found: wild hops...

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by SFACRKnight, Aug 31, 2013.

?

would you brew with wild hops?

  1. hell yeah

    127 vote(s)
    93.4%

  2. no way in hell

    9 vote(s)
    6.6%
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  1. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I'd post pics, but my phone sucks. So it has these big buds with purple threads and crystals growing on it... lol, no its a big ass vine.
     
    #21 SFACRKnight, Sep 2, 2013
    zizouandyuki, DimensionX, sliverX and 2 others like this.
  2. kolschboy

    kolschboy Initiate (0) Sep 18, 2003 North Carolina

    I found some growing on the Duke campus along one of those temporary mesh fences where some construction was going on. I'll have to check back next week some time to see if they're still there.
     
    #22 kolschboy, Sep 3, 2013
  3. jbakajust1

    jbakajust1 Pooh-Bah (2,552) Aug 25, 2009 Oregon
    Pooh-Bah

    Amarillo is supposedly a wild hop found growing somewhere.
     
    #23 jbakajust1, Sep 3, 2013
  4. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,635) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah

    It was found among other hops in a field of Liberty hops on the Gamache hop farm in Moxee Wa. I used to think it was a Cascade field, but found a good reference that stated Liberty.
     
    #24 hopfenunmaltz, Sep 3, 2013
  5. JrGtr

    JrGtr Pooh-Bah (1,775) Apr 13, 2006 Massachusetts
    Pooh-Bah

    I would first make a "hop tea" to get an idea of what is going on. boil water, and toss some in for a couple minutes. You'll at least get an idea of what you're looking at.
    Given testing like that, I wouldn't have much issue brewing with wild hops; adjusting the recipe to complement them.
     
    #25 JrGtr, Sep 3, 2013
  6. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Yeah, came here to correct my el dorado hop comment, it was Amarillo that was found growing wild.
     
    #26 SFACRKnight, Sep 3, 2013
  7. leedorham

    leedorham Initiate (0) Apr 27, 2006 Washington

    I cannot answer this poll either way. "Depends" is the answer.
     
    #27 leedorham, Sep 3, 2013
  8. premierpro

    premierpro Savant (1,060) Mar 21, 2009 Michigan

    The wild hops I use are excellent bittering hops. Not that good for flavor and aroma.
     
    #28 premierpro, Sep 4, 2013
  9. WickedSluggy

    WickedSluggy Savant (1,129) Nov 21, 2008 Texas

    I don't think that they claim it was "wild" exactly. I would guess that it is a variation or mutation among other plants that was different enough to be patented as a new variety.
     
    #29 WickedSluggy, Sep 4, 2013
    GreenKrusty101 likes this.
  10. jncastillo87

    jncastillo87 Initiate (0) Jan 27, 2013 Texas

    Dude make a simple Pale ale .. split the recipe and dry hop one with the wild and another with something like cascade or whatever .. see which one taste better and possibly how good the wild hops could be.
     
    #30 jncastillo87, Sep 5, 2013
  11. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Just an update. Went and checked the hops out this morning, and as I expected they have matured and are ready to pick. The crush and roll test gets copious amounts of sticky lupulin, tons of lime, a bit of pine, a little dank and musky rounding it out. So I'm brewing a simple 2.5 gallon batch using some light lme, hitting an og of 1.050, bittering with magnum to hit 30 ibus and dumping about a pound in at 5 minutes. I don't care to mix them with any other flavor or aroma hops, I feel like that is just going to muddy up the waters really. Give me about a month and I'll either be pouring the shit down the drain or transplanting these babies to my house.
     
    #31 SFACRKnight, Sep 8, 2013
    cavedave likes this.
  12. jbakajust1

    jbakajust1 Pooh-Bah (2,552) Aug 25, 2009 Oregon
    Pooh-Bah

    Possibly ISO your rhizome...
     
    #32 jbakajust1, Sep 8, 2013
  13. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    The more the merrier. I just have to figure out how to harvest rhizomes.
     
    #33 SFACRKnight, Sep 9, 2013
  14. jbakajust1

    jbakajust1 Pooh-Bah (2,552) Aug 25, 2009 Oregon
    Pooh-Bah

    Stick a stake in the ground to mark the spot for early spring, then dig a circle around thr plant base (maybe a foot across total) then grab all the twig looking roots running just under the dirt. Do it in March and you should have some buds on them and a few roots running down from the bottom. If you have any brew club member that grow they can help out.
     
    #34 jbakajust1, Sep 9, 2013
  15. sjverla

    sjverla Initiate (0) Dec 1, 2008 Massachusetts

    Can I hit you up for a rhizome in a couple years? I don't think the building owner would take too kindly to me tearing up the parking lot because I need to get a rhizome in the ground. But that sounds like it could be a pretty boss hop find.
     
    #35 sjverla, Sep 9, 2013
  16. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Let me get the wet and wild pale ale bottled and tasted. It may wind up that these arre summit hops.
     
    #36 SFACRKnight, Sep 9, 2013
  17. DrinkingCraft

    DrinkingCraft Initiate (0) Aug 22, 2012 Indiana

    This is a great post btw haha. Can't wait to see how it turns out!
     
    #37 DrinkingCraft, Sep 12, 2013
  18. danoeltico

    danoeltico Initiate (0) Jul 14, 2011 North Carolina

    Did you find them? I'm not too far from you then.
     
    #38 danoeltico, Sep 16, 2013
  19. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Just an update on the wild hop pale ale, I cracked open my first bottle last night. I brewed a real basic recipe, 3 gallons, don't have the malt specifics but I used straight light lme to hit 1.050, magnum at 60 for 40 ibus, 4 oz fresh wilds at 10 and 5 minutes. Not sure about where these hops came from, but I get a lot of similar flavors to cascade and centennial, so there it is. I wish I had brewed a ten gallon batch instead. Therefore I deem this experiment a success and will be harvesting some rhizomes. I also found a plant growing in a canyon in the san luis valley but the hops were too far gone to harvest. Next year I will be hitting that one up.
     
    #39 SFACRKnight, Oct 21, 2013
    machalel, DrinkingCraft, utahbeerdude and 8 others like this.
  20. NiceFly

    NiceFly Initiate (0) Dec 22, 2011 Tajikistan

    Is that 4oz at each time or 4 oz total?
     
    #40 NiceFly, Oct 21, 2013
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