How to best use my homegrown hops

[mgr_stl]

I have cascade and centennial hops growing on the side of my house, and am trying to figure out the best way to use them. From what I've read, using them for flavor/aroma make the most sense since I don't have any easy way of determining their alpha percents. It's looking like a pretty good crop (I have one plant of each, and they are second year), so I'm fine using lots for a good recipe. I love IPAs, and was planning on going this direction. Any thoughts would be appreciated. I'm also open to using them dry or wet.

 

[Cyclman]

Us them wet, and for dry hopping. Bitter with a neutral hop, like magnum, no other hops to muddy flavors. That way, you'll really get to understand the flavors of your hop. I did this with my Chinook and know that hop like my own hand.

 

[beowulf]

The first few years I used mine as aroma and dry hop as well. Eventually I had so much that I decided to throw caution to the wind and make a big IPA with them. Mash, fwh, aroma and dry. Just be prepared to start with more wort due to the insane absorption! I know it's not too precise since I don't know the alpha acid % but it turned out EXCELLENT. I just assumed low-middle of the range on AA for my hops and it worked out well. On this batch I used lots of cascade, centennial and Zeus and a smidgen of nugget. I still need to use up a bunch more before this years crops fills my freezer!


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[mgr_stl]

What are the general guidelines (if there are any) for using wet hops? For example, ___ ounces of wet hops equals 1 ounce of dry hop pellets.

 

[thaymond]

What are the general guidelines (if there are any) for using wet hops? For example, ___ ounces of wet hops equals 1 ounce of dry hop pellets.

I use 20% ratio, or 5:1, which I believe is pretty standard from what I read here on the site. I weigh my wet hop crop prior to drying, dry them until the total weight is 20% of the original.

Easy math wise, if I had 20 Oz of wet hops, that would give me about 4 Oz. Dry hops.

As far as your hops vs. Commercial Pellet equivalent, the best I've read is making a hop tea to determine roughly the aa percentage. I estimate that my product is 30% less potent than pellet, apply my hops that way. If it's a 1 Oz charge at 60, I use 1.30 oz homegrown dried. No idea where I came up with the number, but it works for me. Edit: This usually works out to be the low end of the range listed for the hop variety. So if it's 4.5-7%, like cascade, I try to calculate it on the lower end, towards 4.5. In this case it would calculate at 4.8, which is what I would enter for my additions.

There was one thread I read that you make an initial tea and continue to dilute it with equal parts water, and each time it was diluted was roughly 1%. Didn't try it, don't know if it's true or not, but maybe someone with more know how and experience can weigh in on that procedure or debunk it.