Evolution of Late Hopping
The beer world continues to evolve in so many ways. One trend that is truly amazing to witness is the way hop growers and brewers alike are pushing the boundaries of what they are capable of coaxing out of the hop cone. From American IPAs to Northern German Pilsners, the hops brewers use and the way they use them are the defining feature of the modern take on many of these styles. I’ve been homebrewing for 18 years, and when comparing recipes from my early days against more contemporary recipes, the most noticeable changes are the hops. Gone are the big bittering charges. Gone are Willamette hops in any of my IPAs. Gone are the days of chilling immediately after flameout. Gone are the two-week-long dry hop regimens. So
what happened?
Pliny & Citra® Changed Everything
In 2009, Jonny Lieberman wrote a column for Zymurgy magazine titled “Pliny Ruined Everything.” The author argued in that piece that all other IPAs are moot in comparison after having tried Pliny the Elder from Russian River Brewery in Santa Rosa, California. From a recipe formulation perspective, the column was spot on. Pliny did change the rules of the game, creating an aromatic hop bomb, with a huge whirlpool addition and an equally large dry hop charge, using high-alpha, high-oil hop varietals all with a smooth and crisp finish. Almost 10 years later, when I reflect back, we can see that Pliny was the first huge step in the progression towards modern hop-forward beers.
From a hop variety standpoint, the release of Citra® by Hop Breeding Co. was another giant leap in the craft beer world. I often split the modern American craft beer hopping game into two distinct eras, BC and AC, better defined the “before-Citra®” and the “after-Citra®” eras. The hop was met with instant success: Widmer Brothers brewed a pale ale using the first available Citra® hops, which earned a gold medal at the 2008 World Beer Cup. Later, Sierra Nevada released their Torpedo IPA, the first commercially-available beer featuring Citra®, with great fanfare. Deschutes also used it in Fresh-Squeezed IPA. The AC era had begun and craft beer enthusiasts who got a taste of what the new variety could offer, craved more . . .lots more.
There has been a continuous wave of new super citrus and tropical fruit hop varieties released all over the world since those first Citra®-based brews, and resulting beers that increasingly cater to their fruit-like character. Nowadays, brewers have a huge library of hops to choose from with strong aromatic oils and unique profiles including the likes of Mosaic®, Galaxy®, Nelson Sauvin, Mandarina Bavaria, Azacca®, Idaho 7, El Dorado, Denali™, Summer, and Hallertau Blanc, just to name a few.
Combining these two trends — the hopping rates from Pliny the Elder, with the release of new hop varieties — a new American IPA took shape. Huge hop additions are nothing new in the brewing world, but the profiles of these new hop bombs are new. Terms that applied to these aggressively-hopped beers like “dank,” “juicy,” “delicate,” and “tropical fruit” became common vernacular. So let’s take a tour through the techniques that we homebrewers can employ to maximize these hop characteristics.
The Demise of the Bittering Charge
Before we get to the work of developing a recipe with large quantities of late hops, let’s pause to discuss bittering additions. The demise of bittering additions started with the advent of the hop-bursting technique, which we will discuss later. But new research on hop-forward beers is confirming just how insignificant the role the bittering charge plays in the final product of a hop-forward beer. This is not to be confused though with many traditional recipes. A hazy, New England-style IPA and an altbier have two completely divergent paths. The bittering charge will still play a significant role in developing the flavor profile of more classically brewed beer styles such as an altbier, ESB, or American light lager.
Michael Tonsmeire did a great job speaking to the new research in his “Advanced Brewing” column found in the March-April 2018 issue of BYO titled “IBUs: Modern Beers with Old Formulas.” Essentially, beers that are going to be heavily hopped later in the boil, including dry hops, will end up with similar bittering levels no matter how many hops are added at the beginning of the boil. So the latest indications say to keep the bittering hop addition to a minimum. Many brewers still add a small to moderate bittering charge as there are some advantages such as foam management and beer stability, but it is rare to see brewers adding a big 100+ IBU bittering charge like the days of old.
The Beginning: Hop-Bursting
Hop-bursting was one of the first late-hopping techniques in the modern evolution of IPA. The concept was simple: Save most, if not all, of the hop additions until the final 20 minutes of the boil and then quickly chill the wort to lock in those hop oils. Jamil Zainasheff was one of the first to advocate this type of hopping schedule to the homebrew world back in the mid-2000s, after having conversations with both Matt Brynildson from Firestone Walker Brewing Co. in Buellton, California and Peter Zien of AleSmith Brewing Co. in San Diego, California, who both utilized this technique in their breweries.
Hop-bursting is still practiced today to produce modern hop-forward beers. In fact, the concept of saving the majority of the hops for the end of the boil is probably more popular than ever, while the idea of chilling the wort immediately after the boil has slowly dissipated. In its place we find the whirlpool/hopstand phase of the brewday. The technique can even be applied to more traditional-styled beers if a little more hop character is desired.
The Hopstand Emerges
Hopstands, or whirlpool hopping, were the next big homebrewing innovation. Brewers have long added hops at the end of the boil, but for many years there was a difference between the techniques and results of professional brewers and homebrewers.
For the pros, post-boil wort went through an extensive whirlpool process to separate the trub material (hot break and hops) from the wort. Developed by Molson Brewing Co. back in the 1960s, whirlpooling hot wort has become a mainstay process in commercial breweries. After the whirlpool is complete, chilling begins, which can take quite a bit of time depending on the batch size and brewhouse’s chilling capacity. The late addition hops can often be in contact with hot wort for an hour or more before the wort is fully separated from the hops. Homebrewers, on the other hand, were taught to chill their wort immediately post-boil to reduce potential dimethyl sulfide (DMS) formation, reduce risk of bacterial infection, and increase cold-break formation.
As the hopping rates began to explode in the late 1990s and early 2000s, many professional brewers noticed an increase in hop flavor and aroma that was directly proportional to the increase in the end of the boil or post-boil hop additions. Homebrewers typically did not see the same type of increase despite huge end-of-boil hop additions, however. The missing piece was longer contact time between the hot wort and flameout hops. Once the concept of maintaining a longer contact time hit the homebrewing world, homebrewers did what they always do, they started to experiment.
This technique can be one of the easiest methods for any homebrewer to incorporate into their brewday. All it takes is a little extra time after the boil is complete for the flameout hops to release their oils into the wort. Simply add the hops after the boil, then either via manual (such as a spoon) or mechanical force (such as a pump), create a vortex of the wort. Homebrewers can be much more flexible with the post-boil treatment of wort since the batch volume is so much smaller compared to our commercial brewing counterparts. As a result, the hopstand schedule has gotten more and more varied among homebrewers. What is harder to decipher when performing a hopstand is figuring out the ideal time and temperature to both release the oils from the hops and retain those oils in the wort.
Ask five homebrewers the best way to maximize their hopstand hops and you’ll get a minimum of six answers. Many brewers have different schedules for different beers and some will start the chilling process prior to adding the hopstand hops. Again, this is a balancing act, and you want to minimize the vaporization of the hop oils but still coax the oils out of the hops in a fairly short period of time. Some brewers chill all the way down to ~120 °F (50 °C) or lower before adding the post-boil hops. Some chill to ~150 °F (66 °C), others will go down to 170 °F (76 °C), while still others won’t chill at all prior to adding these hops. Just be sure to note that if you plan to keep the wort hot above roughly 175 °F (80 °C), you will increasingly impact the alpha acid isomerization. This is something to keep in mind if you are planning to minimize the bitterness of the final beer.
Some brewers will hold their hopstand for 10 minutes or less, some 15–20 minutes, others will go 30–45 minutes or more. There have been two studies covering the hopstand duration, one on a professional brewery scale and one at a homebrewery scale. At a commercial scale, according to a study put out by Van Havig, who at the time was brewing at Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery, showed that longer contact time, an 80-minute stand, increased hop flavor. But a collaboration study by the Brewsquitos Homebrew Club and Bell’s Brewing Co. showed that shorter hopstand times of 10–20 minutes would be beneficial for homebrewers. Research by Thomas Shellhammer out of Oregon State University also shows rapid extraction of oils from the hops, also indicating that longer duration hopstands may not be beneficial.
There is also the option of doing a hopstand in stages, at different temperatures. The best time and temperature to do these hopstand additions is still a topic of debate due to the fact that the number of hop oils is staggering. More hydrophilic oils will maintain presence in hot wort longer compared to more hydrophobic oils. Several studies have been done by various groups including one by Experimental Brewing, the before-mentioned collaboration study by the Brewsquitos and Bell’s Brewing, and several by the Brülosphy blog; which I advise homebrewers interested in this topic to read. You can find a link to a few of these studies at the end of this article.
My own interpretation of these studies is that hopstand duration time is fairly significant in the final hop flavor profile, while hopstand temperature is less significant. I generally still add my hops just after flameout and don’t begin chilling until after a 15-minute hopstand for all but a few of my recipes.
Hopback Hops
Hopbacks are a traditional brewing tool found between the boil kettle and the fermenter to separate out whole hop cones and hot break from the post-boil wort. Brewers often utilize whole hop cones as the filter bed to achieve this goal, and today they are still used by brewers who are looking for an extra level of filtration before the wort reaches the heat exchanger. Brewers realized early on that they can add an extra burst of hop character to a beer when hot wort is run through this bed of hop cones. Brewers would then use only the most aromatic hop varietals in their hopback if they were looking to add hop character. When Ken Grossman built his first brew system for Sierra Nevada he added a hopback to his system, which helped provide that characteristic Cascade flavor and aroma profile for Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.
Hopbacks are still in use in many commercial breweries, and with the addition of the HopRocket™ to Blichmann Engineering’s lineup as well as several DIY hopback designs by handy homebrewers, the hopback is still very relevant in the homebrewing world. Hopbacks limit the exposure time of hops to hot wort and isomerization of alpha acids added at the end of the boil. This is one reason why late kettle additions produce different results with cone hops in comparison to hop pellets. If a recipe calls for a large amount of hopstand hops, homebrewers could consider splitting these additions, half into the kettle and half into the hopback. This method would utilize the benefits of the added filtration of this hopping device. Only whole cone hops are used in the hopback, so brewers who utilize mainly hop pellets may be limited by what they put in the hopback. Hopbacks offer several benefits for brewers looking to layer a beer’s hop personality.
Dry Hop
Dry hopping has a long tradition in the brewing world. Adding hops directly to a beer cask has been in practice for centuries thanks to the preservative qualities from hops. But the beer world moved away from the practice of dry hopping in the 20th century as IPAs, and ales in general, lost favor among beer drinkers worldwide. Brewers looked to cut costs and the preservative qualities of hops were no longer as significant due to the widespread use of artificial refrigeration. Ballantine IPA was one of the only beers left in the USA that still utilized this technique during the 1960s and 1970s (they reportedly also used a hop oil produced by a steam distillation method). Thankfully, Fritz Maytag, who purchased Anchor Brewing Co. in 1965, was a fan of historical brewing practices and brought the nearly out-of-favor technique back when he started brewing their Liberty Ale in 1975. Later, with the popularity of Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale in the 1980s, dry hopping surged back in popularity on US-soil.
Nowadays the dry hop schedule of modern hop-forward beers can be almost as varied as the whirlpool process. Multi-stage dry hopping, dry hopping during fermentation, and keg hopping are just a few methods homebrewers will employ.
When I started homebrewing, dry hopping was a straightforward process: Add hops to the cask or fermenter, usually secondary fermenter, once the beer has mostly cleared; wait seven to 14 days or longer, then transfer off the hops just before bottling or aging. But again, brewers in this day and age want to maximize a hop’s aromatic qualities and not just gain their preservative qualities. Commercial craft brewers started experimenting with dry hopping years ago and found that adding dry hops in stages once the yeast had properly flocculated increased the aromatic capacity of the hops. Homebrewers started to pick up on this trend and started to layer in their dry hops. It turns out that fermenter geometry plays a big role in this correlation, however, and homebrewers could simply add one big charge of dry hops instead of several charges to get the same results. Instead, a new trend has emerged that may actually benefit homebrewers who layer in their hops: Dry hopping during fermentation.
Adding the dry hop addition during fermentation is a process that has gained a lot of traction in the last few years. The primary known benefit to adding dry hops at this stage is that the still-active yeast can absorb oxygen that the dry hops will introduce to the beer. Homebrewers can add their hops directly to the fermentation near the end of the active cycle, when sign of activity slows. This also gives a secondary benefit, the hop oils will have time to interact with the yeast. Yeast has been shown to modify a few select hop oils. Studies have shown the hop oil geraniol (geranium-essence) will convert to citronellol (citrus essence) and that linalool (floral-essence) will convert to terpineol (pine essence). But hop oils will also be dragged out of suspension by flocculating yeast. So homebrewers may want to split their dry hops into two charges — one added at the back end of fermentation and the second added after fermentation is complete and some time is provided for yeast to flocculate out of suspension.
Keg hopping can be hugely advantageous for homebrewers. If you keg your beers, you should be adding the hops into a paint strainer bag or stainless steel container. Then gently lower the hops into a keg purged with CO2 with the bag or container tied off using floss or clean, thin-gauged fishing line. Let settle for 15–30 minutes then rack the beer into the keg. This should reduce oxygen uptake during the dry hopping process. This also means that homebrewers who are confident in their racking process can flip the keg several times during the dry hop period. Flipping the keg will agitate the dry hops and allow better dispersion of hop oils into the beer. This can mimic commercial brewers that recirculate their dry-hopped beer while in the fermenter. If using pellet hops, two to three days is all that is required. Brewers using whole hops should shoot for seven days, flipping several times during that time period.
At the end of the recommended dry hop period, the dry hops can be removed from the keg. Brewers may want to transfer one more time, chilling the beer to promote settling, then rack into another CO2-purged keg or simply serve direct from that keg. Expect a pint or two of murky beer if you use that latter method, however.
No brewer should ever stop tinkering with their brewing process and ingredients that work for them. Incorporating some of these new techniques, as well as the re-imagined ones, can coax the brightest and most interesting flavors and aromas out of your hops. Whether you are trying to brew a cream ale or going for a milkshake IPA, these late hop techniques may serve a role. Make sure to keep the craft in the term craft brewing, while maintaining a level of creativity, and the joy of brewing beer should never grow old.
“Zero” IBU IPA
One of the latest au courant trends in the craft beer world is the theoretical zero IBU IPA, meaning that hypothetically there should be no bittering from iso-alpha acids in the final beer. These beers are brewed using traditional brewing practices, but no bittering hops are added to the boil. In fact, no hops are added at all until after the wort has been chilled to below the point where isomerization of alpha acids is relevant.
While theoretically the “zero” IBU IPA is true, what brewers have found is that there is actually plenty of bitterness found in these beers, it’s just that the bitter characteristics do not originate from iso-alpha acids converted during the boil. Compounds such as humulinones (oxidized alpha acids) and non-isomerized alpha acids are two such compounds that are hop derived, which despite lower bittering potential, contribute to the overall bitter character of beer. When lots of hops are added to cool wort and beer, compounds such as these will still provide a beer with bite. Humulinones and hop polyphenols will also absorb UV light at the wavelengths used in the IBU method, these “zero” IBU beers will not only have a bitter bite, but also when tested, contain high IBU levels.
In tandem with these lesser known hop compounds, significant dry hop additions will also increase the pH of the beer. The resulting pH shift has shown to enhance a beer’s bitterness. For more information on the chemistry of these zero IBU IPAs, I recommend reading a series of articles on the Scott Janish blog on the effects of dry hopping on bitterness, for which links can be found at the end of this article.
Hop-Bursting Recipe:
Alesmith Brewing Co.’s Evil Dead Red clone
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.069 FG = 1.018
IBU = 10 SRM = 18 ABV = 6.66%
Evil Dead Red was one of the most innovative beers to come out of California in the early 2000s. It utilizes a hop burst technique to provide tons of aromatics thanks to ample American hops added late in the boil without a true bittering hop charge. This beer remains AleSmith Brewing Co.’s annual Halloween beer.
Ingredients
12 lbs. (5.5 kg) 2-row pale malt
1.6 lbs. (0.7 kg) Munich malt (10 °L)
12 oz. (350 g) English light crystal malt (45 °L)
9.7 oz. (275 g) English crystal malt (77 °L)
3.5 oz. (100 g) English extra dark crystal malt (120 °L)
1.8 oz. (50 g) roasted barley (550 °L)
0.9 AAU Chinook hops (60 min.) (0.075 oz./2 g at 12% alpha acids)
4 AAU Chinook (10 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 12% alpha acids)
3.5 AAU Columbus hops (10 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 14% alpha acids)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Cascade hops (hopstand)
1 oz. (28 g) Chinook hops (hopstand)
1 oz. (28 g) Columbus hops (hopstand)
1.5 oz. (43 g) Cascade hops (dry hop)
1 oz. (28 g) Chinook hops (dry hop)
1 oz. (28 g) Columbus hops (dry hop)
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale) or White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Safale US-05 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Mill the grains and mix with 5 gallons (19 L) of strike water at 168 °F (76 °C) to reach a mash temperature of 156 °F (69 °C). Hold this temperature for 45 minutes. Vorlauf until your runnings are clear. Sparge with enough water to obtain 7 gallons (25 L) of wort. Add a pinch of hops near the beginning of the boil, mainly for foam control. Total boil time is 60 minutes. Add hops as indicated. After the boil, chill wort to 175 °F (80 °C) then begin a whirlpool of the wort and add the hopstand hops. Let settle for 30 minutes, then chill the wort to 66 °F (19 °C). The aim is to have 5.25 gallons (20 L) of wort in your fermenter. Aerate with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.
Ferment at 68 °F (20 °C) for 7 days. Chill to 60 °F (16 °C) and wait 7 days. You can then cold-crash the beer prior to packaging to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours to improve clarity. Carbonate to ~2.5 volumes.
Alesmith Brewing Co.’s Evil Dead Red clone
(5 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)
OG = 1.069 FG = 1.018
IBU = 10 SRM = 18 ABV = 6.66%
Ingredients
6.2 lbs. (2.8 kg) extra light dried malt extract
1 lb. (0.45 kg) Munich dried malt extract
12 oz. (350 g) English light crystal malt (45 °L)
9.7 oz. (275 g) English crystal malt (77 °L)
3.5 oz. (100 g) English extra dark crystal malt (120 °L)
1.8 oz. (50 g) roasted barley (550 °L)
0.9 AAU Chinook hops (60 min.) (0.075 oz./2 g at 12% alpha acids)
4 AAU Chinook (10 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 12% alpha acids)
3.5 AAU Columbus hops (10 min.) (0.25 oz./7 g at 14% alpha acids)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Cascade hops (hopstand)
1 oz. (28 g) Chinook hops (hopstand)
1 oz. (28 g) Columbus hops (hopstand)
1.5 oz. (43 g) Cascade hops (dry hop)
1 oz. (28 g) Chinook hops (dry hop)
1 oz. (28 g) Columbus hops (dry hop)
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale) or White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Safale US-05 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Heat 5 gallons (19 L) of water to 158 °F (70 °C) and remove from heat. Place the crushed grains in a grain bag and soak in the water for 30 minutes. Remove grain bag, allowing liquid to drip back into the pot. Stir in all the dried malt extract and bring to a boil. Follow the remainder of the all-grain recipe.
Backstory
In my conversation with Peter Zien, the CEO/Owner of AleSmith, he mentioned that the recipe was actually the brainchild of Tod Fitzsimmons who has worked at AleSmith for 22 of the 23 years in which AleSmith has been in operation. Back then, Tod was the president of QUAFF homebrew club and Peter was the vice-president of the club. Tod created a beer he dubbed I Thee Wed Red for his wedding celebration back in 1997. Demand for the beer went through the roof after its release. Evil Dead Red is a blood-red beer and according to Peter, “The ABV must be 6.66%!”
Whirlpool Hopping Recipe:
Pelican Brewing Co.’s Kiwanda Cream Ale clone
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.049 FG = 1.007
IBU = 25 SRM = 4 ABV = 5.4%
Not all late-hopped beers need to be aggressive. Pelican Brewing Co. from Cannon Beach, Oregon created the first modern beer recipe I heard about in which the first hopping addition was after flameout. This is the perfect summer beer to enjoy on the water.
Ingredients
9 lbs. (4.1 kg) 2-row pale malt
13 oz. (370 g) dextrin malt
8 oz. (230 g) flaked barley
10 AAU Mt Hood hops (0 min.) (2 oz./57 g at 5% alpha acid)
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale) or White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Safale US-05 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Mill the grains and mix with 15.5 qts. (14.6 L) of 162 °F (72 °C) strike water to reach a mash temperature of 150 °F (66 °C). Hold this temperature for 90 minutes. Vorlauf until your runnings are clear. Sparge with enough water to obtain 6.5 gallons (24.6 L) of wort. Boil for 60 minutes. After the boil, turn off heat and begin a whirlpool of the hot wort. Add the hops while whirlpooling. Let stand for 20 minutes, then chill the wort to 65 °F (18 °C). Aerate with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.
Ferment at 65 °F (18 °C) for 7 days. Raise to 70 °F (21 °C) for three more days. Once the beer reaches terminal gravity, bottle or keg and carbonate to approximately 2.5 volumes. You can cold-crash the beer prior to packaging to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours to improve clarity.
Pelican Brewing Co.’s Kiwanda Cream Ale clone
(5 gallons/19 L, partial mash)
OG = 1.049 FG = 1.007
IBU = 25 SRM = 4 ABV = 5.4%
Ingredients
4.25 lbs. (2 kg) extra light dried malt extract
1 lb. (0.45 kg) 2-row pale malt
13 oz. (370 g) dextrin malt
8 oz. (230 g) flaked barley
10 AAU Mt Hood hops (0 min.) (2 oz./57 g at 5% alpha acid)
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale) or White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Safale US-05 yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Bring 1 gallon (4 L) of water to approximately 160 °F (71 °C). Submerge the milled grains in grain bags and steep for 45 minutes, trying to maintain the temperature at about 150 °F (66 °C). Remove the grain bags, and place in a colander. Wash the grains with 1 gallon (4 L) hot water. Add the dried malt extract while stirring, and stir until dissolved, then top off to 5 gallons (19 L). Boil for 30 minutes. After the boil, turn off heat and begin a whirlpool of the hot wort. Add the hops while whirlpooling. Let stand for 20 minutes, then chill the wort to 65 °F (18 °C) and transfer wort
to the fermenter. Top off the fermenter to 5 gallons (19 L), then aerate with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.
Ferment at 65 °F (18 °C) for 7 days. Raise to 70 °F (21 °C) for three more days. Once the beer reaches terminal gravity, bottle or keg and carbonate to approximately 2.5 volumes. Cold-crash prior to packaging to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours to improve clarity.
Backstory:
As Brewmaster Darron Welch explains it, “The reason Kiwanda is a whirlpool-only beer has to do with the early process of developing this beer. Initially, the beer had a more conventional formula, although still heavily weighted towards finishing hops for emphasis on hop aroma character rather than bitterness. Early batches hit the aroma targets but seemed too bitter from sensory work. Since Pelican has used outside lab services almost from the beginning of our operations, I sent samples off and confirmed that the beer was too bitter for the designed target specification.
“Wanting to keep the aromatic presence of the beer intact, I started gradually reducing the base bittering addition and the mid-kettle addition incrementally, getting laboratory feedback all along the way. It got to the point where my adjustments of kettle hops were having basically no impact on perceived or measured bitterness, so I simply abandoned them entirely. Subsequent testing showed that by eliminating all kettle hops and doing only the whirlpool addition, I not only hit the measured IBU specification, but more importantly, I was getting the balance of flavor, aroma, and bitterness that I had imagined when designing the beer in the first place.
“Hops added partway through the boil — 15–30 minutes of boil time — will tend to give more bitterness than might be traditionally expected, and not as much aroma as with a whirlpool addition. Part of it has to do with the overall design of the beer and the formulation.”
“Zero” IBU Recipe:
Revolution Brewing’s Louie Louie clone
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.072 FG = 1.010
IBU = 58 SRM = 6 ABV = 8.2%
Revolution Brewing in Chicago, Illinois decided to brew up a supposed “Zero IBU” IPA on their brewpub system. Using a whooping 5.5 lbs. (2.5 kg) of hops per barrel, it was a hop bomb, but should not technically have any “IBUs” based on isomerized alpha acids. What they found out was that according to lab analysis, there were still 58 IBUs in solution of the finished beer, derived from other compounds.
Ingredients
12.9 lbs. (5.85 kg) 2-row pale malt
1.25 lbs. (567 g) red wheat malt
0.9 lb. (408 g) light Munich malt (6 °L)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Amarillo® hops (hopstand)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Centennial hops (hopstand)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Amarillo® hops (1st round – dry hop)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Centennial hops (1st round – dry hop)
5 oz. (142 g) Mosaic® hops (2nd round – dry hop)
Wyeast 1028 (London Ale) or White Labs WLP013 (London Ale) or Lallemand Nottingham yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
This recipe is designed to achieve 5.5 gallons (21 L) wort in the fermenter on brew day. This will help offset the loss of volume to the heavy hopping rate of this beer. Mill the grains and mix with 5 gallons (19 L) of soft water at 163 °F (73 °C) to reach a mash temperature of 150 °F (66 °C). Hold this temperature for 60 minutes. Vorlauf until your runnings are clear. Sparge with enough water to obtain 7 gallons (25 L) of wort. You may want to add a pinch of hops or an additive like Fermcap to help with foam control.
After the boil, turn off heat and chill wort to 165 °F (74 °C) then begin a whirlpool of the wort and add the hopstand hops. Let settle for 30 minutes, then chill the wort to 66 °F (19 °C). The aim is to have 5.5 gallons (21 L) of wort in your fermenter. Aerate and pitch yeast. Ferment at 68 °F (20 °C) for 7 days. Add the first round of dry hops and wait for three days. Carefully rack the beer off the first round of hops, hopefully in a closed transfer situation into a CO2-purged receiving vessel. Bag the second round of hops and add to the fermenter. Wait 2-3 days then remove. Carbonate to approximately 2.5 volumes. You can cold-crash the beer prior to packaging to 35 °F (2 °C) for 48 hours to improve clarity.
Revolution Brewing’s Louie Louie clone
(5 gallons/19 L, extract only)
OG = 1.072 FG = 1.010
IBU = 58 SRM = 6 ABV = 8.2%
Ingredients
7 lbs. (3.2 kg) extra light dried malt extract
1.1 lbs. (0.5 kg) wheat dried malt extract
0.66 lb. (300 g) Munich dried malt extract
2.5 oz. (71 g) Amarillo® hops (hopstand)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Centennial hops (hopstand)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Amarillo® hops (1st round – dry hop)
2.5 oz. (71 g) Centennial hops (1st round – dry hop)
5 oz. (142 g) Mosaic® hops (2nd round – dry hop)
Wyeast 1028 (London Ale) or White Labs WLP013 (London Ale) or Lallemand Nottingham yeast
3⁄4 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
This recipe is designed to achieve 5.5 gallons (21 L) wort in the fermenter on brew day. This will help offset the loss of volume to the heavy hopping rate. Heat 5 gallons (19 L) of soft water to 180 °F (82 °C) and remove from heat. Stir in all the dried malt extract and return to a boil. Boil wort for 15 minutes then turn off heat and chill wort to 165 °F (74 °C). Follow the remainder of the all-grain recipe.
Bittering Hops:
I asked Revolution Brewing’s Brewer John Palos about his thoughts on the traditional bittering charge of hops with these hop-forward beers and whether they are becoming obsolete. He replied, “They’re definitely not a thing of the past. In fact, I feel that with growing development of (non pellet) hop products, many of which are boil-only, we will see growing interest in boil additions. I do see increasingly a simplification of hop bills, which I think is a positive. Some of the best beers I’ve had are made with stunningly simple recipes. The days of the IPAs with 6 different malts (including 10% crystal) are in the past, and I think 3+ hop additions are also disappearing. However, that bittering charge is still invaluable in many hoppy beers. I feel like it imparts a more stable, tangible, chewy bitterness that will last longer in packaged beer.
Whirlpool + Hopback+ Dry Hop Recipe
Sommerbier
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.011
IBU = 25 SRM = 3 ABV = 5.2%
As Kiwanda Cream Ale previously displayed, late hopped beers don’t need to be hop bombs. Here is a beer that lands somewhere between a German Pilsner and a pale Kellerbier. Served fairly young, this is the perfect summer sipper with a layered hop aroma from the new-school German hops and a bready malt profile with the flaked wheat and dextrin malt providing a moderate mouthfeel.
Ingredients
10 lbs. (4.5 kg) German Pilsner malt
0.66 lb. (300 g) flaked wheat
3.5 oz. (100 g) Carapils® or Carafoam® malt
1 tsp. Irish moss
2.2 AAU Magnum® hops (first wort hops/FWH) (0.14 oz./4 g at 14.5% alpha acids)
1.5 oz. (43 g) Hallertau Blanc hops (0 min.)
1 oz. (28 g) Mandarina Bavaria hops (0 min.)
1.5 oz. (43 g) Perle hops (hopback)
1 oz. (28 g) Hallertau Blanc hops (dry hop)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Mandarina Bavaria hops (dry hop)
White Labs WLP940 (Mexican Lager) or Wyeast 2007 (Pilsen Lager) or SafLager S-189 yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Two days prior to brewday, make an appropriately-sized yeast starter. If using dried yeast, use 2 packets for pitching. A decoction or step mash program would be a great addition to this recipe. I used a single infusion mash though as time was short on this brewday.
Mill the grains and mix with 4 gallons (15 L) of strike water at 163 °F (73 °C) to reach a mash temperature of 150 °F (66 °C). Hold this temperature for 60 minutes. Vorlauf until your runnings are clear. Sparge with enough water to obtain 6.75 gallons (25.5 L) of wort. During the sparge, add the first wort hops to the boil kettle. Bring to a boil and boil for 75 minutes. Add the Irish moss or other kettle fining with 10 minutes remaining in the boil. After the boil, turn off heat and add the flameout hops. Begin a whirlpool of the wort, then let settle for 15 minutes. Filter the beer through a hopback if you have one. If not, you can add the Perle hops as you begin the chilling process. Chill the wort to 52 °F (11 °C). The aim is to have 5.25 gallons (20 L) of wort in your fermenter. Aerate with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.
Ferment at 54 °F (12 °C) for 7 days, then increase temperature to 62 °F (17 °C) for three additional days. When no sign of fermentation is noticeable, drop temperature to 45 °F (7 °C) over the course of 5 days. Hold 3 days. Rack onto the dry hops, then wait for three days. Package the beer into a keg or bottle. Carbonate to approximately 2.3 volumes.
Sommerbier
(5 gallons/19 L, partial mash)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.011
IBU = 25 SRM = 3 ABV = 5.2%
Ingredients
5.2 lbs. (2.4 kg) Pilsen dried malt extract
1 lb. (0.45 kg) Pilsner malt
0.66 lb. (300 g) flaked wheat
1 tsp. Irish moss
2.2 AAU Magnum® hops (first wort hops/FWH) (0.14 oz./4 g at 14.5% alpha acids)
1.5 oz. (43 g) Hallertau Blanc hops (0 min.)
1 oz. (28 g) Mandarina Bavaria hops (0 min.)
1.5 oz. (43 g) Perle hops (hopback)
1 oz. (28 g) Hallertau Blanc hops (dry hop)
0.5 oz. (14 g) Mandarina Bavaria hops (dry hop)
White Labs WLP940 (Mexican Lager) or Wyeast 2007 (Pilsen Lager) or SafLager S-189 yeast
2⁄3 cup corn sugar (if priming)
Step by Step
Heat 1 gallon (3.8 L) of water to 160 °F (71 °C) and remove from heat. Place the crushed Pilsner malt and flaked wheat in a bag and submerge in the water. Try to hold temperature above 150 °F (66 °C), but below 160 °F (71 °C) for 45 minutes. Remove the grain bag and place in a colander. Wash grains with 1 gallon (3.8 L) hot water. Top up to 3 gallons (11 L) or more if possible. Stir in all the dried malt extract and the first wort hops, then bring to a boil. Boil wort for 60 minutes. Add the Irish moss or other kettle fining with 10 minutes remaining in the boil.
After the boil, turn off heat and add the flameout hops. Begin a whirlpool of the wort, then let settle for 15 minutes. Filter the beer through a hopback if you have one. If not, you can add the Perle hops as you begin the chilling process. Chill the wort to 52 °F (11 °C). The aim is to have 5.25 gallons (20 L) of wort in your fermenter, so top off with water if needed. Aerate with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch yeast.
Follow the fermentation and packaging instructions in the all-grain version of this recipe.
Read More
Here are some excellent resources to learn more about modern late-hopping techniques:
• www.homebrewersassociation.org/how-to-brew/effect-post-boilwhirlpool-hop-additions-bitterness-beer/
• http://brulosophy.com/2016/02/01/the-hop-stand-hot-vs-chilled-wort-exbeeriment-results/
• http://scottjanish.com/increasing-bitterness-dry-hopping/
• http://scottjanish.com/dry-hopping-effect-bitterness-ibu-testing/
• http://scottjanish.com/zero-hot-side-hopped-neipa-hplc-testing-sensory-bitterness/
