No hop beer!?

bbrim · Jul 2, 2011

I love making beer and I do it outside. The neighbors all know what I'm doing and only one of them seems at all interested. Unfortunately he is allergic to hops, to the point he won't even taste beer. But he loves beer and it makes him sad. So I am planning to make a beer without hops so I can share some with him. My concept is to use a grist similar to a mild and make it as dry as possible then I will add roasted jalapenos, using the spice to balance the sweetness. Has anyone tried anything like this? What is the shelf life for beers without hops? I expect to be 10 days in primary then keg and go straight to the fridge. Does anyone have any input regarding questions I haven't thought of?
My recipe for 5 gallons is:
6.5 lbs Maris Otter
.25 lbs Chocolate malt
.25 lbs Roast barley
US-05
I will be cold steeping 4 roasted jalapenos during fermentation, then adding them at kegging. I will do some sample blends to fight a suitable level of spice.
Thanks for your input!

JoeyChopps · Jul 2, 2011

If he is allergic to hops how does he love beer?

airdusters · Jul 2, 2011

instead of jalapenos you could use more roasted grains for bitterness but it might end up astringent

ChshreCat · Jul 2, 2011

Actually, beer used to be made without hops. Do a search for "gruit" and you might get some better ideas.

LexusChris · Jul 2, 2011

Before hops were commonly used, many different local herbs were added to beer to add some flavor/bitterness to balance the sweetness.

I'd find out if your neighbor is allergic to any other herbs. Rosemary, mugwart, yarrow, sweet gale, meadowsweet, hyssop, chamomile, etc. all make for some nice brews.

I'd say to start with half as much spice as you think you need, as you can always add more later. Additionally, some spices mellow with a few months of aging .. so tasting them 'green' will be very pronounced, but a few months later they blend in...

Good luck,
--LexusChris

PaulTheGhost · Jul 2, 2011

Juniper is a common bittering herb used to replace hops in places like iceland, norway, and finland. Brew Your Own had an article an issue or two back about using alternative bittering methods such as juniper.