Sorachi Ace hops usage

[christophereatworld]

Hey guys,

I'm looking at a Brooklyn-inspired Saison recipe which calls for the use of Sorachi Ace hops.

However, the recipe calls for a whopping 7.5oz of them. I'm not the most experienced brewer (this will be my 5th batch), but that sure seems like an awful lot.

http://love2brew.dreamhosters.com/vspfiles/love2learn/kitinstructions/sorachisaison(pm).pdf

Any thoughts on that? Much appreciated.

Thanks!
Chris :rockin:

 

[Kiichi]

That is indeed a lot, but it might just be what is needed, assuming this is a 5 gallon batch. I must say I have never had the Brooklyn (sadface), but I just brewed a Saison with Sorachi Ace and learned something there. Thing here is that you need a lot of hops to have the Sorachi stand strong against the yeast character, which is quite strong. There are 1 1/2 oz going towards bittering and flavor, and 5 into flameout.

In my brew I used 1/2 oz for bittering since I went session strength and added green tea, but I did add 2,5 oz in a hopstand, as I think it much more effective than flameout and late additions. Now, in the finished beer, which saw the addition of 1.7 oz of green tea, juice of 1 lemon, zest of 3 lemons, fermentation with French Saison yeast, and the 2,5 oz Sorachi Ace in an extended hopstand, the hops seem to do the least of all the things. They provice more of a background and add dimension to the lemon.

So here this might just be what is needed to make it really stand out. You might be able to get away with less though, especially if you shift around the timing a bit. I recon that by shifting the 30min and flameout into a hopstand at 160-175 for 60min you could reduce the amount of hops needed, as this method is very effective in extracting flavor and aroma. You´d loose a tad of IBUs though, so adjustment might be needed.

 

[christophereatworld]

That is indeed a lot, but it might just be what is needed, assuming this is a 5 gallon batch. I must say I have never had the Brooklyn (sadface), but I just brewed a Saison with Sorachi Ace and learned something there. Thing here is that you need a lot of hops to have the Sorachi stand strong against the yeast character, which is quite strong. There are 1 1/2 oz going towards bittering and flavor, and 5 into flameout.

In my brew I used 1/2 oz for bittering since I went session strength and added green tea, but I did add 2,5 oz in a hopstand, as I think it much more effective than flameout and late additions. Now, in the finished beer, which saw the addition of 1.7 oz of green tea, juice of 1 lemon, zest of 3 lemons, fermentation with French Saison yeast, and the 2,5 oz Sorachi Ace in an extended hopstand, the hops seem to do the least of all the things. They provice more of a background and add dimension to the lemon.

So here this might just be what is needed to make it really stand out. You might be able to get away with less though, especially if you shift around the timing a bit. I recon that by shifting the 30min and flameout into a hopstand at 160-175 for 60min you could reduce the amount of hops needed, as this method is very effective in extracting flavor and aroma. You´d loose a tad of IBUs though, so adjustment might be needed.

Thanks so much! I appreciate your input. The recipe I'm using calls for continuous hoping throughout the boil and then some in secondary too.

 

[ong]

Huh, interesting recipe. I get a ton of dill pickle aroma from Sorachi Ace, but that's probably just a personal preference.

 

[ong]

Also, I would let your 5 oz hopstand sit at around 195-185 degrees for awhile, rather than immediately chilling. You'll get a ton more flavor out of those hops if you let them steep for half an hour.

 

[Kiichi]

Also, I would let your 5 oz hopstand sit at around 195-185 degrees for awhile, rather than immediately chilling. You'll get a ton more flavor out of those hops if you let them steep for half an hour.

Possible too, but that is closer to flameout additions (but better imho) and will also still add IBUs. I prefer the 160-175 range as it does not contribute bitterness anymore and infuses some of the more volatile oils which get lost at higher temps. Takes a little more time than the higher range though.

Both have pros and cons. You just need to know what they are.