Long and Smooth Hop Finish?

I write this post while drinking a Three Floyds Alpha King Pale Ale. In terms of hop sustain, this 68ibu, red "pale ale" is kicking the shit out of the recent trend of soft IPAs. The beer I had before it was a Firestone Luponic Distortion #1 which was certainly a pleasant IPA with vibrant hop flavor and aroma. However, the pleasure from Luponic and many others like it stopped about 10 seconds after it went down my pie hole.

On the other hand, Alpha King is delivering hoppy satisfaction long after the beer hits my tummy. I'm talking at least 2-3 minutes of hoppy sustain and the word bitter never really enters my mind. It's more like a mild hop anethetic that fades after 5 minutes without additional input. It stimulates my entire head, not just my tongue. Not many beers do this. FFF does it more frequently than others.

Keep in mind, this is a malty beer. It's soft and fairly sweet when you first hit it then the magic happens post gulp. An Alpha King recipe posted here would be instantly slammed by the Caramel Police. The first few gulps aren't super impressive. Then all of a sudden, the finish really speaks for the beer in ways few beers do.

Their hop bill is fairly simple. The water profile doesn't seem extreme.

Warrior
Centennial
Cascade

I've never used Warrior. If it provides what Alpha King delivers, I'm all over that hop!

So I ask you...how to achieve this long, smooth hop finish?

 

Well, John Snow. I'm certainly thrilled you were resurrected by the Ginger Witch and respect your brewing opinion.

However, I'm going to have to disagree with your hop burst wager. Hop bursting is something I associate with juicy hop flavors and subdued bitterness. That isn't what this beer has.

Have you had the beer? If so, have you had it since they recently acquired a good bottling line? Previously, one had to drink a less than 2 week old bottle or drink at the source to fully appreciate a FFF beer.

 

Hello Friend, did you read the part where I said the water profile didn't seem extreme at all? I know what 350ppm SO4 and 150ppm Cl tastes like. This beer doesn't approach that. It also seems to have very little salt and epsom salt to boost Mg and Na. Possibly a pinch of either or both. It also has a mild baking soda finish which is weird, but that's their thing.

Some Stone beers seem heavy on the epsom salt bite and have a similar finish, but not as smooth. I can smell the sulfates in the Stone beers. This beer has a mineral/salt free aroma.

 

I was hoping you would suggest Lactose. They do that for their Arctic Panzer Wolf DIPA.

The beer isn't a hop bomb. It's 68ibu with plenty of malt to back it up. I can't recall any beer with 68ibu that has anywhere near this long, smooth hoppy finish. I've consumed several thousand different beers. Approximately 50% were hoppy.

 

I do these types of staggered late additions all the time with similar hops. Sometimes my beers have a medium long and pleasant hop sustain. Sometimes they don't with the same type of late staggering. I've never brewed a beer that finishes as long and pleasant as Alpha King. I've brewed beers with bigger flavor and aroma, but this beer reminded me there is a desirable quality beyond flavor and aroma. My beer needs that quality ASAP.

 

Maybe I need to revisit FWH and specifically with Warrior?

 

I tried FWH several years ago when it became a homebrew thing sort of...mostly because the most prolific homebrew mouth on the internet claimed it was the shizz. I recall not being able to sense what it provided compared to a regular bittering addition. It can't hurt to try again.

 

Your wife is probably peeing in your carboy right now. Just sayin...

 

I had it a few times before and wasn't impressed by it either. However, FFF recently acquired a professional bottling line after 10+ years of questionable hype with unstable bottled beer and suddenly they are delivering presumably similar recipes in a format that made me a believer. This beer made me reevaluate what I want to accomplish with homebrew.