Northern Brewer sub -- Pekko? Super Styrian?

[eulipion2]

I've been considering doing a Cali Common, which I know is traditionally a showcase for Northern Brewer, but I have a bag of Super Styrian, and I found some Pekko on sale, both of which seem to have fairly similar flavor descriptions to NB. Can anyone speak to this one way or the other?

Thanks!

 

[catdaddy66]

I have been reading up on Northern Brewer substitutes and am intrigued by the variety Aurora which is both NB and SS substitutes. My lhbs doesn't have any larger bags of Northern Brewer (I really like California common!) so I got a half# of Aurora as a sub. I hope it is a good choice.

 

[eulipion2]

I have been reading up on Northern Brewer substitutes and am intrigued by the variety Aurora which is both NB and SS substitutes. My lhbs doesn't have any larger bags of Northern Brewer (I really like California common!) so I got a half# of Aurora as a sub. I hope it is a good choice.

Please let me know if you brew a CC with Aurora, and how it turns out -- I gotta start using the hops in my freezer before buying new!

 

[eulipion2]

BTW, I think Aurora and Super Styrian are the same thing. Or maybe it's more of a CTZ situation. Either way, very similar.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

BTW, I think Aurora and Super Styrian are the same thing. Or maybe it's more of a CTZ situation. Either way, very similar.

No, neither. Calling Aurora a Super Styrian is like calling both Citra and Willamette by the name Super Cascadia. Styrian is a purely geographical term that doesn't tell you anything about genetics, lazy retailers try to use it because people have heard of the now-deprecated term Styrian Goldings which in less-educated times was applied to the variety Savinjski Goldings when grown in Slovenia & Austria.

Super Styrian is a term that gets applied to pretty much any new variety that comes out of Slovenia, even though the parentage can be wildly different. Aurora is a daughter of Northern Brewer whereas the other common one, Celeia, is a daughter of Savinjski Golding, and others are daughters of Brewer's Gold (grandmother of Northern Brewer). So it's a pretty meaningless term that is unfortunately quite common in the US retail channel.

But to be honest I think you are vastly overthinking this, and as a result getting away from the spirit of a California Common. The whole point of the style is that it's something of a "make do with what's available" beer in the primitive conditions of the Gold Rush, that's why they ended up using lager yeast at ale temperatures. You wouldn't do that if you were overthinking things like you are.

Instead, think like a 49er. Use either an old US variety like Cluster, or one of the early Wye varieties like Bullion. At a pinch the likes of Challenger and Willamette will be in the spirit of the style, regardless of what some hop substitution chart thinks.

 

[eulipion2]

No, neither. Calling Aurora a Super Styrian is like calling both Citra and Willamette by the name Super Cascadia. Styrian is a purely geographical term that doesn't tell you anything about genetics, lazy retailers try to use it because people have heard of the now-deprecated term Styrian Goldings which in less-educated times was applied to the variety Savinjski Goldings when grown in Slovenia & Austria.

Thanks for the correction. I got my info from the YCH Hops website, so I assumed it must be true:

A diploid hybrid of Northern Brewer and a TG seedling of unknown origin, Aurora displays an intense yet pleasant aroma in finished beers. It is also known as Super Styrian.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Thanks for the correction. I got my info from the YCH Hops website, so I assumed it must be true:

Well - YCH give the actual variety name of Aurora first but otherwise have to reflect the world as it is, and there are plenty of people out there who talk about Styrians and Super Styrians out of habit. But that kind of usage is deprecated as it's ambiguous - and within the EU I think the use of the name Styrian Goldings is now banned, I've lost track but they were certainly trying to get it banned.

 

[catdaddy66]

Please let me know if you brew a CC with Aurora, and how it turns out -- I gotta start using the hops in my freezer before buying new!

I plan to brew it soon, like as soon as the hops arrive via Fedex. I probably should have got a full lb instead of half but didn't want to commit to too much (I already have about 4.5# of many types in my freezer) before trying them out. I will update as soon as I can.