Controversial Beer Opinions (Round Two)

They could brew a version with actual holiday spices. They could brew a version with different single hops. Also, can the "extra crispy" version be a hoppy lager?

 

Whoa!

Can you imagine the discussion about which spices were used to brew this year's beer on that version!?! That could be a BA thread record breaker!!

Cheers!

 

What are your definitions of wet hop and fresh hops? What differentiates them?

 

Time to make some

 

To me, wet hops are hops that have never been dried and go straight from the field to the fermenter. Fresh hops are just dried hops from shortly after harvest. Its way more amorphous of a term, sn defines it as the "first" hops they get in the season. I'm OK with calling the hops fresh through october.

Mostly I was just poking fun at my dear friends from Washington and Oregon who object to the wet hop moniker

 

Haven't you learned to not poke the bear?

To answer @Junior s question; just like any other agricultural crop, when harvested and used immediately, they are fresh hops. By definition, any product that is dried, cannot be fresh. Are sun-dried tomatoes fresh? If one grows herbs, and dries them for future use, are they fresh?

Fresh Hop beers are beers that use hops that go from bine to kettle in hours, with 24 hours generally being used as the limit. It's not uncommon for hops to be harvested in the morning, to be in the kettle by noon.

 

I guess I thought that wet hop and fresh hop were used interchangeably. I did not realize that wet hop was frowned upon in the PNW.

 

Well, a hop could not be dried (wet), but if it sits around a couple weeks, is it still fresh? All Fresh hops are wet, not all "wet" hops are fresh.

 

I think if it sits around for a couple weeks without drying it rots

 

Honestly fuck hazy ipas. I've tried the best of them and still don't like them. And they seem to be dumbing down the ipas I used to love for the market

 

Yeah, or gets moldy, due to the oils. Don't know the exact time frame, so used a generic one, but it's quickly. If one has a few bines at home, pull one cone and set it on the window sill, see how quickly it dries and turns brown.

Which is why I think the difference between "fresh" and "wet" is even more important.

 

@BBThunderbolt , you should tell mountain rose that they're full of it, none of their herbs are "fresh". https://mountainroseherbs.com/catalog/herbs-spices/bulk

" Our herbs are known for their unmatched quality and FRESHNESS."

Spoiler alert, they only sell dry herbs!

 

Actually, they're just annoyed that Sierra Nevada's marketing department decided to change the meaning of "fresh hops" to sell more Celebration.

But, that is really no more egregious than the many other examples of misappropriation of style or descriptor names in the American craft beer universe.

I guess the PNW folks thought they owned the word or something...

 

The wet hop terminology was a thing before Sierra Nevada added fresh hop to celebration labels. They've called their northern and southern hemisphere harvest ales wet hopped as long as I've been aware of them.

Many other brewers use the wet hop terminology too. I saw it on Russian Rivers packaging this year.

Jess kidden has a page about it on his site and fresh hops used to be an important marketing term, used mainly for freshly processed dry hops, back before modern pelletizing and processing made for much longer shelf life for the hops. If I remember correctly though, the earliest example of advertising undried hops also called them fresh hops so...ya know.

 

I was stating my view on why the PNWers are annoyed, not talking about the history of the terms.

But, regardless of the history, it was SN's labeling of Celebration that seems to have started this whole "controversy."

I think the PWNers were trying to push the beer version of Beaujolais Nouveau (JMO, there).

 

Well, I was gonna stay out of this one this time*... but since you mentioned it - FRESH HOPS. The industry used the term for the first dried hops of the harvest for over a century, through Prohibition and into the "craft era". Hop growers typically called the undried hops by the term "Green Hops".

* I even resisted posting my usual comeback re: other fresh/dried produce:
"Whatabout FRESH RAISINS!"

 

But, we have a proper term for "wet" raisins!

 

Ya didn't want to drag you back into this old row, that's why I didn't tag you.

Anyway, who's ready for some fresh pizza!

 

Is that crust made from nice green fresh wheat? I try, but it always clogs up my mill!

 

The inception levels of freshness are blowing my mind.