'Generic' bittering hop

[Scotty]

No doubt this has been covered before but I cannot seem to find a definitive answer.

How much 'flavour' or influence does a bittering hop have on the taste and finish of a beer? The reason I ask is I like the idea of using a high-alpha hop exclusively for bittering.

[mysterio]

I do this, I used to use Northern Brewer now I use Magnum as my all purpose bittering. Cheap alpha acids is the way I look at it. It is great only having to throw in a tiny handful of hops for bittering, and not having to open a new pack every time.

Some people report different types of bitterness from bittering hops. The two main alpha acids are Humulone and Cohumulone. It is reported that high Cohumulone gives a harsher bitterness. So generally you want hops with low cohumulone. These are the likes of the noble hops, Golding and Fuggles etc. These make a good choice for bittering but you have to use a lot as they are low alpha acid. If you need more bitterness in the beer, it is a good idea not to overload the beer with bittering hops as it is expensive (including wort loss), and I think you start to get increased tannins in the beer. So brewers normally look to higher alpha low-cohumulone ("clean" bittering hops). Magnum, Northern Brewer, Simcoe, Amarillo are a few examples. Since the likes of the latter two have high aromatic oil quantities, they are maybe not a great choice as an all purpose bittering as you might get flavour carry over even from 60 min additions. That said, you still can't beat the likes of Goldings, Fuggles & Challenger for everyday bitters and IPAs.

[Scotty]

cheers mysterio!

Yesterday I brewed a 5% beer with Fuggles as the main bittering hop. I used the full 100g at 60 minutes to achieve a decent IBU. A high-alpha hop would be ideal for cost, less losses and an easier way to achieve IBU's. Looking through Promash, the low cohumulone figures suggest around 27 for a clean bittering hop.

I must admit I cannot tell the difference between a harsh bittered beer and smoother bittered beer.

[mark]

I agree in the main with mysterio's post.
However, I do not agree with Amarillo being unsuitable as a bittering hop. The aromatics of Amarillo do make it quite distinctive, but I think it's taste is devine. It is a fabulous dual purpose hop IMO.

My local micro uses Amarillo for both bittering and flavour additions in quite a range of beers....from very pale low gravity session bitters to some pretty strong IPA's. I think they are wonderful

[Scotty]

I do love Amarillo and I intend to use often but I like the idea of a straight forward bittering hop for bitterness which allows for further hop additions to shine through without masking them.

[mysterio]

I agree Mark, Amarillo are one of my favourites. My point was, if you're looking for a generic bittering hop, one which doesn't make its presence felt too much, then maybe Amarillo wouldn't be your first choice.

[vacant]

I'm currently bittering with 16% AA Columbus with great results.

[leedsbrew]

I have done an ipa, 5 gallon at 6.3%abv, it had 100g of fuggles for the whole boil and it was lovely! Slung some late cascade and some dry hops! Mmmmmmm yours should be cracking matey!

[mark]

Apologies if I mis-understood you mysterio, or indeed the question the OP posed

I don't really have much experience with the high alpha hop. I did use Galena once in a stout and thought it was average.

As mentioned, Challenger is a very good hop for bittering. Not overly high in AA, but generally better than fuggles/goldings etc. I think Challenger bitterness is very clean and it blends exceptionally well with other hops.

ATB

[Capped]

As mentioned, Challenger is a very good hop for bittering. Not overly high in AA, but generally better than fuggles/goldings etc. I think Challenger bitterness is very clean and it blends exceptionally well with other hops.

ATB

Personally,I think Challenger is by far and away the best hop in the universe. Today I chucked away a fair quantity of Cluster hops which I bought out of curiosity. Used them in my last two brews (one bittering,the other late hopped) and they turned out disgusting. No accounting for taste - no doubt someone somewhere will love them....

[steve_flack]

My favourite bittering hops are Magnum and Challenger. Both are clean and work well with other hops letting the late hops do most of the talking.