My Wife Says I Have Too Many Hops

[thadius856]

I disagree. One can never have too many hops.



She told me that I need to buy another freezer because she wants her freezer space back. Fair enough!

How many hops do you keep in stock?

 

[TNGabe]

I see leaf in there, what is that 24 qt jars? Phfffff, tell that woman you ain't got enough hops!

I've only got pellets. I'd say I've got about a dozen plus varieties and under 10lbs. Mostly fancy new stuff, with a few old old varieties, nothing in between for some reason.

 

[alane1]

I grow hops, got my own freezer.poblem solved!!!

 

[thadius856]

21# pellets, and that 1# of Centennial leaves takes up several times the space of a pound of pellets.

Mostly C hops, a few nobles.

Its amazing how well 1# fits in a quart jar. Occupies less space than 4 oz FoodSaver bags and lasts longer too, especially when vacuumed out.

 

[thadius856]

I could cram 9 oz in a pint mason jar.

 

[Teromous]

I usually only store as much as I think I will need for upcoming batches, or whatever is left over. I don't want to have old hops sitting around. The only circumstance where I would store a lot of hops, is if they were picked from my yard to use later, or I bought some in bulk to brew with later. If it's just 1-4oz, I'm probably going to pay the same amount for it whether I buy it now or later, so there's no reason for me to keep it on hand.

 

[iaefebs]

I could cram 9 oz in a pint mason jar.

My apologies. I use pint's for 9oz. I just checked .

 

[gbx]

I have the same issue. I do feel bad that I will never get through all of them while they are still in top shape.

 

[thadius856]

I usually only store as much as I think I will need for upcoming batches, or whatever is left over. I don't want to have old hops sitting around. The only circumstance where I would store a lot of hops, is if they were picked from my yard to use later, or I bought some in bulk to brew with later. If it's just 1-4oz, I'm probably going to pay the same amount for it whether I buy it now or later, so there's no reason for me to keep it on hand.

True.

At better than a 50% savings the lb, I figure I only have to use 6 oz to see a savings over LHBS. At -20F in a vacuumed mason jar, all varieties should retain 95% of their AA at 1 year old. Many consider hops good until 50% is gone...

Also doesn't seem like it'll take many 10 gal IIPA batches to burn a lb. Think I burned 13 oz last brew day on a single batch.

 

[PLOVE]

Call me dumb (dumb), but how are you vacuuming mason jars. Buying hops by the pound is a huge money saver, but I'm always worried I won't get around to brewing enough beer to deal with 3# of the big C.

 

[E-Mursed]

Call me dumb (dumb), but how are you vacuuming mason jars. Buying hops by the pound is a huge money saver, but I'm always worried I won't get around to brewing enough beer to deal with 3# of the big C.

Foodsaver makes an attachment that sucks the air out.

Look on Amazon

 

[ksut1547]

I've never had that problem. But only because my wife doesn't look in the hop freezer. I have no idea how many lbs are in there. But I still want MORE!

 

[aeviaanah]

Call me dumb (dumb), but how are you vacuuming mason jars. Buying hops by the pound is a huge money saver, but I'm always worried I won't get around to brewing enough beer to deal with 3# of the big C.

To vacuum seal a jar you can heat it up. As the air inside the jar cools it creates a negative pressure, of course the lid has to be on tight. I havent used this method for storing hops and the heat may be detrimental.

 

[iaefebs]

If grandma doesn't have one to give you , buy one of these. Mines probably 20 years old and all I do is add keg lube to the seal once it gets difficult to remove from the jar.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00005TN7H/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[gbx]

I don't like buying bulk hops as I would prefer to buy fresh from the LHBS but they don't stock a lot of imports and I love English hops- Of "goldings" type hops I have 3lbs EKG, 8oz WGV, 2lbs Styrian Goldings, 8oz First Gold, and 1lb of some generic "UK" goldings. ...and then there is the citra, cascade, saaz, and homegrown willamette.

 

[iaefebs]

I don't like buying bulk hops as I would prefer to buy fresh from the LHBS but they don't stock a lot of imports and I love English hops- Of "goldings" type hops I have 3lbs EKG, 8oz WGV, 2lbs Styrian Goldings, 8oz First Gold, and 1lb of some generic "UK" goldings. ...and then there is the citra, cascade, saaz, and homegrown willamette.

And all those hops you mention are picked at the same time as the hops you buy in bulk. You have no idea how they are stored if you don't store them yourself. It's not like buying lettuce or oranges, The myth of fresher hops from the LHBS is ...... a myth.

 

[roymullins]

tell her she has too many shoes...

 

[gbx]

And all those hops you mention are picked at the same time as the hops you buy in bulk. You have no idea how they are stored if you don't store them yourself. It's not like buying lettuce or oranges, The myth of fresher hops from the LHBS is ...... a myth.

I agree with you except I've had some more than a year. I don't think the LHBS hops are more than a year old.

 

[iaefebs]

I agree with you except I've had some more than a year. I don't think the LHBS hops are more than a year old.

Of course they are. The only way to get an idea is to go by the AAU on the package, Even that is tough to decipher. I wouldn't be surprised if hops are two years old at the LHBS. The only way to know for sure is to buy bulk by knowing the supplier and current year AAU by grower and control it yourself.

 

[thadius856]

Storage temperature is about 10x more impactful than storage type (mason jar, mylar bag, foodsaver bag, ziplock) when it comes to AA retained. At -20F, all hops retain 95% of their AA after 1 year. At 70F (LHBS or warehouse), even kn the best Mylar bags, its many times worse.

If you want the absolute freshest hops, then only fresh (not dried) will do, but they're only available and viable for a short time (days to weeks) after harvest in the fall. If you buy bulk hops at harvest right as they're pelleted and freeze them, they will always be fresher than same hear LHBS hops. And way cheaper too.

Vacuum sealing only reduces AA loss a percent or two. You can simply toss them in a jar at low temps. If you don't own a FoodSaver or Seal-a-Meal unit to seal them but still want to, many have had good success with a brake bleeder pump ($15 at HF) modified for it. It should provide at least as good a seal.

 

[thadius856]

Id rather use multi year old deep frozen hops than same year hops stored at room temperature.

 

[ktblunden]

Hmm, I've been using Foodsaver rolls for my hops, but I may have to switch to Mason jars. The biggest issue I have is the 3" of wasted space at the top of the bag or roll to vacuum and seal it. A jar I would be able to seal and reseal as many times as I want without having to use a new bag every time. Gotta get the attachment for my Foodsaver and get some jars.

Oh and as to the original question, I probably have somewhere around 10-12# of hops in the freezer right now. All the bags take up about half of our chest freezer.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

tell her she has too many shoes...

Tell her you can reduce the amount of hops in the house or the amount of wives in the house...

 

[biochemedic]

To the OP: if she says it, then it's true...even if it's not...

 

[cabron99]

I put my hops in soda bottles. The lid is modified with a tire stem. Flush with CO2, squeeze, flush, for a couple of cycles. Leave pressurized and freeze. Easy to rig a quick disconnect off of an extra tank. Especially if you're charging cornies. Just don't leave the fitting on the keg when disconnecting.