This week we take a look at the best hop techniques for homebrew beer – our hop technique roundup. A good understanding of various hop techniques is critical for successful brewing. Yet the wide array of hopping techniques with terms such as mash hopping, first wort hops, dry hops, boil hops, and late hop additions can be confusing to first time and experienced brewers alike.
Beginners and intermediate brewers alike often apply the wrong technique to a given beer style. Knowing which technique to use for a particular style or desired flavor profile is part art form, but it all starts with a firm understanding of the techniques themselves.
We’ll present the most common hop methods in something of a chronological order, starting with the mash and ending with finished beer:
Mash Hopping
Mash hopping is simply the addition of hops directly to the mash tun itself. The hops is often placed on top of the grain bed and left to sit as the mash is sparged. Mash hopping is reported to provide a better overall balance and character to the beer, though it adds almost no bitterness.
Mash hopping is seldom used today because it requires a fairly large amount of hops and adds very little in direct flavor. Since the hops are never boiled, no bitterness is released and most of the flavorful oils from the hop flower are lost in the boil that follows.
Brewers today theorize that most of the reported benefits from mash hopping are a byproduct of lower pH from mash hopping and not the hops itself. Given the high cost of hops, as well as many cheaper methods exist for controlling the pH of your wort, I’m not sure why a homebrewer would choose to mash hop.
First Wort Hops
First wort hops are hops added to the boil pot at the very start of the lautering process. Unlike mash hops, first wort hops remain in the boiler during the boil and therefore do contribute bitterness to the wort. I covered this method in detail in an earlier article on First Wort Hopping.
First wort hopping is an old German method that has enjoyed a home brewing resurgence. In blind taste tests, beers brewed with this method are perceived as smoother, better blended and have less of a bitter edge and aftertaste. I have personally used this method with great success on a variety of beers where a smooth well balanced bitterness is desirable. I’ve even used it on lightly hopped styles as it helps to reduce the perceived bitterness without upsetting the malt-bitterness balance of the beer.
Bittering Hops
Bittering hops or boil hops are just that – hops added for the bulk of the boil to add bitterness to the beer. Boiling hops releases the alpha acids that provide bitterness in your beer. The longer you boil your hops, the more bitterness you will add.
Beer software, such as BeerSmith can help you estimate the bitterness for a given hop additions. In general, your bittering additions should be boiled for full length of your boil (typically 60-90 minutes) to extract as much bitterness per ounce of hops as possible. I will usually add my bittering hop addition at the beginning of the boil.
Late Hop Additions
Hops added in the last 5-15 minutes of the boil are called late hop additions. These hops are usually not added for bittering, though they do contribute a small amount of bitterness to the beer. The main purpose for late hop additions is to add aroma and aromatic hop oils to your beer.
In addition to bittering compounds, hop cones from “aromatic” hop varieties contain volatile hop oils that provide the strong flowery aromatic flavor and scent desirable in many hoppy beer styles. Unfortunately most of these compounds boil off within 10-20 minutes of adding the hops.
Late hop additions should always use “aromatic” hop varieties, and should be done within the last 10 minutes of the boil to preserve as many aromatic oils as possible. In addition, late hop additions are most appropriate for beer styles where a hoppy flavor and aroma is needed. You would not add late hop additions to a malty or low hop beer style.
The Hop Back
A hop back is a device containing hops used inline between the boiler and chiller to infuse fragile hop oils and aroma directly into the hot wort before it is cooled and transferred to the fermenter. While a hop back does not add any significant bitterness to the beer, it can add great aroma to your finished beer. For more information see our article on the hop back.
Dry Hopping
Dry hopping is the addition of hops after the beer has fermented. Hops are typically added in the secondary fermenter or keg and left for a period of several days to several weeks. Dry hopping is used to add a hoppy aroma to the beer, as no bitterness is added with this method. Dry hopping is also used in many commercial beers for a hoppy burst of aroma.
I’ve covered this method extensively in a previous article on dry hopping, but the basic method is to add a few ounces of hops to the secondary before bottling. If kegging, use about half as much hops. Again you should use only aromatic hop varieties, and you should only use this method with hoppy beer styles where a strong hop aroma is desired.
Combining Hop Methods
Advanced brewers often use a combination of hop additions to achieve a burst of hop aroma and flavor, particularly for hoppy styles like India Pale Ale. In fact, many true hopheads will add substantial first wort and boil hops, followed by multiple late hop additions and a final dose of dry hops.
Personally, I try to keep things simple, so I will typically add a single boil or first wort addition for bitterness, followed by a single late hop addition in the last 5-10 minutes of the boil to preserve aromatics and dry hopping if appropriate. In these hop starved times, I’ll also try to use higher alpha bittering hops for the main boil hops and save my precious aromatics for the late addition and for dry hopping.
On non-hoppy styles, I’ll often choose to add a single bittering addition, often as first wort hops since I like the smooth blending perception this method produces.
I hope you enjoyed today’s hop technique roundup. Please subscribe for more great articles, and continue to join us on the BeerSmith Home Brewing Blog for your weekly dose of brewing advice.
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I’m curious why flavor additions around the 20-30 minute mark aren’t listed here?
Matt – Adding hops at the 20 minute mark adds bitterness, and preserves some of the aromatic hop oils, but not all of them. I considered it a variation on boil additions, but I suppose late additions could be considered its own category.
I MAKE MY OWN HOP ESSENCE WHICH TASTES GREAT AND ILLIMINATES THE MESS INVOLVED WHEN BOILING.
FOR EXAMPLE;
1….I USE CLEAN-FILTERED WATER
2….I USE A SMALL 3 GALLON KETTLE
3….IN THE KETTLE I PUT 4 OZ OF HOME-GROWN WHOLE HOPS RIGHT FROM THE FREEZER
4….I ADD 1 to 1 & 1/2 GALLONS OF WATER AND BRING TO A BOIL (BOIL 20 MINUTES)
5….STRAIN AND ALLOW TO COOL WITH A CLOTH OVER THE TOP (KEEPS OUT BUGS)
6….WHEN COOLED (RM TEMPERATURE) PLACE IN 1 QT JARS ANS PUT IN THE BACK OF YOUR
REFRIGERATOR UNTIL READY TO USE.
7….I ADD THE ESSENCE 2 MINUTES BEFORE THE END OF THE BOIL (1 QT)
8….AT BOTTLING TIME ADD (1 QT WITH PRIMER)
IF YOU’RE SKEPTICLE LIKE I WAS, RY A 1 GALLON BATCH OF BEER AS A TESTER, JUST TAKE ALL INGREDIENTS AND DEVIDE BY 5 FOR 1 GALLON…WHAT HAVE YOU GOT TO LOSE, ITS GREAT!
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Hop steeping after flame out?
I would like someway to get the IBU contributions from this into my recipes. Is there a current way now in BeerSmith? I’ve been just adding them to the recipes as boil hops, but that’s not preferred when going back to a recipe.
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Recent Zymurgy article discussed “hop bursting” technique, in which you add only a tiny fraction of your bittering hops at the beginning of the boil, and the huge bulk of them at the very end of the boil. Supposedly gives great aroma and a smoother bittering. Any comments?
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My two sons are looking to make some home brewed beer. We live on a farm and have purchased 10 hops plants to get started. Any help, articles etc would be much appreciated. Thanks
At the end of the boil are all of the hops taken out of the pot? And if you have hop editions at 0 you then add those?
I found that if you do 3 things your beer taste improves greatly with the hops.
1. Use a grain bag when adding if pellets.
2. Use a painters filter bag when pouring into carboy before pitching yeast.
3. If dry hopping, add at the final 5 days or less in a grain bag.
Filter. Filter. Filter.
Question on Hops – pellet vs. fresh hops.. Do you use the same volume in ounces with both options? I heard from someone that you need twice as many fresh vs. pellet.. Is that true?
Dear Sirs,
We are from India and are interested in Hops seeds and it’s growing process.
Your kind help will be highly appreciated.
Awaiting to hear from you soon.
Best Regards
Satish
Since I switched over to all grain a couple years ago I no longer add hops in the front end of the boil. These days I simply make up a bag of all the hops needed for the styles I like & add it at the 15 or 20 minute mark depending on the results I seek. With Beersmith it is easy to see & abide by the exact calculations to guide the finished product. This brewing method accomplishes a few things in my brew day & adds a nice polish to my finished product.
I tend to sparge (15 gal.) very slow (up to 2.5 hrs.) & routinely get 88%+ efficiency coming out of my 80 qt. mash tun. I boil the runnings hard for 15 minutes w/ adjuncts then drop the hop load into than boil for no more than 15-18 minutes. The hop load generally is between 10-13oz depending. Overall boil time is decreased so that makes up a tad for the add. sparge time and the use of heating resources is miminized. So far the results (bitterness, malt, aroma & flavor) congeal nicely within the final product & this method has produced several outstanding brews. I have yet to see any down side w/ thos process. High alpha hops normally reserved for bittering can be used w/ this method right along w/ intense flavor & aroma hops with excellent results. At one time I was considering using a hop rocket but find it is not necessary now. Prost!
“Mash hopping is seldom used today because it requires a fairly large amount of hops and adds very little in direct flavor. Since the hops are never boiled, no bitterness is released and most of the flavorful oils from the hop flower are lost in the boil that follows.”
So then why does Beersmith calculate IBUs for mash hops?
Hops are isomerized at temperatures above 175°F (79°C). Shouldn’t the app account for mash temp and if there are hops in the mash?