starting gravity for 25 IBUs to be in style guidelines for most styles. I'm not saying that you need to fit a particular style to make great beer, but you should have a particular style in mind when you're designing your recipe. You can, of course, deviate from it as you go.

What yeast are you using?

Yes the IBUs are calculated via beersmith. Im using safbrew BE256 (I know is a strange choice but I have 2 packages and I want to use it, also has 3.5oz of spalter in my freezer for a few months).

So addition at 20 mins will only give me bitterness and no flavor? If so I will skip the 20min addition and distribute it between 60 and 0min.

Well im not following any style really, I just have 9lbs of munich, 3.5oz of spalter and a BE256 in stock, that’s my guideline , I will also do 5.5gal of Vienna/Cascade SMaSH in order to compare between those two beers both with the same amount of grains,yeast, and with the same IBUs, I just want to experiment but without making something undrinkeable, noone wants to throw down the sink 11 gallons of beer .

Are really 25 IBUs that much? Like I said to Gnomebrewer, the IBU/SG is not that high (0.65) or Im missing something?

Oh and my Spalters are 3.4AA

 

[max384]

Its an ale, yes 1006 is what beersmith says I will get using safbrew BE256, I know it will be higher more like 1008, 1009 (beersmith always overcalculate the FG)
The bitterness ratio in that beer will be 0.65, which is not that high (at least for my taste), my APA are usually 0.70 and my IPA is close to 0.95. But I never brew a beer with that low alcohol.



Yes the IBUs are calculated via beersmith. Im using safbrew BE256 (I know is a strange choice but I have 2 packages and I want to use it, also has 3.5oz of spalter in my freezer for a few months).

So addition at 20 mins will only give me bitterness and no flavor? If so I will skip the 20min addition and distribute it between 60 and 0min.

Well im not following any style really, I just have 9lbs of munich, 3.5oz of spalter and a BE256 in stock, that’s my guideline , I will also do 5.5gal of Vienna/Cascade SMaSH in order to compare between those two beers both with the same amount of grains,yeast, and with the same IBUs, I just want to experiment but without making something undrinkeable, noone wants to throw down the sink 11 gallons of beer .

Are really 25 IBUs that much? Like I said to Gnomebrewer, the IBU/SG is not that high (0.65) or Im missing something?

Oh and my Spalters are 3.4AA

Your bitterness is close to an APA, but you're using a trappist yeast, and a low OG, with a low FG. 25 IBUs is not that high, but for the "style," it may seem out if place, particularly for that hop.

20 minute addition will provide some flavor, some bitterness, but not great for either, which is why I don't do mid boil additions.

Good luck. It will definitely be an interesting beer

 

[Argie86]

Your bitterness is close to an APA, but you're using a trappist yeast, and a low OG, with a low FG. 25 IBUs is not that high, but for the "style," it may seem out if place, particularly for that hop.

20 minute addition will provide some flavor, some bitterness, but not great for either, which is why I don't do mid boil additions.

Good luck. It will definitely be an interesting beer

Well I toned down the IBUs to 20. I will brew it and give you guys and update on the beer.
Thanks everyone!

 

[max384]

Keep in mind, this is only my opinion on it. There are no absolutes in brewing.

 

[jan_b19]

I agree on this more or less........... I often look at people's hop schedule and ask "why".... What is gained by the multiple additions during the boil? If I want an intensely hoppy beer that isn't intensely bitter, I'll throw something like Magnum in for bittering and concentrate the rest of the hops in a late addition, and or whirlpool, and dry hopping.
Always remember that anything you smell during the process is LOST...... I want that flavor and aroma IN THE GLASS........not the brew kettle. Brewing is not about aroma therapy.......... or at least I hope it's not. It's about getting great flavor and aroma into the finished product.

I've never had and probably never will have a CPAP machine, but if I did, I'd want to have a hop aroma infusion built in ;-)

H.W.

I also agree to this more or less.
It's all about fine tuning your beer.
Adding certain hops at certain stages gives a beer with an entirely different flavor. For example: If you add flavoring hops or bittering hops with a certain flavor you want in your beer (not all bittering hops are all bitterness and no flavor) at 30 minutes you'll achieve a balance between a slight bitterness and a very subtle flavor. If you want a very strong tettnang flavor and a subtle hallertau flavor you could add the hallertau halfway or at 20 minutes.

You're right brewing is about getting aroma and flavor in your glass. And some of it might be lost during the boil. But the subtle differences you get by adding hops at a certain time can be the difference between a good beer and a perfect beer.