Which hops for dry hopping pale ale?

[Shoemaker]

I brewed the West Coast Pale ale from austinhomebrew. I have some extra hops lying around (Perle, Tettnang, Spalt, Fuggle, Hallertau, Chinook, Hersbrucker) and was wondering which one of these would be best for dry hopping a pale ale?

I know the answers will be subjective, just wondering what experiences people have had with these hops.

 

[permo]

Chinook! It gives an awesome tropical/pineapple type aroma along with a little pine/spice. Really nice.

 

[kpr121]

Yeah I would prefer Chinook out of all of those. I don't know if any of the others will give you a "West Coast" aroma and taste, maybe Fuggle or Hallertau if your looking for a more "english" styple..

 

[Shoemaker]

And what would be your 2nd choice? I only have an ounce of Chinook and this is a 10 gallon batch....

 

[Yooper]

And what would be your 2nd choice? I only have an ounce of Chinook and this is a 10 gallon batch....

Honestly, none of those. They wouldn't really "go" with an APA. Those are all mostly German hops for lagers and German ales, except for the fuggles which are traditionally English. Fuggles are "earthy" (read: taste like dirt) and might not be great in a west coast APA.

 

[Shoemaker]

So you mean none of those aside from the Chinook? I'll just split the ounce of Chinook between the two carboys then....

 

[terrapinj]

you could also try dryhopping one with 1 oz and leave the other as is and then compare

 

[phidelt1499]

Or go buy some cascade

Love me some cascades in dry hopping.

 

[hillhousesawdustco]

you could also try dryhopping one with 1 oz and leave the other as is and then compare

Sounds interesting to me

 

[Qhrumphf]

Or go buy some cascade

Love me some cascades in dry hopping.

+1.

I love the cascade/chinook dry hop combination.

 

[kpr121]

Yeah every IPA/APA brewer needs some Cascade/Centennial/Citra in their arsenal!

 

[pcollins]

Agreed.

You've got a West Coast Pale Ale on the go and the only hop that really works with that is the Chinook that you've got. Everything else is noble/German/Czech/UK... Not at all West Coast Pale Ale.

I like the advice of dry hopping one carboy and leaving the other and tasting the difference. I think that may be your only choice unless you want to dry hop 10g with 1oz of hops... Might not be enough.

Let us know.

 

[November]

What everyone has said is dead on if you want to brew to style. That said, I frequently use "out of style" hops in beer or hops that are traditionally not used for specific purposes (i.e using a bittering hop as a late addition or for dry hopping). Sure the result may not fit the guidelines but can still be tasty. For instance when I read in the BJCP guidelines that Cascade was inappropriate for a Classic American Pilsner, it sounded to me like a challenge.