What is the difference?

[400d]

First of all I want to say hello to all members of this great forum. This is my first post, and I intend to make my first batch soon.

I studied alot lately about brewing, and there is one thing concidering hops that I dont understand.

Hops that are used for brewing are named "Humulus lupulus" in latin. But I found "Strobuli Lupuli" hops...

Is there a difference between two of these? Can I use Strobuli Lupuli for my beer? I have to say that on the picture they look completely the same....


Another question that I have for you guys (and I hope you will not find it too stupid ) is:

Since it is very very hard to get fresh hops in my country, I wondered would it be possible to use dried hops which are available in my local drugstore as a sleeping disorder cure? These are pure hops with no additives, the only thing is that they are dried?


Thanks alot for your help! Cheers!

 

[david_42]

strobule (strobile) = cone

As far as I can find, it's just another name for the same plant. The problem is finding out which variety of hop, as there are hundreds of them. Drugstore hops are probably tea hops. These are generally low-bitterness aroma hops.

You can certainly use both, but plan on doing some experimenting.

 

[GVH_Dan]

I would caution against drug store hops. Like David-42 said, they probably have very little bitterness. Even if you experimented and found some you like, its unlikely the manufacturer would maintain the same bittering qualities in them.

your better bet is to go online and purchase them. I bet you could get them from Germany, Austria or Czech.

 

[400d]

but what if I could find some countryside medicine man that collect and sell herbs, and ask him for some hops?

this means that they would be non-industrial product, just harvested and dried?

 

[400d]

and I just forgot to ask one more thing:

what are actually those hop pellets that I found on some websites? are they usable as an alternative for fresh hops? I suppose that those pellets are some kind of hop extracts and that they can be stored for a longer time

am I right? what can you say in general about hop pellets?

 

[The Pol]

and I just forgot to ask one more thing:

what are actually those hop pellets that I found on some websites? are they usable as an alternative for fresh hops? I suppose that those pellets are some kind of hop extracts and that they can be stored for a longer time

am I right? what can you say in general about hop pellets?

Hop pellets are fresh hops that have been pulverized and pressed into pellets. Makes them easier to store, they settle out of the beer easier, and they store better as they have less surface area to oxidize.

Hops and O2 do not mix. They need to be stored in a vaccuum and perferably at cool temperatures, like a fridge or freezer. Your drug store hops I presume are not packaged this way.

 

[400d]

Hop pellets are fresh hops that have been pulverized and pressed into pellets. Makes them easier to store, they settle out of the beer easier, and they store better as they have less surface area to oxidize.

Hops and O2 do not mix. They need to be stored in a vaccuum and perferably at cool temperatures, like a fridge or freezer. Your drug store hops I presume are not packaged this way.

no of course not. but I searched the internet, and found some companies that sell pellets. that's why I ask. these pellets are meant to be used for beer brewing, which means, as far as I understood, that they are blends of different hops....

 

[The Pol]

no of course not. but I searched the internet, and found some companies that sell pellets. that's why I ask. these pellets are meant to be used for beer brewing, which means, as far as I understood, that they are blends of different hops....

Pellets are almost certainly NOT blends of different hops, but one type only.

 

[david_42]

No, pellets are always single hop varieties. Breweries want to control their product, so a blended pellet wouldn't be useful.

There are breweries that use blends as their base, but they do the blending themselves. Widmer Brewery in Portland Oregon uses a blend called Alchemy. They mix each batch to get an exact bittering profile.

 

[The Pol]

I have only seen ONE blended hop, it was called HopSuey... but that is extremely rare to see.

 

[400d]

but would you recommend buying hop pellets if I lack fresh ones for my first home made batch of beer?


now I wonder how come there are available starter ingredients kits if hops must be fresh in order to get good beer. in what form are those hops inside those starter ingredients kits?

 

[cuinrearview]

It basically comes down to an issue of freshness. If the business that you are thinking about buying an ingredient kit from sells a lot of them and turns over their inventory on a regular basis then the hops should be fine to use. If they collect dust over months then I would pass as the hops and the malt extract(to a lesser extent) has deteriorated. You should have no fear of pellets or whole hops as long as you know what variety you are getting and they are fairly fresh or stored in cool or cold environment. They are essentially the same thing

 

[400d]

It basically comes down to an issue of freshness. If the business that you are thinking about buying an ingredient kit from sells a lot of them and turns over their inventory on a regular basis then the hops should be fine to use. If they collect dust over months then I would pass as the hops and the malt extract(to a lesser extent) has deteriorated. You should have no fear of pellets or whole hops as long as you know what variety you are getting and they are fairly fresh or stored in cool or cold environment. They are essentially the same thing

I've found Target hop pellets on the internet, what kinds of beer I can make with it?

I also found Magnum, Super Styrian and Perle pellets.... What would you recommend?

 

[cuinrearview]

I would recommend that you browse through the recipe database on this site. Click the "recipes" button at the top of the page. You should be able to find some beers that use those hops in there.

 

[the_Roqk]

I have found this website informational when trying to decide what type of hops to use and substitutes. They also have a table for grain profiles. Hopefully this helps.

Link: Hop Reference Chart

 

[400d]

I have found this website informational when trying to decide what type of hops to use and substitutes. They also have a table for grain profiles. Hopefully this helps.

Link: Hop Reference Chart

thanks man, this helped alot!

 

[400d]

finally I have got my package of 5 different varieties of hop pellets:

magnum, target, super styrian, first gold leaf hops and pilgrim hop pellets

some of them are quite big loads (16oz), while some of them are only 1 oz

so, how can I know what amounts to use since you guys said in previous posts that these pellets are much stronger than fresh hops?

do I use the pellets in the same manner as fresh hops?? like adding them to my boiling wort in straining bag??

 

[The Pol]

Pellets arent any stronger then leaf hops.

They do have better utilization since they are pulverized.

You really need some software to input recipes into, or start from an already proven recipe where the hops amounts and AA of each addition have been figured already.

These are still just hops, you use them exactly the same as you would a leaf hop.

 

[400d]

Pellets arent any stronger then leaf hops.

They do have better utilization since they are pulverized.

You really need some software to input recipes into, or start from an already proven recipe where the hops amounts and AA of each addition have been figured already.

These are still just hops, you use them exactly the same as you would a leaf hop.

could you please recommend some already proven recipes that would contain some og these hops that I already have?

Thanks!

 

[The Pol]

I am not going to go searching for recipes, I dont have the time. Luckily HBT has a recipes section and you can find almost anything you like there.

 

[chardo]

It sounds like you may be confusing "fresh" hops with "wet" hops. Hops are most often used after they are dryed.

Chardo