Whirlpool, dry hopping, alpha acid, and first wort hops. There are as many terms here as there are methods for using hops in beer. In this article, we will try to clarify some of these concepts regarding the use of hops in beer brewing.
The role of hops in brewing
Hops are one of the most important components of a beer. It is hops that give beer fresh aromatic notes that stretch in all directions. Everything from pine, pepper, flowers, and spices; to tropical fruit and berries, citrus, and mint. In addition to good flavors, it is also hops that give beer its characteristic bitterness. Hops also have antiseptic properties, which in earlier times were absolutely essential for being able to transport beer around the world without it going sour. This is part of the story of why India Pale Ale got its name.
It's difficult to describe all hop types, as there are countless types from all corners of the world. Nevertheless, we will take a brief look at some popular hop types from different parts of the world, and what flavors and characteristics we can expect.
German hops
Examples of different German hops:
- Hallertau Mittelfrüh
- Hersbrucker
- Tettnang
- Strisselspalt
- Perle
Mostly used for: Pilsners and other lager types like Kölsch, Bock, Christmas beer, and wheat beer. The classic German beer styles.
In German traditions, a lot of lager beer is brewed. This is reflected in the German hop types. Here, you mostly find flavors and aromas of spices, herbs, flowers, and pine. Common to most German hop types are clean and simple flavors, which do not completely dominate the beer. Think, for example, of Northern Brewer or Magnum, which provide a particularly clean bitterness. In recent years, more experimental and unconventional hop types have emerged, such as Mandarina Bavaria with a strong taste of tangerine and lemon, and the unique Huell Melon which evokes associations with honeydew melon, strawberries, and candy.
English hops
Examples of English hops:
- Fuggles
- East Kent Golding
- Target
Mostly used for: Typical English styles. Bitter, stout, porter, brown ale, barley wine, and English IPA.
English hop types often lean towards slightly milder flavors, such as grass, flowers, lemon, wood, mint, tea, and generally earthy flavors without an overwhelming taste profile. Invaluable in English beer styles like bitters and stouts.
American hops
Examples of American hops:
- Cascade
- Amarillo
- Citra
- Mosaic
- Krush
- Chinook
- Sabro
Mostly used for: Most hop-driven styles such as IPA, APA, NEIPA, amber, and steam beer.
American hop types are perhaps the most widespread and popular today. These are characterized by broad flavor profiles primarily dominated by citrus, pine, and spices. In recent years, the hop selection from America has exploded with a wide spectrum of flavor and aroma, often including tropical fruits, berries, and even coconut and wood.
Hops from tropical regions
Examples of hops from tropical regions:
- Nelson Sauvin
- Galaxy
- Southern Passion
- Nectaron
- Vic Secret
Mostly used for: Most hop-driven styles that should have tropical notes such as NEIPA and IPA.
Places like Australia, New Zealand, and southern parts of Africa have seen a major boom in hop selection in recent times. These tropical areas have given us hops that are enormously rich in tropical flavors. Here we are talking about passionfruit, pineapple, stone fruit, guava, melon, grapes, and grapefruit.
Different flavors from the same hop
Without delving into hop aroma and bitterness at a molecular level, let's look at how hops can be used in different ways.
Boil time gives bitterness
To explain it briefly, there are three things that can influence how much bitterness you will end up with in your beer: amount of hops, boil time, and alpha acid. The longer you boil hops, the more bitterness you will extract from them. In addition, alpha acid also plays a role here.
In most cases, the amount of alpha acid the hops contain will be stated on the package. The more alpha acid, the more bitterness it will impart during boiling. This is why many recipes will specify either a large amount, or hops with high alpha acid, to be added at the start of the boil. If you want to brew a beer with minimal hop flavor and aroma, but only desire pure bitterness, small amounts of a high alpha acid hop are recommended. This should be added at the start of the boil.
First Wort Hops
Some recipes indicate that you should add the first hops at “first wort”. This simply means that you should add the first hops as soon as you have separated the wort from the mash before boiling. The effect of this has been much debated, but the reason for adding hops at first wort is said to be a less harsh bitterness.
Aroma and flavor
On the other hand, late additions of hops will contribute to aroma and flavor. A good example of this is the American variants of IPA. Traditionally, an American IPA has been described as a heavily hopped pale ale with great bitterness, also called West Coast IPA. In recent years, a variant of this has become more and more popular, which is supposed to have low bitterness and strong flavors from the hops. Also called East Coast IPA. In principle, both of these beer types can be brewed with exactly the same ingredients, but the timing of hop addition is completely opposite and yields two widely different beers.
A well-used method for bringing out hop flavor and aroma, especially in East Coast IPA, is what is called hopstand or whirlpool. The principle for these two methods is essentially the same.
Hopstand
Cool the wort somewhat after boiling. The temperature can vary according to the recipe, and is based on which hop types, quantities, and not least, which flavors you want from the hops. Common temperatures will be around 70-90 degrees Celsius. Add the hops and stir thoroughly. Let it steep for a short period. How long varies as much as the temperature, but anything from 10 to 30 minutes is common. This is what is called hopstand, meaning you let the hops stand at a warm temperature, but not boiling, over time. This allows you to extract flavor and aroma. This also provides some bitterness, but nowhere near as much as from boiling.
Whirlpool
Whirlpool is essentially the same process as mentioned above, but the difference is that it involves continuous stirring during the hopstand method. This can be done either manually with a sanitized stir paddle, or with a pump that continuously circulates the wort. Since the hops are in constant motion, this prevents them from settling at the bottom of the kettle.
The method prevents densely packed hops, which could lead to less flavor and aroma and, in the worst case, settle around and interfere with the temperature sensor. Another advantage of whirlpool is that when the wort is completely cooled afterwards, hops and trub will collect in the center of the kettle. This prevents them from being carried over to fermentation. If you also use a Trub Stopper, even more of this will be captured by the whirlpool process.
Dry hopping
Dry hopping is simply a term for adding hops to your fermentation vessel during or after the fermentation process. This is a good method for getting even more hop flavor and aroma into your beer. This is absolutely essential in heavily hopped beer styles.
Timing and quantities naturally vary from recipe to recipe, but generally dry hopping is added around day 7 to day 9. The more extreme hop bombs often have both two and three dry hop additions (double dry hop and triple dry hop), and it is this process, among other things, that gives NEIPA its characteristic hazy appearance. One should also bear in mind that heavy dry hopping early in the fermentation process can give your beer a vegetal character. This is simply due to the large amounts of hop material that come into contact with the beer for extended periods. For this, for example, Lupomax or Cryo can be a good alternative that provides a lot of flavor, but with physically smaller hop quantities.
Alternative hop products
There are also alternative products that can provide good hop flavors.
Almost the same as HopShot hop oil. The big difference is that HopBurst can be added to your finished beer or used as dry hops. It will increase flavor and aroma. These also pose no risk of oxidation and can even save a beer that lacks sufficient flavor or aroma.
- Lupomax
This is a relatively new product on the market. Similar to Cryo, this is hops where the actual hop material has been reduced. You can achieve the same flavor by using 70% of the usual hop amount you would use with regular hop pellets. Lupomax also has a unique property in that it is standardized. This means you can use Lupomax year after year, but can expect the same result from different batches.
Alpha acids, hop oils, and flavor should be consistent every time. This means that as a brewer, you don't need to adjust your recipe if you get a different batch of hops than you did last time.
Consists of regular hops, but with a reduced amount of material. In other words, you can use 50 grams of Cryo and still get the same taste and aroma as 100g of regular hops. You only reduce the physical amount of hop material.
Storing hops
Brewers who make a lot of hop-driven beer will always focus on the best raw materials for hops. Hops are a plant. This means that, like all other biological material, they will degrade over time. Therefore, proper storage of hops is important for the best possible quality of your finished beer. The very best method is to freeze them. Leftover hops must be sealed airtight, or if you have access to a vacuum sealer, this is a good tool. Even if the hops are not from the latest harvest, they will stay fresh and provide good flavor for a long time if stored correctly. Read more about this in a blog article written for us by Yakima Valley Hops.
For those interested, we recommend the book The Hops List by Julian Healey. Another good suggestion is the book For the love of hops by Stan Hieronymus. You will then be able to call yourself a true expert in brewing with hops.
