Non typical hops for a Hef?

[KlausUndFriends]

Hi HBT,

Reasonably new to HB, but i'm loving it so far!

I'm making a hef this weekend, but I don't have any "standard" hops (Hallertau) for it. I was curious if anyone had ever used anything else, and what were the results. If there are any people with an unofficial PHD in hops that could offer advice, it'll be GREATLY appreciated!

In the freezer I currently have 1oz Target, 3oz Styrian, 1oz Progress, 1 oz Kent and 0.5oz Centennial.

Recipe is going to be pretty straight forward - 7lbs wheat LME and a hef style yeast (yet to pick that up from LHBS).

Danke!

 

[m00ps]

styrian and kent goldings both belong to the same big "Noble" hop family. Hefe's barely have any hops in them to begin with. YOu could use either of those as a sub and itd be fine. Doubt youd even notice

 

[Morrey]

Hi HBT,

Reasonably new to HB, but i'm loving it so far!

I'm making a hef this weekend, but I don't have any "standard" hops (Hallertau) for it. I was curious if anyone had ever used anything else, and what were the results. If there are any people with an unofficial PHD in hops that could offer advice, it'll be GREATLY appreciated!

In the freezer I currently have 1oz Target, 3oz Styrian, 1oz Progress, 1 oz Kent and 0.5oz Centennial.

Recipe is going to be pretty straight forward - 7lbs wheat LME and a hef style yeast (yet to pick that up from LHBS).

Danke!

Glad you joined our HBT family. m00ps offers good advice to stick with the noble hop family. You can find hop charts online that suggest various hops that substitute well for others. Just Google hop substitution charts.

Your best Hefe efforts (my fav beer) is pretty easy on the hops meaning low IBU's. I learned a good bit of how hops influence beers by downloading the free version of BeerSmith. Beers have a "style guide" so you'd be well served to see what IBU range a Hefe should be within.

Hope to hear your results soon! Welcome!!

 

[KlausUndFriends]

Thanks for the words of wisdom guys!

Forgot to mention Alpha %

Target @ 10.8
Styrian @ 8.1
Progress @ 5.8
Kent G @ 4.6

OK with 1oz Styrian for 6gal?

 

[brewshki]

Thanks for the words of wisdom guys!

Forgot to mention Alpha %

Target @ 10.8
Styrian @ 8.1
Progress @ 5.8
Kent G @ 4.6

OK with 1oz Styrian for 6gal?

I bitter my hefe to about 20 IBUs on Beersmith with Northern Brewer. Do you have any sort of software to calculate IBUs. The amount to use all depends on the gravity of your wort and the bitterness you are shooting for.

 

[KlausUndFriends]

I should just get Beersmith it seems One time fee $28... I need to remember I'm not a poor college student anymore. I'm still poor, but I'm not a student

 

[brewshki]

I should just get Beersmith it seems One time fee $28... I need to remember I'm not a poor college student anymore. I'm still poor, but I'm not a student

Beersmith is totally awesome. Very worth it. At the very least, you can get a 3 week free trial.

 

[Morrey]

Beersmith is totally awesome. Very worth it. At the very least, you can get a 3 week free trial.

+1. I tried the free version and found BS to be a very valuable tool. It made the low cost software purchase easy to justify. It is especially helpful if you are the sort to "tinker" with recipes or create your own. I highly recommend giving it a try.

While we are on the subject of software: Another phase of brewing is learning about water chemistry management. This is the difference between a drinkable beer and a really great beer especially for AG brewers understanding that you are doing extract currently. Bru'n Water software offers a spreadsheet to adjust your brewing water's ph and salts for outstanding results. This program also offers a free version to get acquainted. I use these two programs with stellar results.

Hope I'm not throwing too much at you at once. This all takes some time to absorb.

 

[jjeffers09]

jarrylo. its oddly a banana hop

 

[KlausUndFriends]

Thanks guys!

 

[jmcquesten]

Beersmith is totally awesome. Very worth it. At the very least, you can get a 3 week free trial.

Brewersfriend.com is even better and easier to use than beersmith. It's web based so you'll have access to it anywhere you have Internet. I switched from beersmith.

 

[55x11]

Thanks for the words of wisdom guys!

Forgot to mention Alpha %

Target @ 10.8
Styrian @ 8.1
Progress @ 5.8
Kent G @ 4.6

OK with 1oz Styrian for 6gal?

Yes, 1 oz of Styrian at 8.1% alpha will give you about 25 IBU which is plenty for Hefe.

 

[te-wa]

jarrylo is good. my advice tho... 7lbs of lme is not going to do much. are you going for a 3.2% beer? add 2-3lbs of some pilsner malt!
i would go big instead of staying home and use Lemon Drop hops, or Citra, or a wonderful dose of motueka. why put a disgusting lemon wedge in the beer when you can get that flavor from hops?

wanna go even bigger (to hell with reinheitsgebot, it's stupid and this isn't east berlin)? add 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon at end of boil. and then the zest of 2 medium grapefruits - "just enough" to make the hefe "pop". it's like a fantasic banana/apple/citrus gose, without the yucky salt.

 

[KlausUndFriends]

That sounds delightful! I'll add some more MO LME and then do cinnamon and 3 lemons zested. Assume any citrus will do