Vic Secret hop pairing ?

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My first post here. Never used Vic Secret. I have 8 oz of Vic Secret on hand and would like your suggestions on hop pairings in a WC IPA. I have two thoughts below. Your suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks:)

Bittering: Warrier
Back end: Amarillo, Vic Secret

Bittering: Chinook
Back end: Chinook, Simcoe, Vic
 
Be a little careful with the Vic Secret. It’s really high in polyphenols. It can be very harsh when young or if too many of those polyphenols are still in suspension.

If you want to make a “clear” WC IPA you’ll need to fine it. The polyphenols in Vic Secret will keep it rather hazy for a long period of time.

Definitely don’t bitter with it.

Vic Secret on its own can be great. I’d pick one hop to “boost” it up slightly. Say Mosaic or El Dorado. Use mostly Vic Secret.

Of the two I’d go with the Amarillo option.

The chinook/Simcoe pairing would be rather piney if you go with that. Vic Secret definitley has some pine to it.

Some people think it’s rather eucalyptus like
 
Thanks couchsending!!!

I had that polyphenol problem with Pekko hops.

For IPAs my earliest non-bittering boil addition is ~5 min. Do ya think VS can handle that or better to just whirlpool <180 and DH?
 
Thanks couchsending!!!

I had that polyphenol problem with Pekko hops.

For IPAs my earliest non-bittering boil addition is ~5 min. Do ya think VS can handle that or better to just whirlpool <180 and DH?

I’d stick with DH and whirlpool personally. Amarillo is great in the boil.
 
I've done a 50% Amarillo / 50% Vic Secret and it was very good. But Vic Secret is really harsh, not unpleasent, but you will find it needs time to come into its own. But a delicious hop nevertheless.

Mosaic and Citra will go well with it as well, and most likely, something like Denali and Azacca.
 
Similar question: Dry hop with 2oz Vic and 4 oz galaxy? good idea? I'm worried the galaxy might over power and I won't get anything from the Vic. Should I go with Vic and citra instead?
 
Vic Secret is just as powerful. You want more Vic Secret, change the ratio.
 
I did a Trillium style NEIPA with all Columbus in the boil/whirlpool and a large Vic Secret dry hop. It was one the best NEIPA's I've made in a while, but as others have mentioned, it was very harsh and first and took a week or two longer than usual before it was drinkable.

In general I think it would work great with Citra, Mosaic or Amarillo. Maybe Centennial or Simcoe if you are going more for west coast style.
 
My first post here. Never used Vic Secret. I have 8 oz of Vic Secret on hand and would like your suggestions on hop pairings in a WC IPA. I have two thoughts below. Your suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks:)

Bittering: Warrier
Back end: Amarillo, Vic Secret

Bittering: Chinook
Back end: Chinook, Simcoe, Vic

I used Vic Secret recently on a recipe I got from AHA that was a NHC winner last year called "Big Boi Booty Sweat". Lol, I renamed mine "Night Moves" after the Bob Seger song. I bittered with Warrior and the recipe paired Citra, Mosaic, Idaho 7, and Vic Secret. It used a lot of hops but turned out really well.
 
Been away for a while. I did finally brew a 5 gallon VC/Amarillo IPA back in October. I used in ounces:
1.2 Warrior @60
.5 Amarillo, .2 VC @ 7
2 each in WP
2 each DH
Came out 6% with 64 IBUs and I did use Biofine.

I don’t see making this beer again. It was harsh and had that eucalyptus flavor from the VC. I can see using a little as a DH with other hops. But I just moved on to other hop adventures.
 
I'm kegging a 4 gallon batch today which was Citra(2oz)/Idaho7(1oz) in the whirlpool and Vic Secret(2oz)/Citra(2oz) in the dry hop. I'll try to remember to post how that turns out when I tap it.
 
I'm kegging a 4 gallon batch today which was Citra(2oz)/Idaho7(1oz) in the whirlpool and Vic Secret(2oz)/Citra(2oz) in the dry hop. I'll try to remember to post how that turns out when I tap it.
I'm getting into some vic secret again and was googling and saw this thread, and my post that I never updated on. Hate that, but better late than never I guess.

The batch I referred to in my previous post turned out good. It did have a tiny bit of bite, I'm assuming from the polyphenols but wasn't unpleasant. Nice citrus/fruity hop flavor.

What's interesting is the batch I came in behind that with was an all vic secret pale ale, and had same amount of vic secret in the dry hop(2 oz). No bite whatsoever and was a complete tropical fruit bomb. Maybe the fruitiest beer I've made. Obviously different grain bills. Pale ale was super heavy vienna(45%) but same yeast though(WLP008).
 
I agree with Vic Secret and Galaxy....really, lots of Australian/New Zealand hops work well with it, especially Nelson Sauvin.
I did an IPA with VS, Idaho 7 and Galaxy that is worth redoing.
 
Hey folks if you could cast an eye over this APA recipe I'm planning over the coming days with Vic Secret and Galaxy - just got my hands on 500g (17oz) each of fresh 2021 harvest hops! Making a 19l (5gal) batch. I may use Citra for the flameout and I'm aiming for about 35 IBU total. Might not bother with the 10 min addition either and just go for the flameout and dry hop. Both these hops are new to me in the sense I've never used them in a home brew before but hoping for a tropical pint to see out the summer. The Brown Ale is conditioning for Autumn and I'll have an Amber going on shortly after this one!

Best pale Malt 46.3%
Pils Malt 46.4%
CaraPils 4.6%
Melanoiden malt 2.8%

30 min - Centennial 14 IBU
(10min - VC & G 3 IBU each)
Flameout 1oz each VC & G
Dry hop 2.6oz each VC & G

Imperial Dry Hop yeast
 
I have the following planned for brewing soon:

Vitals
Original Gravity: 1.073
Final Gravity: 1.025
IBU (Tinseth): 25
BU/GU: 0.34
Colour: 10.8 EBC

Mash
Temperature — 70 °C — 60 min

Malts (8.3 kg)
4.5 kg (54.2%) — Crisp Clear Choice Malt ® Extra Pale — Grain — 3.7 EBC
2.5 kg (30.1%) — Crisp Naked Oat Malt — Grain — 5 EBC
1 kg (12.1%) — Crisp Wheat Malt — Grain — 4.1 EBC
300 g (3.6%) — Crisp Cara Gold Malt — Grain — 12 EBC

Other (340 g)
340 g — Milk Sugar (Lactose) — Sugar — 0 EBC — Boil — 10 min

Hops (323 g)
3 g (5 IBU) — Columbus (Tomahawk) 15% — First Wort
40 g (9 IBU) — Galaxy 16.1% — Aroma — 20 min hopstand @ 80 °C
40 g (11 IBU) — Vic Secret 19.2% — Aroma — 20 min hopstand @ 80 °C
140 g — Galaxy 16.1% — Dry Hop — 2 days
100 g — Vic Secret 19.2% — Dry Hop — 2 days

Yeast
1 pkg — Lallemand (LalBrew) Verdant IPA 77%

But I'm worried whether using 5oz of Galaxy and 3,5oz of Vic Secret at DH will be too much for a 5gal batch. Does anyone have a recommendation on the amount to use? The amount of worth going into the fermenter will be ~6gal.

I'm trying to keep the FG high by mashing at 70C (158F) and adding a bit of lactose in order to compensate for the harshness of both Galaxy and Vic Secret.

Thanks for any comments!
 
You could use maltodextrin instead of lactose to avoid too much sweetness- it’ll help with body. 250g should be enough- it’s the amount I use in a NEIPA for a 5Gal batch to add to the body/mouthfeel. I’d say up to 300-350g of dry hop should do it. Beyond that I’m reliably informed you get diminishing returns.
 
You could use maltodextrin instead of lactose to avoid too much sweetness- it’ll help with body. 250g should be enough- it’s the amount I use in a NEIPA for a 5Gal batch to add to the body/mouthfeel. I’d say up to 300-350g of dry hop should do it. Beyond that I’m reliably informed you get diminishing returns.
Thanks! I have that lactose as a leftover from a milk stout, and TBH I wanted to get rid of it before it goes bad. I think it shouldn't add a lot of sweetness since its not even 1lb.
 
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Let’s hope so but to be fair I’ve little experience with lactose only maltodextrin 😀
 
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