Steeping hops AND dry hopping

[cmeb22]

looking for suggestions and info.

Would both steeping hops and dry hopping be to much? I get the feeling one or the other is usually chosen.

Cheers

 

[eluterio]

What do you mean by steeping hops?

 

[bobbrews]

For IPAs/IIPAs it is very common to do both hopstand/whirlpool + dryhop. The dryhop is slightly more important IMO, but not by much.

Here are some rough estimates for how the hops are divvied up (by weight) in a couple of the top IPAs/IIPAs out there:

Russian River Pliny the Elder
28% early (or hop extract)
14% middle
28% late
30% dryhop

Fat Head's Head Hunter
21% early
17% middle
28% late
34% dryhop

Ninkasi Tricerahops
19% early
12% middle
27% late
42% dryhop

Stone IPA
22% early
0% middle
44% late
34% dryhop

Kern Citra IIPA
13% early
8% middle
25% late
54% dryhop

Firestone Walker Union Jack
6% early
19% middle
31% late
44% dryhop

Alchemist Heady Topper
0% early (latest info is that no actual hops are boiled – only hop extract is used at this point at 10-15 ml per 5 gallon batch)
0% middle
43% late
57% dryhop

 

[Hobanon]

Would both steeping hops and dry hopping be to much?

No such thing.

 

[philosofool]

looking for suggestions and info.

Would both steeping hops and dry hopping be to much? I get the feeling one or the other is usually chosen.

Cheers

I think it's all about what you are trying to do. I've never made an IPA without dry hops, because I love them. You certainly could do a steep only IPA. I would say that I mostly see a combination of both steep and dry in most Recipes these days.

I think it's possible for hop character to get muddy if you over do it, but I think the solution is to use fewer varieties, not less hops. When I'm going huge, I often stick to just two varieties, like Simcoe and CTZ or Simcoe and Amarillo or... you get the idea. Anyway, when you start getting into the five plus ounce additions, you start deriving new flavors from familiar hops, so you don't need as many varieties for complexity.

 

[bobbrews]

^^ That is a myth. Great IPAs can be made with just two hop varieties, or with 6 to 8 or more.

Heady topper and Brooklyn blast are just two examples of the latter.