Home Brew Forum

Had a hop delivery at the end of last week so decided today and tomorrow would be good days to brew.

It was all going so well........

Mash on for a blonde ale at 66 degrees for an hour

Sparge done and wort transferred to boiler and getting up to temp

Unopened/vacuum sealed Challenger hops taken from freezer and 20g weighed out.

Quick rub and smell of that lovely hop aroma............CHEESE!!!! AARRGGHH!!

Opened the EKG just to check them and they are nice and brown with no aroma of anything.

No other hops to use so wort down the drain

Lesson learned: don't use a different supplier for hops, even if it is to combine with other items for cheaper postage.

The *%$@ of it is that I still had to clean every %&@£$@& thing!!!

Bad luck, but I would have gone with the EKG anyway, all that effort is now definitely for nothing, whereas you might have appreciated a beer even without much hop aroma, which English hops don't have much of anyway. Remember, when hops are still frozen there WILL be less aroma. Think about how much the aroma surges when you first put hops into the boil, now you know why.

I would have gone for the EKG had they been green, but not really keen on the oxidised brown colour as I can't see it being a good thing?

Mark if you ever have such an issue again PM me - I would have gladly given you some hops!

Still can if it isn't already down the drain?

Thanks for the kind offer Jambo, but unfortunately too late!

I know this probably won't help, but for future reference, I have used fairly brown 2016 EKGs in my last 4 brews without adverse effect. They looked brown enough that I did query it with my usual (reputable) supplier, who assured me that this was not abnormal for English varieties, even though they were vac packed and nitrogen flushed. I will certainly be happier to get my hands on some 2017 crop though, and I was dry hopping with separate pellets anyway. But just in the boil, and as long as they weren't cheesy, I bet you'd have been fine.

A sad day!

MTW wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 19, 2017 1:31 pm

I know this probably won't help, but for future reference, I have used fairly brown 2016 EKGs in my last 4 brews without adverse effect. They looked brown enough that I did query it with my usual (reputable) supplier, who assured me that this was not abnormal for English varieties,

This is true. A UK grower I have queried this with assured me that the bigger problem is picking too early, as a bright green hop may not yet be at its peak. A similar thing afflicts meat purchasing, a blood red piece of beef has probably not been properly hung for long enough or not at all. If the EKG had been left until they were at room temperature then rubbed in the hand things would have been very different in the assessment of them.

Yes, over the years I've had quite a few shades of EKG, and it doesn't seem to indicate much about their performance. Never (thankfully) had any cheesy hops though, that doesn't sound normal!

orlando wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 19, 2017 1:51 pm

MTW wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 19, 2017 1:31 pm

I know this probably won't help, but for future reference, I have used fairly brown 2016 EKGs in my last 4 brews without adverse effect. They looked brown enough that I did query it with my usual (reputable) supplier, who assured me that this was not abnormal for English varieties,

This is true. A UK grower I have queried this with assured me that the bigger problem is picking too early, as a bright green hop may not yet be at its peak. A similar thing afflicts meat purchasing, a blood red piece of beef has probably not been properly hung for long enough or not at all. If the EKG had been left until they were at room temperature then rubbed in the hand things would have been very different in the assessment of them.

Just re-assessed them at room temperature and there is a feint aroma (better than nothing and definitely better than cheese!) so will use them up in a bitter recipe.

Kev888 wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 19, 2017 5:46 pm

Never (thankfully) had any cheesy hops though, that doesn't sound normal!

It is pretty unpleasant to be honest! I've been reading online about people that have used them and their beers have come out pretty funky (not in the good sense). I think I'll be returning them for a refund.