What's up with this UK Target I got?

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by deleted_user_1007501, Nov 29, 2016.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. deleted_user_1007501

    deleted_user_1007501 Initiate (0) Jun 30, 2015

    A few days ago, I brewed an amber-reddish IPA for the winter season. For flavor and aroma I used Simcoe, a little bit of Citra, but wanted some herbal earthy notes to ride underneath. Why not Target? I went to my LHBS in sort of a rush before work. Got all my ingredients as intended. Phew! Yet I take a closer look once I get home...Target is at 5.5% AA?? I thought this was a bittering hop! It came from YCH so it has to be the real deal.

    My question is, was that specific growth of Target somehow yielding a lower AA content that usual? I used it nonetheless (a bit more heavy handed), but I am confused. Can anyone give some insight on this?
     
    #1 deleted_user_1007501, Nov 29, 2016
  2. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,647) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah

    Hops will vary from farm to farm and field to field, and year to year. I saw a graph that had the AA and Oils %s plotted, and many different farms and fields were in those data, the range for both was a factor of 2.

    That AA looks low for Target, but I have been seeing low values for European hops. I just use more.
     
    #2 hopfenunmaltz, Nov 29, 2016
  3. MostlyNorwegian

    MostlyNorwegian Pooh-Bah (2,236) Feb 5, 2013 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah

    Was that the alpha or the beta acids? That's really low alpha for Target, but right in line with what its beta content should be.
     
    #3 MostlyNorwegian, Nov 29, 2016
  4. Hanglow

    Hanglow Pooh-Bah (2,051) Feb 18, 2012 Scotland
    Pooh-Bah

    The ones from this year I have seen are 9.8% and 12% or so . That does seem far too low imo
     
    #4 Hanglow, Nov 29, 2016
  5. NeroFiddled

    NeroFiddled Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,276) Jul 8, 2002 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Oh boy, let's hope the alpha and beta weren't mixed up or you've got one bitter bitch on your hands! On the other hand you'd have tasted that during the brew, right? You do test as you go... ?

    The point I was going to make prior to reading MostlyNorwegian's post about the possible confusion/labeling was that using lower alpha hops for bittering is not necessarily a bad thing if it doesn't mess up your yield or transfer. More hops at lower levels can give a smoother, more rounded bitterness that might be perfect beneath an amber IPA.

    In any case, good luck. :slight_smile:
     
    #5 NeroFiddled, Nov 29, 2016
  6. deleted_user_1007501

    deleted_user_1007501 Initiate (0) Jun 30, 2015

    It was definitely 5.5% alpha. The beta was around 4%
     
    #6 deleted_user_1007501, Dec 6, 2016
  7. deleted_user_1007501

    deleted_user_1007501 Initiate (0) Jun 30, 2015

    I'm heading to my LHBS today for dry hop. I'll see if I can find some more from the same batch. It didn't have a very strong aroma like most of the bitterings and high AA hops do.
     
    #7 deleted_user_1007501, Dec 6, 2016
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.