Citra or Northern Brewer for bittering?

[Biomedbrewer]

Hi,

Bought a packet of Citra a while back, only just getting around to using it.
I thought about making a SMaSH with Maris Otter & Citra.
I have plenty of Northern Brewer leftover from previous brews, so thought about using that for bittering.
Just wondered if I would notice a difference between Citra & NB at the bittering stage?

Planning: 19L batch

4.5Kg Maris Otter
60mins @ 66DegC

20g Citra 12% or 27g NB 9% for 60mins.
25g Citra @ 10mins
25g Citra @ flameout

Safale S-04 yeast.

Can't help tinkering. I'll probably mix in some Caramalt (5%) just because it's there.
What effect will the Caramalt have on the finished brew?

[BrannigansLove]

Use the NB, and use the excess Citra to dry hop.

[Clibit]

I'm not a fan of Citra for bittering, I'd use the NB too. Use your Citra where it excels.

[NOZ]

I've done a pale and caramalt all citra brew - I didn't add a bittering addition, just added the hops from 20 mins towards the end of the boil every 5 mins.
I got something like 35ibu and a massive citra punch - was a nice brew!

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[Jocky]

Use the Northern Brewer for bittering.

Personally I'd take the remaining 50g of Citra and use it to dry hop, but I do love those big fruity hop aromatics in my beer... at the very least I'd stick 35g dry hop and another 15g to the flameout. Alternatively you can keep the other 50g for another brew, but seal it up tight in the freezer!

Caramalt will add a bit of residual sweetness into your beer. It depends what you want out of your beer - if you want a dry, bitter beer that's refreshing then I'd leave it out (and definitely dry hop with that Citra!). If you want something a little less extreme then by all means add it in.

[Biomedbrewer]

Thanks for your responses.
Interested to read Noz's post about not having a bittering stage. How does that work? Do you only boil for 20 minutes as there is no 60 minute infusion?

[NOZ]

I boiled mine for 60 mins, brewed the same way as always - the long boil helps with protein breakdown and coagulation(from what I remember). I suppose you could boil for less time, I'm not sure how short you could go though.
Also you would have to adjust your pre boil volume as you won't lose as much to evaporation.
Why don't you try the late hop method and use both northern brewer and the citra, once the boil has completed do a hot steep for 30 mins and then save about 20g of each for a dry hop.
Good luck!


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[AnthonyUK]

Thanks for your responses.
Interested to read Noz's post about not having a bittering stage. How does that work? Do you only boil for 20 minutes as there is no 60 minute infusion?

Have a search for 10min IPA or 'Hop bursting'. There are no hop additions before 10mins so it isn't an efficient use but if you want a massive hop hit then this is a great option.

[Chug]

I used Citra in a brew for bittering recently and it gave the brew a catty taste, Citra is an aroma/flavour hop so I would definitely go with the Northern Brewer for bittering and use the Citra for late additions.

[Biomedbrewer]

Did my Citra SMaDH today Used NB for bittering. Everything went ok until I drained my kettle into the FV. i didn't mention that the Citra hops I had were in pellet form. First time I've used pellets. Didn't realise the mess they made. Blocked my hop filter, took about an hour to drain the kettle & lost about 2 litres of wort. Tied to sieve wort from bottom of kettle, even the sieve got blocked.
What mods do i need to make to deal with pellets?

[scotsloon]

I use a hop spider, all my hops both bittering and later additions go into it.

I find this works well to limit the amount of debris that goes into the wart. The HS is homemade.

[joe1002]

I use a hop spider, all my hops both bittering and later additions go into it.

I find this works well to limit the amount of debris that goes into the wart. The HS is homemade.

You seem to have had a slight boil over issue

[Biomedbrewer]

I've had a look at some options for hop filter/ spider my local home brew shop sells muslin bags. I'll try one of those for the dry hop stage.
I'll have a go at making a spider for my next brew. Any suggestions on what to use for the ring?

[scotsloon]

I used a short piece of flue from a wood burning stove. It comes ready formed, all you need to do is cut off to the length to suit your boiler. and drill the holes for the long bolts to hook over the edge. I used a piece of cotton material for the bag, I found it in my local auto-parts shop, its the sort of stuff sold for washing your car, it has the advantage of coming knitted into a tube so cut off a short piece and sew up one end then use a jubilee clip to attach the bag to the inner pipe and the job is done.
OH! and you'll need a weight in the bottom of the bag, I have a large SS ball bearing which works a treat.

[Biomedbrewer]

Sounds very industrial, I'm sure I can find something similar here in Sheffield.
I very nearly nicked my workmate's pen organiser. It started life as a mesh cutlery holder (Wilco special) unfortunately it is a bit small.
I thought about using a mesh utensil holder, should be big enough, might have to line it with something with a finer mesh.