Bulk hop time!!

A group of us do 11# buys, and are trying to figure out which varieties to get this year. Last year was Simcoe and Mosaic. I am hoping for the same this year, as well as Columbus. I have a boat load of Chinook, Cascade/Centennial blend, some Crystal and Willamette and Santiam all from the hop harvest.

 

I decided that I'm just gonna buy a bunch of different 4oz bags from Farmhouse this year. I've gotten kinda bored with having pounds of six or seven different varieties in the freezer, I feel like I kinda got stuck in a rut when it came to hop profiles over the past couple of years. I couldn't really justify buying a couple of ounces of something at the LHBS when I still had so much at home, even if I was looking to do something different. I also have found myself adding hops when I didn't need to and it wouldn't be noticed, just to get rid of a bit of a neglected bag (i.e. a 1/2oz of sovereign at FO in a stout or something to that effect). So yeah, lots of 4oz'ers for me this year, more variety, more flexibility, less wasteful hopping.

 

Good idea ^ I've been pretty pleased with Farmhouse prices on 4oz bags, plus they keep a good stock of experimental hops so there's always something new to try. Pick up some EXP 5256 if you can, it's a great NZ bittering hop, 17% AA with some stone fruit and earthy character that reminds me of Simcoe/Citra, a bit floral too.

 

Well I still have plenty, so I won't be making a run on this particular harvest. I need to use up some hops before buying any more. The excess has occasionally led to a little extra getting tossed in, particularly for the lower AA leaf stuff (tho I've about used up most of my leaf hops at this point). I am going to enjoy using the varieties I have, and won't be desperate for amarillo, citra, or simcoe. Well technically I still have some citra left, so yeah, I'm not desperate for hops at all.

 

I just loaded up at Farmhouse...1# bags (leaf and pellet) from 2012...my only domestic 2013 purchases will be Mosaics and Amarillos...yeah right

 

There's a killer sale at Farmhouse right now, some 4oz pellet bags for 75 cents an oz. And here I thought I was done buying hops this year

 

Used to buy only current harvest...the real question is, Are THIS years' hops worth what you will be paying for them?

 

But I would also say that 2013 was NOT a stellar year for hops almost anywhere.

 

the acreage of the high demand hops did go way up.

 

Don't forget about Nikobrew.com. Good sale going on there too.

 

Yeah, but the growing conditions/weather went way down and the demand will be going way up. : )

 

Any information on the yields?

Germany was said to have a very poor harvest, per Herburgess.

Time for another crisis?

 

Yes....if you bought 2012 crop...: ) Cheers, brother

ps... I have no definitive info on 2013 yield...but I will bet that it was below average for 2013 even though more proprietary hops were harvested as a %.

 

I

I have 1.5 fridge freezers packed with hops. Must. Resist. Buying. More.

The other 0.5 is food.

 

well I'm not clearing the harvest, but I do have some that are near a year old. Keeping them frozen, and weighing them near the freezer so as to minimize time outside the freeze, I can't say that I can tell any differences between fresh and year old hops. So either I am not good at detecting the flavors of old, stale hops (I doubt this is the case) or there isn't enough of a difference for my pallet to tell the difference (highly likely). The most recent beer I brewed with the last of my cascade tasted equally flavorful to the first batch, when they were a week old (as best I can tell at least). So while I do pay attention to age of hops, and try to use leaf before pellet, and try not to have too many different packages opened at once, I really don't think it's a major concern.