Single Hop IPA questions/suggestions?

This could be done either way,however if your going to do single hop batches why not keep it single. There are beers that you can buy that are single hopped and are nice for this purpose.

 

Centennial is my favorite for a single hopped IPA, so if you're doing a series, I'd recommend it as one of them. Since you ask about bittering... An interesting experiment (round 2?) would be to do the same beers both ways, i.e. true single hopped vs. flavor/aroma single hopped with magnum for bittering.

 

I am doing a SMaSH series myself. Mainly to determine a good base malt other than 2-row. The one hop I am using is Simcoe and I really like it. Nice pine flavor and aroma. I use one ounce at 60, 20, and 5 min. To get the best feel for the hop, use the same one for bittering and aroma. Good luck and have fun.

 

Out of curiosity, do you use the same amount for each beer regardless of AA%, or do you adjust to attain a similar ibu? I've heard of both and agree with the argument for both. A single hop/smash series is on my list of to-do's after my wedding.

 

The best two single hop (American Pales) I've made was a Chinook IPA and an Ahtanum Pale Ale. I've also done an all Citra Pale Ale twice but I much prefer Citra Blended with something. I strongly suggest you give the all Chinook a try, you wont be disappointed.

 

I will do the same hop regardless of AA%. Although it will be noted in my mind as I taste the different ones if the acids are a big difference. I used marris otter first. I think the next one will be with Vienna.

 

Personally I think the best way to do these beers is to use the same amount of hops for the late addition in each batch but adjust the bittering addition so that each beer has the same IBUs. This gives you a better idea of the flavor contribution in each beer since you're basically only changing on variable (flavor), rather than changing two (flavor and bitterness), particularly for hops at the extreme ands of the AA spectrum, say comparing 5% cascades to 18% summits.

 

My ‘house’ IPA is an all Centennial hopped. I really like that beer; I brew it twice a year.

The other single variety hopped IPAs that I have made are Simcoe and Citra. I enjoyed those two IPAs as well.

I have drunk commercial all Amarillo hopped IPAs and they were tasty.

Some hops like Simcoe and Citra can be difficult to obtain at times. On my last online order I was only able to buy 2 ounces of Simcoe (that was the vendor’s limit). If you are restricted in hop amounts you should just use them for flavor/aroma additions and use something like Warrior or Magnum for bittering.

Cheers!

 

Some ways to do it are discussed here. See the "Hop 2 It" discussion.
http://www.byo.com/stories/beer-sty...q-a-guide-to-brewing-hoppy-american-pale-ales

You guys should get the hop Mosaic on your radar.

 

I made a single hop American pale with amarillo a couple years back. It was one of the tastiest single hop beers I've brewed. Unfortunately, I did not get my bulk order in in time this year for amarillo hops. I think hopsdirect sold out in under 24 hours!

 

I do a SMaSH APA with Amarillo and Maris Otter fairly often. It's one of my favorite beers I make.

 

All are good choices for single hopped beers. I also like Ahtanum as a single hop.

As far as the different hop for bittering... won't hurt. You get a small impact from the bittering choice, but it isn't a game changer. I wouldn't use chinook for bittering though. Chinooks are higher in cohumulone and tend to give a harsher bitterness. Magnum, Apollo, and Warrior are all commonly used bittering hops, that are lower in cohumulone levels.