How to make a Ridiculous dIPA volume 2 - Hops, with Chad Roberts of YCH HOPS

This is a long one, but it's worth it. 

"Furthermore, we wish to emphasize that in future in all cities, markets and in the country, the only ingredients used for the brewing of beer must be Barley, Hops and Water. Whosoever knowingly disregards or transgresses upon this ordinance, shall be punished by the Court authorities' confiscating such barrels of beer, without fail.

There it is, the Reinheitsgebot.  The first of many laws governing how beer was to be made. What?  you don't care for the Reinheitsgebot? You are a free brewer, and you'll add what ever you want to your wort...  OK, cool, I'm cool with that.  But,  understand, this is where the use of hops became not just common, but also standardized and regulated.   And thank god it did.   From this point on hops were the key defining flavor of beer. Hops became the flavor that separated one style from another.  

When you back up to 50 yards away and watch a brew day.  They all look very similar.   Water, malt,  hops, and yeast.  Brew in a Bag, 3 Vessel, eHERMS, RIMS, they all look very similar from 50 yards away.  It isn't the method that creates the flavors.   It is the specific choice of ingredients that defines a beer.    Tell me what is the difference between a blonde ale and a american India pale ale?   It is the hops. Nothing else.  What about the yeast smart guy? Well, as much as I talk about yeast, I will acknowledge that yeast is also a key ingredient.  But true yeast whisperers,  the guys who really understand yeast, can use many different yeasts to get the flavor they want, or use the same yeast to get many different flavors. One of the best saisons I ever had was made with US 05 fermented at high temperatures.   The guy knew how to get what he wanted from the yeast.  But there is no way to fake hops.  Each hop has unique properties that make it what it is.  Each hop variety is a separate variety and is genetically different than the other varieties.   

So whats in a hop?   By now I am assuming you know what a hop is.  If you aren't familiar with what hops are, this blog may be a little technical for you.   But have heart, I'll keep it as understandable as possible.  And when I say "what is in a hop"  I don't mean cellulose,    I mean what are the compounds in a hop that we as brewers care about?  How do these compounds (acids and oils) react to heat and mechanical agitation?  How can we use this knowledge to control (maximize) hop flavors. For that information, we turn to a pro,  Chad Roberts of YCH Hops.    Chad is the quality control officer of YCH Hops.  He is a wealth of information on hops and how to use them.  YCH Hops is an awesome provider of hops.   They have pioneered small packaging for home brewers.   When you are making a beer for competition, or true excellence, small packs are the choice.  Their Small packs are low oxygen packages that damn near guarantee freshness.   YCH HOPS

What are the compounds in hops that give beer flavor?

Numerous hop compounds contribute to the flavors they add to beer, from the obvious ones such as alpha and beta acids, various oils, as well as polyphenols and the vegetal hop matter itself.

So they are acids and oils?

Primarily, yes.  These are what are judged for their flavor and aroma contributions.  We are beginning to understand more what the other elements contribute as well.

What are the acids and how do they affect flavor?

Alpha and beta acid are comprised of various acids present in hops, and are placed into these two groups for ease of calculation.  They are housed within the hard resins of the hop glands.

What flavor is alpha acid?   

Aside from “hoppy and bitter”, I don’t think you can really assign a specific flavor to alpha acid.  Most of the flavors come from the connection to aroma contributed from the oils.

What flavor is beta acid?

Beta contributes somewhat to the bitterness of the beer as well, but as it does not isomerize or solubilize, beta acid bitterness primarily comes from it oxidizing, and has been described as “harsh, or medicinal”.

How long does it take for them to give their maximum bitterness?

A 60 minute boil isomerizes about all of the bitterness that is going to come from boiling the alpha acids in the hops, but some perceived bitterness from polyphenols may also come from dry hopping.

So the longer they are exposed to the heat the more bitterness they provide? 

To a point.  After 90 minutes, the only way you are extracting more than the maximum utilization of 30-35% is by actually reducing the total volume of liquid and increasing the bitterness that way.

So does the choice of bittering hop matter?

Absolutely.  While some brewers have anecdotally favored low co-humulone hops for bittering in the belief that they provide a “smooth” bittering, blind taste tests have not given data to back this up.  However, bitter character is most likely informed by the genetics of each hop, which is why some use high alpha, clean hops such as Magnum and Warrior™ to achieve the bitterness they desire while contributing little conflicting flavor or aroma.

What are the oils and what flavors do they give? 

Myrcene

Myrcene is normally connected with tropical fruit flavors, and is the most volatile of the oils in hops, so the first to disappear with age. 

Caryophyllene

Earthy, woody, spicy character is classically ascribed to this oil.

Farnesene 

Farnesene can range from primarily floral tones into some citrusy character as well.

Humulene

It is very much like Caryophyllene, and so produces much of the same aromas.

Geraniol

Strong floral aromas come from geraniol.

Linalool

Linalool is closely related to myrcene, and responsible for many perceived aromas in hops, from floral to woody to fruity.

There has bee a lot of focus recently on late hop additions and dry hopping.   Can you discuss that?

Adding hops late in the boil and dry hopping are where you are going to get the majority of your hop aroma, as aroma compounds are volatile and would be boiled off otherwise.  

Heat creates isomerization and boils off volatile oils,  fermentation creates biotransformation.  How can brewers use that to their advantage? 

Isomerization creates your bitterness, so that is why your bittering addition is at the beginning.   Hop oils boil off at much lower temperatures than water, and the flavors provided by the oils degrade much faster than isomerization occurs.  “Biotransformation” and hydrolization by yeast take the aroma compounds found in oils and change them into other aromas.  Whether or not this is desirable is a point of contention between brewers, and people dry hop with or without yeast present to control these effects.

Is it fair to say you can custom design the flavor of a beer by knowing the amounts of the acids and oils, and how to maximize them?

By using calculators to control the amounts of IBU you extract from Alpha Acids in the hops you use, you can absolutely control how bitter your beer is.  By knowing the oil contents, you can definitely get closer to what you are looking for but a whole host of variables between brewing and consumption affect whether or not the character you are shooting for will be exactly what you planned for.

So if a person wanted to make a ridiculously hoppy double india pale ale (the focus of this series)  they could literally choose what flavors they wanted to emphasize and choose hops and hop usage techniques to maximize those flavors?

Designing your hop bill thoughtfully and controlling all of your processes will absolutely improve your beer and get it closer to what you are designing.

We want a citrusy, piney, somewhat floral, maybe even a little peppery 5 gallon batch of beer at about 95 IBUs   What would you recommend for hops and additions?  

For Citrus, I’ve always liked Cascade and Citra™, with pine coming from Chinook and Simcoe®, floral from Spalt and Sterling, and pepper from Summit and Columbus.

How important is freshness and packaging?

Cold storage, packaging quality and retaining an inert (low oxygen) atmosphere for the hops is integral to keeping them fresh.  The crop year isn’t as important as keeping them cold and sealed.  I have professionally used hops over 8 years old and made a great hop forward beer, so I personally am very against the “current crop year or bust” mentality.  (did you all catch that?)

How can a home brewer get the best quality hops?

Buy from your local home brew store, as long as they keep all of their hops cold (below 40 F), even their back stock.  Yakima Chief-Hopunion “Small Pack” product is the first in the market to provide quality controlled, commercially packaged and guaranteed product to the home brew market, and we hold our products to a standard of excellence and trace-ability to ensure that all of our customers receive the highest quality hops we have to offer.

So faithful readers, to sum up what we have learned.   Using hops is not as simple as putting them in your beer at certain times.   A well designed recipe uses the knowledge we all have built to create the flavors we all want.  Some of the techniques that brewers have developed are great.  Some of them are... well, let's just say they don't accomplish what was intended.   And there are exciting new techniques you can use to maximize the flavors you want.  It is really just like everything else. Understanding what you are doing is the key.  So lets summarize what we have learned.

• The bitterness comes from the acids in the hops, and to a certain extent the polyphenols
• It takes about 60 minutes for the acids to isomerize (re arrange) for maximum effect
• So if you want a super bitter beer, you need to add hops at 60 minutes, and those hops need lots of acid content.
• The taste of one hop added at 60 versus another hop added at 60 is noticeable.  So the idea that any bittering hop will do is not true.  
• Many brewers like bittering hops with low Co-Humulone levels. Warrior and Magnum
• Much of the hop flavor comes from the volatile oils in the hop
• These oils boil at much lower temperatures than wort.  
• When the oils boil they loose their flavors, they are volatile
• This can happen in as little as 10-20 minutes in the boil
• Tell us exactly how long they can boil safely with out losing the flavors
• I can't.  It all depends on what you are trying to accomplish and what flavors you are trying to create.  One thing I take from this, is that for the purpose of flavor and aroma... I add my hops in the last 10 minutes or in whirl pool or dry hop only.  
• Whirl pool additions over 140 F will continue to isomerize.   Which isn't to say you shouldn't whirlpool.  Just know that you are loosing some aroma and flavor, and gaining some additional bitterness.  Sometimes that's what you want.  Remember people its about understanding not rules.
• But late additoons, with out fast chilling of the entire volume of the wort will continue to do 2 things
• Isomerize
• Oils will break down
• This isn't bad or good, it just is.  late additions and whirlpool additions are just a tool you can use to get the flavors you want.   
• Basically, Whirlpool and hop burst additions exposed to high heat for long periods of time will muddle.  
• Meaning their flavors and aromas will diminish and you will get some additional bitterness from them. Which may be what you want, but not really what we want in a monster dIPA. 
• Hop oils exposed to active fermentation can undergo bio-transformation.  This is a process where the yeast acts upon the hop oils (looking for anything it may need).  The hop oils can change.  This is also neither good or bad.  It just is what it is.   You may want this, you may not.  
• There is debate on whether or not this is actually perceivable.  My best advice is try it yourself.  Brew the same beer 2x or split a batch.  One time follow your normal dry hop schedule.  One time add the dry hops a day or two before packaging after most active fermentation has subsided.
• Can't you ever just give us a rule to follow? 
• No, no I can not.  other than clean and sanitize constantly.   
• Great brewing is not about rules and recipes, it is about understanding. 
• Understanding how your ingredients will behave based on the factors you can control

In our next episode we will design our ridiculous dIPA using what we have learned, and I will give you more resources to use in designing a beer.   There have been some amazing developments in the last couple of years.   That is all for now sports fans.  

PROST!

YCH HOPS

How to make a ridiculous Imperial IPA... Part 1 the pitfalls

Ok, here it is, the series you have all been waiting for.  The big one.   How to make a ridiculous double India Pale Ale.   This is the first in a 3 part series on this topic.  Part 1; the pitfalls, Part 2 Hop Oils and how to use them, Part 3 The Counterbrew dIPA recipe "Hoptonite".  I wont bore you with too much information and history about dIPAs.   But give me just a little leeway.   Until 1974 American beer was bland.  Bland, bad, yellow, fizzy lager. And not even great lager.  Then Fritz Maytag of Anchor brewing said, enough.  He came out with an English style pale ale hopped with Cascade hops, called Liberty Ale.   Liberty Ale was off the charts hoppy, clocking in at a reported 31 - 35 IBUs.  In a world where most beers were 12 to 16 IBUs, this was a game changer.  Fritz was soon followed by Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada and his gift to the world, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.

Vinnie Cilurzo the father of dIPA
and probably still the best brewer of the style!

But the world really changed in 1994 when a young brewer at a winery named Vinny Cilurzo came out with a high alcohol, high IBU beer called... Pliny the Elder right?  Wrong.... Blind Pig actually came first and is widely considered the first double IPA.   He took his IPA,  doubled the hops, increased the malt bill by 30%, and kept dry hopping  for a year while storing on oak chips.   And the revolution that was preserved by Anchor, Minhas, and Frankenmuth, and fueled by Boulevard, Sierra Nevada, Stone, and others got the turbo charge it needed.  The Double India Pale Ale, or Imperial IPA.

So, double India Pale Ales are a bit of a misnomer.  They are an American invention.  They are incredibly hoppy.   Believe it or not they are easy to make taste decent.  But really hard to make taste incredible.  This is why they are so very popular with home brewers.   Even if you don't absolutely nail it, it will still be pretty damned good.

But today, for this day only,  we here at Counterbrew will break open the secrets of making a great double India Pale Ale.   We will explore the pitfalls, we will explain techniques, and we will give some good guidelines to follow when making a dIPA.  At the end of the series we'll make a great dIPA and post all about it.

First the pitfalls.

many, many aftershool hours were wasted playing this
iconic game. Good Ol Atari, and Activision!

Guys get excited when they are making a dIPA, and really why shouldn't they?  A good dIPA is something we all long for.  The ability to create one gives a brewer great satisfaction, and pride. Sharing it with other brewers gets a brewer respect and a bit of brew geek glory.   But there are potential pitfalls to avoid when making a dIPA.  Today we focus on the pitfalls.

1. Over complicated grist! -  Remember it is just a beer. You do not need 14 types of grain.  You do not need organic Himalayan spelt, malted by monks in a temple.   Keep your grain bill simple.  We here at Counterbrew (mostly me and John) have examined winning dIPA recipes from all over the internet.   Most winning recipes we have examined have no more than 4 grains.   Almost always those grains include pale ale malt and dexterine malt.  Often they include a crystal grain 20 to 40.  It is the attention you pay to the mash, and your skill as a brewer that will determine your mash quality, not some freaky ingredient.  
2. Over complicated hop bill -  dIPAs tend too get muddled when you use to many hops, or you combine your hops carelessly, or you do not have a good schedule for adding your hops.   Muddled is a term that means... the hop flavor is there, but it is not definable, it's all mixed together.  The individual flavors offered by the hops can not be identified.  They have just kind of mixed together into a big conglomeration of hoppy goodness.   Still delicious.   But not at all what you want from a world class dIPA. That muddled taste can be what you want sometimes, especially in a pale ale, but not in a ridiculous dIPA.  
1. A good rule of thumb is 1 flavor or aroma hop at a time, separated by 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Over pitching yeast - yes over pitching yeast.   There has been so much focus in recent years on proper pitch rate.  Some of you missed the point.  Proper pitch rate, not ridiculous over pitch.  I recently fielded a question from a guy who put a 1 gallon starter in a 5 gallon batch of 1.050 beer.   He wondered why it didn't attenuate... duh!  Because it didn't need to attenuate.   The colony was already at its desired healthy population level.  Yeast only "eats" sugar to have energy to reproduce and colonize.  The population was already at its maximum density.    Remember yeast only "wants" to survive.  When the colony is healthy and full it is genetically coded to move into a "maintenance" cycle.    (Not exactly how it works, but a useful way to view things)
1. Use a trusted calculator and stick with what it says.  I like homebrewdad/brewunited yeast and starter calculator.   I also like the pitch rate calculator on Brewtoad.  It never lets me down.   
4. Underpitching yeast -   I feel like this has been covered very thoroughly on this blog.   But underpitching can create off flavors and keep the beer from attenuating completely.  dIPAs are supposed to be crisp.  The sweet flavor, if there is any, comes from the hop oils and sugars in the hops (yes there are sugars in hops).  A dIPA that is too sweet is cloying and gross. 
5. No temperature control -  Once again if you spend $2000 to $5000 on a wort production machine and you can not control the temperature of your fermentation, you missed the point!  Many of you fancy boys would find our equipment ghetto.  Many of you new and intermediate brewers would be blown away by our toys.  But any of you who can't control fermentation temperatures would be jealous.  John has a Cold Chamber, and a Hot chamber (for sours and saisons), I have an ale chamber and 2 individually controlled lager chambers.  You see?  we didn't miss the point!  You must be able to ferment at the correct temperatures for your yeast.  Period!   There is really nothing more to say on this topic.  
1. If you do not have temperature controlled fermentation, I strongly suggest you use a yeast that is very forgiving, US05.  WLP001  WY1056.  
2. If you can't control fermentation temperatures, this should be a high priority, right after full volume boil, and before switching to all grain.  
3. By the way, don't even talk to me about specialty liquid yeasts (other than those I've mentioned above, if you can not control fermentation temperatures)
6. Chilling too slowly - As you all know I sometimes make batches of "no chill" beer.   But you may have noticed, I never do this with hoppy beers.  No chill works fine with a house cream ale.  It doesn't work with hop monsters.   You must chill your beer quickly.  If you do not have an immersion chiller it may not be time to try this recipe yet.  (Or message me and I will scale it down to 2 gallons that you can chill in your kitchen sink with ice)
1. With a dIPA it is critical to get the entire batch to under hop isomerization temperature quickly.  We believe an immersion chiller is the best option for this.  We believe Jaded makes the best chillers.   It is the only method by which you can quickly bring the entire volume of wort down at once.  
1.  Why is this so critical?  Hop Oils continue to isomerize above 140 F.
2. What the heck is isomerize?  Isomerization is the process by which a molecule rearranges its atoms due to an outside force like temperature.   Still the same number of atoms but they are in a different arrangement.   It literally changes into a different molecule.   With hops exposure to high temperatures for long periods of time causes the oils in the hops to change.That is literally how we use hops in beer. The longer the exposure the more the change.
1. Change from the bright herby, spicy, citrusy, etc... to just plain ol bitter.  
2. You want some bitter in a dIPA but you also want clearly defined hop flavors.    
2. If you can recirculate you could use a counter flow chiller, or a plate chiller to bring the temperature down as quickly as possible while recirculating. 
7. Lack of attention to detail during brewing -   This is the number one thing brewers do wrong.  It isn't water chemistry, it isn't pitch rate, it isn't lack of temperature control.  It's not paying attention when brewing.  Believe me I understand, family, friends, other chores, a great game on television, a Doctor Who marathon, and Verdi's Othello (I love opera) have all distracted me on brew day!  But when you are brewing a dIPA there is no room for distraction. (Really when brewing anything there is no room for distraction).  Keep a brew day log.  Put every step of your brewing on the log.  Follow it.   Basic brewing has a great log book. 

Those are the common pitfalls when brewing a dIPA, and really almost all beers.  Some beers are more forgiving, some are less forgiving.  But in general these are the pitfalls of brewing a great dIPA, and good practices to follow with any brewing session.  So as you plan your recipe, don't just plan the ingredients take the time to plan out everything.   It will dramatically improve your brew day. 

In our next installment we will be looking at hop oils... what are they, and what flavors do they create?  How can you use them best... notice I did not say maximize them... Use them best...