The Hops List
265 beer hop varieties from around the world.
This book is a self-published work.
Copyright 2016 Julian Healey
All rights reserved.
www.hopslist.com
About the Author
Julian Healey
Julian is not a brewing professional. Hes not a hop farmer and hes certainly not an agricultural scientist. Hes just a 32-year-old guy that really likes brewing his own beer.
Professionally, hes a freelance digital marketing consultant and writer that has spent over a decade working in the digital media industry and half a decade in the Australian magazine industry. When hes not consulting or writing, hes talking up a retail line of bake-them-yourself croissants a Melbourne-based food business he helps runs with his friend Charlotte.
I didnt start brewing until I was 25.
I ploughed through web forums for days before I bought my first kit. I have great memories of the homebrewandbeer.com.au community and the super helpful guys on there whod done it all before me. Credit to them, they listened to all my particularly dumb questions and provided all the right answers.
My paranoia of failure in the lead up to that first batch was intense and laughably so unwarranted in retrospect. The result was great and Ive been a fan of brewing ever since.
Homebrew has had a pretty bad reputation in Australia in the past, but Julian thinks things are changing.
If youd like to get in touch, send him an email at
Preface
Two years ago at Christmas I sat down with my laptop on my parents couch and searched the web for books on wine grapes a topic wed been discussing at dinner. After a short time, I was taken back by the diversity of styles and varieties available to the modern wine maker. There were so many more than I knew about. Naturally, I wondered, did brewers have a similar resource? It turns out they didnt.
With this book I wanted to create something that both novice and professional brewers could reference when creating their recipes. Instead of fumbling about with the twenty most common varieties thinking this for bitterness and that for aroma I really wanted brewers to be able to think specific flavors and aromas when choosing something. Hops that incite notes of grapefruit, banana, mint, pine, strawberry, blossom, molasses, peach theyre all out there.
It turned out that there was even more to these 265 different hops than just their impact on the palate. The relationships between hops and their lineages and origins are intensely interesting and go a long way to explaining why particular hops bitter, taste and smell the way they do.
Further to that, youll learn a few things about hop development in this book. Something that astounded me in particular was the development time frames of many of the worlds most cherished varieties. While some hops come about quickly and purely by accident, the vast majority dont. Varieties can spend upward of 15-20 years in development before they ever catch sight of a fermenter.
Research for the book was done primarily online using a number of sources. These ranged from online stores and forums to grower data sheets and industry publications dating back more than 100 years. Books specific to hops from scientific minds like R.A. Neve were also invaluable in compiling this resource. Id like to thank all of the sources referenced in this book for taking the time to publish their words and data for the world to see.
Id also like to thank the various homebrewers around the web for contributing their comments, Julian Greene for helping me research and write many of the early descriptors for hopslist.com and my family and friends for their support over the past two years.
When I started this endeavor, Ill admit, I wasnt even really an IPA fan. That has changed. Hops are one of the most critical components to a unforgettable brew and when it comes to the flavors and aromas in our beer, at no point in history have we ever had this much choice.
Using this Resource
There are potentially four components to any entry in this book.
The first, the descriptor, is a brief summary of each hop that usually includes its origin, lineage, notes about its commercial use along with tasting notes and utilization. Not all of this information was available for every variety, so some entries are much more detailed than others.
Tasting notes in particular are the amalgamation of available tasting notes from multiple sources. Interpretations of flavor and aroma are highly subjective. I have not personally tasted each and every variety in this guide, though I have sampled a great many. Hopefully Ill conquer the list one day, but for now, please recognize tasting notes for what they are a collective opinion.
The second and third components are poignant comments by notable professional brewers and home brewing community. With the later, Ive tried to include a spectrum of opinions and experiences. Youll notice that these comments dont always align with the official descriptors, or each other. While some believe it is, I dont believe brewing is an exact science and outcomes are subjective.
The fourth is a summary and data chart that includes information relevant to both brewers and growers. A few points to note; purpose encompasses typical application and should not be considered the only way to use a given hop. Acid and oil percentage ranges are a combination of multiple sources and when available, include multiple years of crop data. They are an indication of what is possible, not what is typical and indicate the widest recorded range with the average falling somewhere in between.
Substitutes and beer styles should be viewed only as a guide. Dont let these suggestions stop you from experimenting. Some substitutes may be more suitable than others, depending on your taste and interpretation. Testing each hop for real is truly the only way to properly master a given hops utilization so get out there are get brewing!
It is my intention to add to this resource over time. As such, if youre aware of data or research on a particular variety that is missing from this resource, please contact me at
Julian Healey
25 th May 2016
Admiral
Admiral is an excellent mid-season hops variety derived from grandparent Challenger and likely parent, Northdown. Its exact lineage is unclear. Hailing from Wye College, England it was released to the brewing world in 1998 as a potential high-alpha replacement or complimentary addition to Target hops.
It features higher acid content than either of its elders, possesses aggressive but smooth bittering qualities and boasts an orange-citrus and herbal resonance making it perfect for more bitter Pale Ales and ESBs. Chapel Down employs Admiral almost exclusively in its Curious Porter due to its outstanding bittering abilities.
Homebrewers Comments
Admiral is a good bittering hop. It's usually pretty high in AAs, too, so make sure you measure well. It's bred from Challenger and Northdown, if memory serves, so it has some classic English bittering heritage. The flavor is very subdued if you throw them in at 60+ minutes. I've never used them in a late addition, so I can't comment on that. (GuldTuborg via homebrewtalk.com )
Also Known As |
Characteristics | Aggressive but smooth bittering with an orange-citrus and herbal resonance, typical English-style aroma |
