Direct freezing of green/undried hops - any views?

[brewbrew]

Hi all,

I have just harvested my first home grown crop of Chinook hops (Somerset, UK). I'm drying most of them but I'm intrigued as to what happens if you freeze the fresh, undried cones.

I'm aware that for many vegetables, enzyme action is a problem (peroxidase etc causes rancidity) - that is why Ihave blanched my french beans before freezing. Drying of course, stops enzyme action.

The need to blanch wet vegetables before freezing varies - but I can't seem to find any info on hops.

Has anyone tried to freeze fresh hops and what were the results like?

I can understand why commercial breweries use dried hops (cost of distribution and storage etc) - but that does not mean it is necessarily the best way?

Thanks for any advice.

BB

[Gobaloon]

Hi

I have dried fresh but the quality of them soon goes and they turn into paper and any flavour intensity goes .

Drying also helps create more intense flavours and gets rid of the grassy/wet/flavour. Also Using green hops, you will need 5-6 times compared to dried hops.

But give it a go and see what you think. I wouldn’t let it go more than a few months.

CJ


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[barneey]

It wont work

The moisture / liquid in them will freeze and the end result will not be good to brew with.

By all means try the experiment but IMHO the results wont be great

[MashBag]

Can you vac pack them green ?

[barneey]

Yes you could vac pac them green & use them fairly quickly.

IMHO however the only way to store them in a reasonable condition for a period of time is to dry them before storage.

[MashBag]

So would vac pack and refrigerate would allow extended storage. But not be as detrimental as freezing?

[Gobaloon]

So would vac pack and refrigerate would allow extended storage. But not be as detrimental as freezing?

I think same difference or maybe even worse. Once picked, hops want to compost. Having them in a fridge with light constantly on at a lower temp has gotta be worse than below freezing point imho.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MashBag]

Hmm. I thought compost is a oxygen reaction?

Only asking all these questions 'cos I have never made green hop beer.

I found drying hops to be a proper pita. If I get time I will run some storage trials.

[Gobaloon]

Forget I mentioned compost-won’t be an issue-but compost can occur via anaerobic process too.

If it was me and I wasn’t drying I would vacuum pack and freeze. Use them quick.

Experiment.

Things to think about-less intensity so 6x amount needed which will make the grassiness even grassier.

Get a herb dryer and bung them in there with a fan


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Hanglow]

I did it once as a test and while they come out soggy if you let them defrost, they look just like normal hops you would use once the boil is over. They also retained all their hoppyness, as far as I could tell. No vegetable/vegetative flavours from it. That was after a couple of months frozen, I can't say how they hold up over a year or so.

The main problem is they take up a huge amount of space in your freezer as they are mainly water, even vac packing didn't really help much in that regard.

I'd say that if you can't dry enough and have excess green hops that you can't brew with immediately, then vac packing and freezing would be a lot better than leaving undried freshly picked hops at room temperature for a few days before using them.

[MashBag]

We dry a huge amount of stuff in the fan oven. V low and the door cracked. Might give it a go....

Do green hops deliver the same flavours (given you get the weight right)? Or is it completely different from dried?

Or put another way... Do they have to be dried?

[Hanglow]

Definitely different, not necessarily better though. Well worth trying at least once if you can pick and brew on the same day

[MashBag]

Hmm. You are not filling me with enthusiasm

[brewbrew]

Update for anyone that is interested.
I froze plump green but papery, highly aromatic, allotment grown Chinook hops in mid Sept 2021.
My initial quality test was a quick chew and then a tea made with boiling water - no off flavours noted and they were very pleasant. I assumed 80% water and used them in a pale ale recipe with some cascade (dried leaf) - I guessed the AA as being 10% and adjusted accordingly.

Result after 2 weeks in secondary and 3 weeks in keg.......... brilliant. I'm going to do this again. I also conclude that I'm going to save money.

I just need to negotiate freezer space with the wife.

[guypettigrew]

Extra freezer?!!

Guy