LOTS of Low AA hops, added really late...

[MacBruver]

I'm brewing this Two Hearted clone this weekend. The recipe specifies 9.5% AA centennial hops, but mine are much lower closer to 6%.

On top of that, I'm really interested in trying this late hopping technique, shifting the majority of the hops to the last 20 minutes or so. That means even MORE hops to get the IBU's where they should be.

So, my question is this- is it going to totally throw the beer off, since I'll be using TWICE as much hops, as far as the aroma and hop flavor is concerned? I know the bitterness will be on target from my calculations, I just don't know how the rest of it will work out.

 

[arturo7]

I did a snotload of late hopping on my last batch. Ask me in a couple weeks.

Go for it.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

No need to post twice...seems to be a trend lately....
Throw the beer off? Well, it's going to be different than the original recipe. But will still be beer. Late hop additions can be fun to play around with. Go for it.

 

[ThickHead]

Posting your queries in one location is all that is necessary.

Most of the bittering will take place from the earlier hop additions. The later additions add a small amount of bittering and principally aroma. If you want to compensate I would suggest upping the earlier additions to compensate for the lower AA% and use dry-hopping or a hopback to get your aromas.

 

[MacBruver]

Posting your queries in one location is all that is necessary.

Most of the bittering will take place from the earlier hop additions. The later additions add a small amount of bittering and principally aroma. If you want to compensate I would suggest upping the earlier additions to compensate for the lower AA% and use dry-hopping or a hopback to get your aromas.

It shouldn't have posted twice, I only meant to post it in Recipes... meant to cancel it before it posted here. Oh well.

Check out the article i linked about late hopping to get an idea of what I'm trying to accomplish. Hopping early, and using a hopback would be a typical way to accomplish both bittering and aroma, but the "hop it all in the last 20 minutes" method aims to put in more floral aromas, and give a smoother bitterness than lots of early hops.

 

[jaobrien6]

In my experience, a ton of late hop additions adds a lot of flavor, but the aroma really comes from dry-hopping. I've tried what you're describing with an IPA previously and was disappointed because the aroma just wasn't there like I'd hoped (I didn't dry hop it).

 

[ThickHead]

It shouldn't have posted twice, I only meant to post it in Recipes... meant to cancel it before it posted here. Oh well.

Check out the article i linked about late hopping to get an idea of what I'm trying to accomplish. Hopping early, and using a hopback would be a typical way to accomplish both bittering and aroma, but the "hop it all in the last 20 minutes" method aims to put in more floral aromas, and give a smoother bitterness than lots of early hops.

I don't think it will throw it off exactly. I mean if you are looking for such results, as that techniques indicates as achievable, I would be all for giving it a go. In my mind it's tuff to screw anything up on the back end with late/aroma hop additions (an IPA anyway). If you want it to be as close to a two-hearted as possible, stick as closely as possible to the recipe. If you want to give it your own little spin using this technique, go for it.

 

[MacBruver]

To separate the two issues- what changes can I expect, if any, when substituting low AA% hops for high AA% hops while adjusting amounts to keep the bittering the same?