Strata hops review (flavor, aroma, pungency, pairings)

[tyrub42]

Hey everyone,

After looking forward to getting my hands on some strata hops for several years, I was finally able to get back to the US and was thrilled to pick some up from the good folks at Yakima Valley Hops. I made a rye IPA featuring a bit of mosaic cryo in the whirl for support, and a massive dry hop of strata (they seemed like they'd pair well, as they have many descriptors in common). At this point here's what I can say about strata.

-It's delicious.
-It's incredibly similar to mosaic IMO. I'd say these two hops are more alike than any other two I've tried.
-the differences from mosaic are that it leans more towards strawberry than mosaic does (which I guess leans more towards blueberry but always got more of a 'general berry's quality than blueberry specifically), and the dankness is softer. Mosaic can get pretty resinous and piney sometimes, and while I've only used strata once, it seems like the dank edge doesn't have any sharpness to it, and is entirely overripe fruit, papaya, weed, and similar descriptors of 'dank'
-it's pungent but not quite as pungent as mosaic
-it pairs great with mosaic despite the similarities (sort of how galaxy and vic's secret pair well), but this hop seems like it could pair well with virtually anything and contribute something good.
-I wish I had more of it . I have some left to blend into something worthy in the near future, and will he sure to get more next time I'm back.

Anyway, thought I'd make this thread for anyone doing research in the future.

Cheers

 

[Nuke83]

Used Strata for the first time myself yesterday. Added an ounce for a 30 minute hop stand and will add another few ounces to dry hop in about 10 days. They smell Fantastic. Very clean and bright, and looking forward to tasting. Paired with Chinook and Centennial in the hop stand and will also include those in the dry hop. Used a small amount of Magnum for the 60 minute boil.

 

[day_trippr]

I do an neipa featuring Azacca, Idaho 7 and Strata as a Sierra Nevada Fantastic Haze clone.
Delicious! Does not hang around at all

Cheers!

https://sierranevada.com/beer/fantastic-haze/

 

[tyrub42]

Used Strata for the first time myself yesterday. Added an ounce for a 30 minute hop stand and will add another few ounces to dry hop in about 10 days. They smell Fantastic. Very clean and bright, and looking forward to tasting. Paired with Chinook and Centennial in the hop stand and will also include those in the dry hop. Used a small amount of Magnum for the 60 minute boil.

Oh awesome, I was just thinking I'd love it with some classic c hops especially in something on the amber/red side of things. Please let me know how it turns out!

 

[tyrub42]

I do an neipa featuring Azacca, Idaho 7 and Strata as a Sierra Nevada Fantastic Haze clone.
Delicious! Does not hang around at all

Cheers!

https://sierranevada.com/beer/fantastic-haze/

That is a can't-lose combo for sure! Bet it tastes way better than the SN beer you're cloning

 

[day_trippr]

Hmm? It's a clone - and remarkably close, mostly because they tell you everything they use

Cheers!

 

[tyrub42]

Hmm? It's a clone - and remarkably close, mostly because they tell you everything they use

Cheers!

Oh haha alright then. I'm not a big fan of that beer, so I figured your version was better. Maybe it's better if it's super fresh, though. I'm in Taiwan so SN is all cold chain but rarely less than 2 months old. Honestly the only SN IPA I've had that I really like is celebration (speaking of which, tis the season pretty soon ), so maybe I'm biased.

 

[day_trippr]

Taiwan? Yeah, I see your problem.

SN doesn't call it an "New England IPA" lest they hurt their own feelings, but that is exactly what it is: a juicy imperial hop bomb - which are notorious for not sporting long legs....

 

[tyrub42]

Taiwan? Yeah, I see your problem.

SN doesn't call it an "New England IPA" lest they hurt their own feelings, but that is exactly what it is: a juicy imperial hop bomb - which are notorious for not sporting long legs....

Yeah it's a long way to travel. Luckily our main importers are excellent about keeping everything cold en route (lately some have actually been flying stuff in due to the global shipping situation). Still though, even with all of the effort, beers can end up arriving on the shelves showing their age. On the other hand, we've had some surprisingly great breweries make appearances over the years (abnormal, DeGarde, cloudwater, etc), so I'm definitely not complaining.

Btw it looks like SN uses their house yeast in their hazy. Did you use a standard American ale yeast in the clone, or a NEIPA yeast?

 

[day_trippr]

Their page only says "ale yeast". I've done two 10 gallon batches both with Imperial A38...

Cheers!