Single hop recipes?

[Cyaneus]

I'm brand new to brewing. Starting of with a sorghum ale, but since I've noticed that regular gluten containing beer doesn't really bother me as much as say, bread, than I am going to brew a normal batch soon too.

Since I want to learn to create recipes of my own, and I want to learn the ingredients well. I figure I'll start with simpler recipes and pay special attention to hops for the first 10 or so brews, and brew only recipes that use one type of hops, this way it'll be easier for me to learn the characteristics of the different hops I use. So my question is:

Whats your favorite ale recipe that only uses one type of hops?

 

[SC_Ryan]

Extract w/ steeping grains? PM? All Grain?

I'm really into the American hops lately. My favorite hops for single hopped beers would probably be, Simcoe, Columbus, Amarillo and Summit. All very flavorful and can stand alone to make a great beer. Hell, throw Cascade in there too. Everyone should be able to identify Cascade IMO.

As far as the malt bill goes... If you are looking to keep it simple you can just do 90% base malt (or extract) with 10% of any one of the crystal malts. There is a lot of learning to be had there as well. The different crystals really impart different flavors and complexities and getting to know them will really improve your recipe writing skills going forward.

 

[mixmasterob]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f66/bee-cave-brewery-haus-pale-ale-31793/ Enough people have brewed this to where it must be good. A rather simple Cascade pale ale.

 

[ArizonaDB]

Last year I came up with a recipe for an American pale ale that used exclusively Amarillo hops. It came out fantastic. I used the hops for bittering, flavor, aroma, and dry hopping. The aroma of amarillos is amazing. After a few weeks in the bottle the aroma from the hops had a strong apricot smell. Amazing!

It's been almost half a year since I brewed it and I had one the other night and the aroma is now much tamed down, but still tastes great. So check out amarillo golds for one of your batches.

 

[JOHN51277]

I have been doing a few SMaSH beers. It really lets you figure out exactly what the grains, and the hops are doing/adding to the beer. (Single Malt and Single Hops) SMaSH.

I just kegged my 2 row and Amarillo ale and it is pretty darned good.

 

[markg388]

IMO you can do pretty much any beer you want with 1 hop, just pick one for the recipe and stick with it. I like these brews better than multi-hop brews personally, I feel like I can taste more nuance of the particular hop that way. It seems the simpler recipe tastes more complex. Here's a suggestion, my favorite amber ale:

9# Vienna malt
1# Crystal 20L

.65oz Centennial @ 10% - 60 min
.35oz Centennial @ 10% - 5 min
1oz Centennial - Dry Hop

Ferment with 1 packet of Safale us-05

If you're doing extract, there's a math formula out there to figure it out.


PS: my wife has chron's disease and can't eat much gluten, and she can drink even my hefeweizen. granted, she can also eat a monthly sandwich so she doesn't have it as bad some do, but odds are you can drink your beer without problems.

 

[HoppyDaze]

I would do a simple SMaSH with Amarillo Golds and Vienna....

Something like this:

10lbs Vienna
1oz amarillo 60 mins
.5oz amarillo 15 mins
.5oz amarillo 5 mins
1oz amarillo dry hop

S-05

 

[mitch171]

I just made a 10 gal batch with just Nugget and it is awesome so far. I just kegged it tonight so we will see. I used 7 oz of homegrown.

 

[Rick500]

Are you brewing extract or all-grain? My favorite one-hop recipe is Amarillo IPA. I brew it all-grain but there's an extract recipe on the board. Let me know if you want it and I'll post the link (or just search "all amarillo ipa").

 

[Cyaneus]

Awesome thanks for the suggestions I'll definitely be looking around amarillo recipes. Could you recommend a commercial IPA? I've never tried IPA, I'd like to try it out before I brew it.

If my dad's Pale Ale turns out well, I might try that cascade pale ale, but maybe I'll want to have something else around too.

Given I don't even have ceoliac's and just a slight sensitivity to gluten to where it gives me head aches when in high doses and combined with lactose, I think you are right mark, now I'm free to brew more variety and explore all-grain brewing when I can.

and I am brewing extract ATM.

 

[Rick500]

Commercial IPAs...I like the not insanely bitter ones with lots of grapefruit/citrus flavor and aroma: Bell's Hopslam, Three Floyds Dreadnaught, and Founders Double Trouble, for example. Those are all imperial IPAs. For a regular IPA, it's hard to beat Bell's Two Hearted Ale.

 

[JOHN51277]

I did a Amarillo SMaSH recipe just like this.

10 lbs 2 Row (Mash at 154 60 mins)

1 oz amarillo FWH
1 oz amarillo 20 mins
.5 oz amarillo 10 mins
.5 oz amarillo 5 mins
1 oz amarillo at flame out

2 oz amarillo dry hop for 7 days

US-05 yeast at 68 degrees.

 

[swankyswede]

I did a pale ale with all US Goldings, and me and my girlfriend have ripped through 5 gals in 2 weeks.

Calculated in BeerAlchemy

OG: 1.048
FG: 1.012
ABV: 4.8%
IBU: 41.4
Color: 5.3 SRM

Grain Bill
10.0 lbs. US 2-Row
0.5 lbs Caramel 40L

Hop Schedule
US Goldings - 2oz @ 60 mins
US Goldings - 1oz @ 30 mins
US Goldings - 1oz @ flameout
US Goldings - 2oz @ Dry-hopped for 8 days

Yeast
1 packet SafAle US-05

Water
1/2 tsp gypsum

Mash
Single-step infusion @ 152°F, 60 mins

 

[Clonefarmer]

Awesome thanks for the suggestions I'll definitely be looking around amarillo recipes. Could you recommend a commercial IPA? I've never tried IPA, I'd like to try it out before I brew it.

Mikellar Amarillo IPA, Dogfishead 60 minute and Sierra Nevada Torpedo are a few good IPAs to try.

 

[Cyaneus]

I looked for Bell's, but than found out it's not sold in Oregon(according to their website). So I bought Sierra Nevada Torpedo. I think it's okay, I like the flavor that seems to be in the center of the taste, but the bitter edge that surrounds it puts me off from wanting to brew 5 gallons of something like it. If it was just slightly less bitter it'd be absolutely bomb to my taste buds.

Are there any commercial beers similar to SN Torpedo in flavor but less bitter?

And are there any extract pseudoSMaSH recipes for a similar beer? How about non-SMaSH?

 

[markg388]

If you didn't like SN torpedo, then you gotta know that a ton (probably the majority) of homebrewers really love a strong, bitter, hoppy and intense IPA, and you might not. I've never had SN torpedo, but you're probably in the minority thinking it's overly bitter. I think Bridgeport IPA is a fairly evenly balanced example of IPA, and Longhammer IPA is the gentlest version I've tried so far. Try those and see if you like them more, If you don't like them, I wouldn't bother brewing an IPA.

I don't like extreme IPA's either, but I keep an IPA on hand at home that's about 6.5% ABV and 45 IBU's worth of bitterness (which is at the bottom of the bitterness spectrum) that tastes amazing.

If you do like them, homebrewed IPA is the way to go because you get to drink it when it's so fresh. .........Plus it isn't so damned bitter .

 

[eanmcnulty]

Awesome thanks for the suggestions I'll definitely be looking around amarillo recipes. Could you recommend a commercial IPA? I've never tried IPA, I'd like to try it out before I brew it.

If my dad's Pale Ale turns out well, I might try that cascade pale ale, but maybe I'll want to have something else around too.

Given I don't even have ceoliac's and just a slight sensitivity to gluten to where it gives me head aches when in high doses and combined with lactose, I think you are right mark, now I'm free to brew more variety and explore all-grain brewing when I can.

and I am brewing extract ATM.

I am in the middle of 6 batches that are exactly what you are describing. They are all-grain, but they are only 2.5-3 gallon batches. It's a great way to practice with all-grain, full boils, cooling somewhat quickly, and bottling 18 bottles is a breeze. They go away fast though.
I use...
5# American 2-row
1# crystal 20L

The amount of hops has to change based on their AA%. So far I have brewed:
All Cascade (just bottled yesterday)
All Amarillo (still in fermenter)
All Simcoe (still in fermenter)
All Centennial (to brew this week)
All Chinook (to brew this weekend)
All Citra (to brew in a week or so)

And based on some of the responses you got I am going to add to my list:
All Summit
All Columbus

I really like brewing these small batches. I am able to brew after work. They only take about 3-4 hours. I do a no-sparge, so my efficiency isn't as good as other who sparge, but at 5-7 pounds of grain the extra cost is low.

 

[BeerBrent]

I have been doing a few SMaSH beers. It really lets you figure out exactly what the grains, and the hops are doing/adding to the beer. (Single Malt and Single Hops) SMaSH.

I just kegged my 2 row and Amarillo ale and it is pretty darned good.

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just read this and was thinking of doing a SMaSH beer. do you have the recipe for this beer?