so I know a hop like Citra can overpower other hops if used together . Is there some way to tell which hops are more potent and which ones are more milder .. do the alpha or beta % have anything to do with it or is it just from experience / experimenting with different hop varieties in different ratios
Better to look at oil composition, but keep in mind that something like that varies from crop to crop, farm to farm. http://www.hopslist.com/hops/
Agreed with @EvenMoreJesus but nothing beats learning the hops themselves. That of course takes a long time and a lot of brewing, and you can't just do all SMASH beers because how they interact is important as well. At least you're on top of it though. Citra can dominate, but it can also be used to punch up other hops, like using some mixed in with Mandarina Bavaria or Amarillo. At least it's a fun experience! I'll also suggest you do some reading and find some of the less interesting hops and try to find beers that use them rather than actually brewing with them. Belma might be a good example.
Right on. Sometimes in using hops 1 + 1 = 1. Other times 1 + 1 = 5. It's just one of those things that you have to have a feel for and the only way that you can get that feel is to use different hop combinations.
I hear ya, I have a Citra/Amarillo IPA with about a week left of bottle conditioning so I’m trying to come up with my next recipe. Def interested in El dorado along with 1 or 2 other with it
I'd say the sweet spot for most hop combinations with newer cultivars is in the 3 - 5 range. Sure, there are hops that you can use on their own or with one other hop and produce excellent beer, but in order to get that multifaceted aroma and flavor you need to use more than that. Same goes for the other end of the spectrum. Can you produce excellent beer with more than 5 hop varietals? Sure, but most of the time only a few shine or the beer starts getting muddled.
Well I don't know how helpful this is, but the most popular beer I make is a juicy IPA with Amarillo, Citra, Mandrina Bavaria, and El Dorado in that order in terms of volume. I love the El Dorado's but they're used here more just to give it some depth. The single hop El Dorado pale ale I made felt like it was missing something - exactly what @EvenMoreJesus is getting at. Of course single hop beers are a little bit of what people want so I'm forced to stick with the plan.
Very cool, this will be my first brew with no hops in the boil and all the flavor and aroma from a hop stand and double dry hop.. it’s not a bad problem to have trying to figure out what hop combination , kinda fun
Making a Summer Ale soon, that is going to be my house sessionable ale, that will see Amarillo, Ahtanum, and a touch of Apollo. Will be my first attempt. Expecting to play around with hop combinations and ratios until it is dialed into what I want. Trial and error. That’s what hop combos and ratios are. Too many variables to have any standard predictable methodology.
The trillium / other half - two hundred thousand trillion has an interesting hop combination of galaxy, Citra, el dorado and Nelson Sauvin . I like the idea but would need to find the right combination of the 4
I'd use similar amounts of Galaxy and Citra. Half of that amount of Nelson. Half of that amount of El Dorado.
FWIW that is my methodology. The 'challenge' of using inputs from others (e.g., other homebrewers) is that we all have differing palates due to genetics (and likely drinking experience too?). I will be receiving some El Dorado hops next week and I have not personally brewed with this hop variety before. My 'strategy' is to first brew an El Dorado IPA so I can get better educated on what this hop 'brings to the party'. I already have a rough recipe in place for another batch which will be a beer inspired by Weldworks Juicy Bits. I will be pairing El Dorado with Mosaic and Citra in ratios of 1:1:1 for both end of boil (and hop-stand) and dry hopping. It will be interesting to see how these two batches turn out. Cheers! @SFACRKnight P.S. Needless to say buy how a given hop variety expresses itself in a beer will vary based upon a long list of variable. I will just highlight a few of these variables: crop year, where the hop was grown (e.g., hill x of hop farm y), when the hop was harvested (e.g., early harvest vs. late harvest), how were the hops handled/stored throughout the entire production/supply chain,...
I use el dorado at half the rate of other hops in a blend. I like Nelson at a 1 to 1 ratio with whatever. Those four together sounds like a shit show honestly. I like citra for the over ripe melon aspect and mango, paired with the vineous juicy qualities Nelson brings to the table I want for nothing. @Tarheel4985 did juicy bits ever run an equal ratio on the hops?
Yea I don’t want to over do it, I like the Nelson and el dorado combination .. and trying to decide if i should stick with the galaxy/Citra or swap Citra for mosaic. Or just take one of the three to add to el dorado/Nelson
Fun but it can be overwhelming. Especially when @EvenMoreJesus is talking about using 5 kinds of hops in one brew! So many hops to try and select what to mix. I'm a citra guy for sure. Kind of feel like I have to try making a good neipa without it but why ruin a good thing
