Is it too late for these Hops?

[WhackedBear]

I am wondering if, I still have a harvest or if they are too far gone. I'm pretty sure the mostly brown ones are bad, I'm just not sure on the pale green/yellow ones. If I do harvest do I still need to dry them?

Thanks,Whacked

 

[cswis86]

I would toss the really brown ones but the rest look fine. You still need to dry them if you intend to save them. There's still a good bit of moisture left in the cones even when they start to brown.

 

[Rob2010SS]

So I don't know what kind of hops those are, but when harvesting, grab a small batch and smell them as you pick them. I harvested my cascades and chinooks a while back. The cascades I didn't notice it so much but on the chinooks, I noticed that the ones that turned more brown actually had an onion/garlic smell to them. I had read about how that can happen and wondered, "Is it really that noticeable?" It sure as heck is!! You don't want those so if you notice that, don't keep them. Unless you want an onion/garlic flavored beer, lol.

 

[WhackedBear]

I have williamette and tetterang. That's good to know for the smell, I will keep an nose out for it. Gonna try and get them harvested tomorrow.

 

[WhackedBear]

Well so far, just picking the really brown ones off and no onion or garlic smells....

 

[WhackedBear]

There is an infestation of aphids though. Is this because of the late harvest? Or do I need a battle plan for next year?

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Yes, they will need drying if you're storing them - but it's always better to brew with them immediately as wet/green hops without drying them. But you can only do that pretty much on the day you harvest, ideally you want to pick them during the mash/boil.

You always need a battle plan for aphids, which mostly boils down to keeping a careful eye out for them as their population can explode and then treating as appropriate.

 

[Rob2010SS]

I had a massive infestation of aphids on my cascades. Upping the drying temp to 120*F killed them pretty easily. I didn't have as much of a problem on my chinooks so those dried at 95*F. This was my first harvest year so a bit of a learning curve but i plan to combat those little a-holes next year

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Lady bugs!

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

There is an infestation of aphids though. Is this because of the late harvest? Or do I need a battle plan for next year?

Those aphids can come around anytime. Ladybugs are their natural predator.