Buying and Storing Bulk Hops
Hops make up a small percentage of a beer recipe, but they have arguably the biggest impact on the flavor and aroma. Even stouts and darker styles, typically seen as malt-centric, require the perfect hop additions to properly accentuate and marry with the malts. Brewing the best beer requires the best hops. And when an ingredient is as important as hops is to beer, it is essential to understand as much about it as possible. Learning about hops will ultimately help brew better beer, craft unique and creative recipes, and even save money.
Hops: Pellet vs Leaf
Most commonly hops come in two forms: Pellets and whole leaf. Plugs are also an option, but are used much less frequently than leaf and pellet hops for homebrewing. Hop extracts are also becoming more available to homebrewers, but we will focus on leaf and pellet hops as they are the most easily sourced forms that homebrewers can buy in bulk.
Leaf hops, as they are counterintuitively called since the leaves are stripped off of the bine, are the least processed form of the hop cone available. The lupulin glands along the center of the hop cone are preserved and left untouched. After harvest, the hop cones are dried in a low-temperature kiln, to prevent molding, which takes them down to roughly five to ten percent of their original moisture. They are then packed into bales, wrapped in burlap or other breathable cloth, and taken to cold storage. Some professional breweries, like Sierra Nevada, only use leaf hops because they feel that it is a superior ingredient that helps them brew a better beer.
While there are many benefits of brewing with leaf, one of the major drawbacks is its storability. Not only do bales of leaf hops physically take up more space than their pelletized form, but there is also more surface area that can be exposed to oxygen. Each variety oxidizes at different rates and has different results, but all hops will experience a loss of alpha acid due to oxidation. Oxidized hops are not always a negative as there are many brewers who prefer noble hop varieties to experience some oxidation. Lambic hops are also oxidized on purpose (usually for years) so that
the alpha acids almost completely oxidize away.
The pelletizing process was introduced in an effort to increase the life expectancy of hops. It also shrinks the volume of the hops, which makes them easier to ship and store, as well as easier to separate from wort. Once the hops are in their pelletized form they are extremely hardy and resistant to degradation. The pelletizing process is fairly inelegant and involves smashing and crushing and mixing the hops all together before they are crammed into little pieces that look like rabbit food pellets. Because the hops are all crushed up and mixed together, the lupulin glands lose their natural protection against oxygen. This means that pellets are generally more susceptible to oxidizing, which is why they are quickly packed in nitrogen-flushed or vacuum-sealed mylar foil bags. (Many leaf hops are stored this way as well, See photo, above). Because there is so much hop mass packed into such a little pellet, the surface area that could potentially be oxidized is relatively small. Once the pellets are sealed away they are taken to cold storage. It takes at least five years for properly packaged and stored pellets to experience any perceptible loss in alpha acids or aroma oils. In fact, even stored at room temperature for an entire year, properly packaged pellets will only lose 10 to 20 percent of their alpha acids.
Why Buy in Bulk?
Hop farmers are under an incredible time crunch every harvest. Each variety is fighting for the farmer’s attention. Usually, lower alpha varieties are ready to harvest first, but often times more than one variety is ready to harvest at once. Depending on the variety, the window in which to harvest may only be one or two days. Sometimes harvesting one day late will change the aroma from a delightful citrus to pungent garlic. This means long, labor-filled days to get everything in in time. Each farmer determines the peak time to harvest each variety based on a number of factors such as appearance, texture, aroma, and generations of family experience. Harvest too early and the hops taste grassy because they do not produce enough acids, oils, and resins. Harvest too late and they start to smell like onions and garlic.
Because hops can only be harvested once per year (per hemisphere), that means they will need to be stored for an entire year before the next crop rolls in. Hops purchased at a local homebrew store in December will be from the same harvest as ones purchased in July, but they might not brew the same beer depending on how they were stored. Buying hops in bulk gives brewers more control over their ingredients. Knowing that hops have been stored correctly should give every brewer, professional or hobbyist, peace of mind because it takes the best ingredients to brew the best beer. Not every hop supplier, distributor, or retailer has the knowledge, resources, or desire to package and store hops properly. Because hops are so delicate, brewers need to know exactly how their key ingredient is being stored, so it is best to research the supplier’s methods before making
a purchase.
Buying in bulk, direct from the source, or as close to the source as you can get, helps you to know where your ingredients come from. A hop by the same name is not always the same hop. The same grower may have variations within a single variety based on where the hops are grown. Not only is there a difference in hop suppliers because of their storage practices, but hops are sometimes sold and resold and packaged and repackaged so many times that it is hard to trust the source. Some suppliers will not even include the crop year on their packaging so that they can sell old hops for the same as fresh hops. Other suppliers will even go so far as to purposefully mislabel varieties, crop years, or growing regions. Sometimes these mistakes are not intentional, but when the hops change hands so frequently it is difficult to ensure accuracy. There are systems and practices in place requiring sourcing and storage papers to protect large-scale operations, but sometimes smaller breweries, retailers, and homebrewers are so hungry for hops they will buy them from wherever. When buying bulk, hops are less likely to change hands and get broken down into smaller increments as they move through the supply chain. Leaf hops are usually available more quickly than pellets, although there is one farm in the Yakima Valley that pelletizes the same day the hops are harvested. Getting to brew with fresh hop crop is not only a treat for brewers because the oils and acids are at their peak, but it also allows them to properly store away
the remainder of hops for the rest of the year.
Buying hops in bulk is not only the best way to ensure the quality of the hops, it is also the financially smart thing to do. As the sizes go up, so do the savings. The fewer people who touch and process the hops means fewer people who brewers need to pay for those hops. The one downside to buying hops in bulk is that a lot of brewing needs to be done to go through it all. Some brewers prefer to brew the same beer one hundred times in a row, while others prefer to brew one hundred different batches each with their own unique hops. The best way to get both a wide range of hop varieties and still benefit from buying in bulk, is to go in with a group of friends — your homebrew club for instance — and place one big bulk hop order for the year. That way everyone gets the best prices on the best hops and still get to brew with a wide range.
Sharing bulk hops between friends and brewing partners will also ensure that everyone is speaking the same language. It is hard to form solid opinions about hop varieties if there is no way to know the quality. How many brewers have been turned off from brewing with a particular hop just because they heard one bad review? But when multiple brewers are all brewing with the same hop, the knowledge base of the community is expanded. Getting solid, quantifiable results and feedback will not only help farmers grow better hops, but it will also help everyone brew better beer.
As brewers learn more about the process, they understand the importance of consistency between batches. Using the same ingredients is key to brewing the same beer. This can be a challenge simply because as an agricultural product, soil and weather conditions can greatly influence the flavor profile of a hop, even if it is the same variety. Not only are there huge differences (both perceived and empirical) between growing regions, but the hop oils and acids will even be different between lots at the same farm. The alpha acids in some varieties can fluctuate wildly based on the growing conditions. This can lead to completely different beers even though they were brewed with the same hop from the same crop year. That is why it is important to get the new crop year as quickly as possible so that recipes can be tweaked and dialed in.
How to Store Hops
The three main enemies of hops in their pelletized or leaf form are temperature, light, and oxygen. But it is easy to properly protect against these factors at home.
1. Keep hops cold
Most professional hop cold storage facilities stay in the 35 to 45 °F (2 to 7 °C) range. If hops are going to be stored for longer than a year they can be kept in the freezer, but this is only necessary for long-term storage. One of the concerns about storing hops at home in a refrigerator or freezer is the risk of the hops absorbing other aromas or fatty acids from whatever else is stored in the unit that can change the flavor of the hops. Much like how baking soda absorbs bad aromas from fatty acids, the compounds in hops have the potential to interact with the other food aromas common in freezers and refrigerators. Even some plastic bags will not protect from this, so be sure to choose bags that specify that they are used for freezers as they are made of heavier-duty plastic. If you really want to err on the safe side, it is best to store sealed hop bags inside a glass canning jar or similar container. Storing hops like this will allow them to retain their natural bittering power and aroma profile for many years.
2. Store away from light
Light is universally bad for both hops and the finished beer. Many imported lagers are known for their “skunky” aroma. This is due to light, specifically the blue wavelengths in the visible spectrum, breaking down isomerized alpha acids. The compound derived is called MBT (3-methyl-2-butene-1-thiol), which is similar to the compound that gives skunk spray its distinctive aroma. Cans are the best way to protect finished beer against damage from light, but brown bottles also help to keep out the most damaging wavelengths. While most research has gone into how light affects isomerized alpha acids in finished beer, it is still best to protect the raw hops from light. The alpha acids in raw hops are not as influenced by light as in their finished, isomerized state, but there still can be noticeable skunking. Isomerized alpha acids are so susceptible to light that drinking a beer on a sunny day in a clear glass will create a noticeable amount of MBT almost immediately. Some lambic hops are aged in sunlight to give them their sought after ‘cheesy’ aroma. Luckily it is easy to protect hops from light considering that most freezers and cold storages are dark.
3. Protect from oxygen
This is the biggest threat to hops. While not all oxidation is considered bad or unwanted (hops are purposefully oxidized for lambics or styles trying to highlight the esters) it is important to understand how oxygen influences hops. The alpha acids, or humulones, are the most affected by oxidation. Humulones present as three analogs that are known as cohumulone, humulone, and adhumulone. The amount of each of these analogs varies between varieties and is responsible for the bittering profile. Once these humulones are oxidized, they will no longer be able to contribute any bitterness to the beer. The inverse happens when looking at beta acids. Beta acids in their original form will not contribute bitterness to the finished beer. However, once the beta acids have oxidized, they have the ability to lend a bitterness to the beer. There have been studies trying to oxidize high beta acid hops to compensate for the loss of alpha acids, but nothing is available commercially. One of the best ways to store and protect hops at home is with a simple vacuum pack food sealer.
If you protect your hops from these three elements, you should have good luck storing them for long periods of time — at least until you get to the next hop harvest!
Storing Homegrown Hops
After spending the spring and summer tending to a homegrown hop crop, it is important to treat your harvested Humulus lupulus properly to ensure you can get the most from your backyard bounty (at least until you use them all up!).
Once you have harvested your hops, the first step is to decide whether you will use them as fresh (“wet”) hops, or if you want to store them. If you choose to use them as wet hops, simply go ahead and use them in your homebrew as soon as possible. In fact it’s best to plan your wet hop brew day to coincide with the day you harvest.
If you want to store your hops, the first step is to dry them as soon as possible. Drying will prevent the hops from degrading. You can dry your hops either in a food dehydrator, or —if you have a large batch — on clean screens or sheets stretched out in a dry place (such as an attic). There are also many designs for building a homemade hop dryer.
When your hops are all dried and ready for storage, pack them in zippered bags that will allow you to remove as much as air as possible. Many homebrewers use vacuum sealers, such as a FoodSaver®, for this (see photo of vacuum-sealed plastic bags in the photo, above). If you want to be extra careful with your hops, use mylar vacuum-seal bags instead of the standard plastic. The mylar bags cost more than the plastic versions, but they will block any light as well as odors from reaching your hops. If you don’t have a vacuum sealer, you can also try using bags that are intended for coffee beans, and press as much of the air out of the bags as possible before closing them. Now label and date the bags before you store them. If you are extra organized, save yourself a step on your next brew day and weigh your hops in amounts that you use often for brewing before you bag them up, such as 1 or 2 oz. (28 or 56 g).
Store the bags in the freezer and they can last up to a few years. If you are not using mylar bags, be aware that some plastic bags may not prevent odors from other things in the freezer from being absorbed. You can prevent this by placing the bags in a glass canning jar to block offending odors.
