Talk:Hops/Archive 1

Removal of unsupported information
There is no basis for the statement that Pride of Ringwood hops are unpopular among tasters, nor is it generally known to be true. I am removing this phrase.

This Page is a LOSER
It contains little if any information on cultivation and use of hops. How are hops grown? How are they processed? Instead of basic information of that kind, we get an endless list of varieties of interest only to those in the trade.Scott Adler 09:46, 15 August 2006 (UTC)
 * So add the information after you find it somewhere else. Thats the general idea ;)  -- Joetheguy 13:57, 16 November 2006 (UTC)

Plural? Adjective-Noun-Verb Agreement?
Just reading the intro was confusing, there doesn't seem to be much agreement between adjectives, verbs, and nouns. I think this is because we need to clarify wether "hops" is plural or singular. --The reverend 06:54, 7 August 2006 (UTC)
 * Example: Hops are a flower - it should be "Hops are flowers" or "Hops is a flower".


 * Hops is the plural. Hop pellets, pelletized hops. The plural is more commonly seen only because typically one refers to more than one hop flower at once. -MalkavianX

Proof that Wikipedia is not a good source
I "invented" the variety Wilder over two months ago. No one has noticed —Preceding unsigned comment added by 138.163.0.44 (talk • contribs)
 * Congratulations. Pretty good scam too, considering Wilder, Idaho is a major hop-growing center.  I am removing this pending verification.  NTK 06:27, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
 * Shrug. I work in the homebrew industry, and there are plenty of hops on the list below that I've never seen before. Not such a stretch to think that a beer enthusiast editor would just assume it's a very new or very old variety and ignore it. -MalkavianX 20:09, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

Does this page need an overhaul?
I am a bit concerned about the overall direction of this page. In particular I am concerned about:

a) The underemphasis on hops contributing to bitterness in beer. Although everything discussed in this article is more or less true the main reason hops are used in most modern beers is for the alpha-acids bitterness (although hop oil flavour/aroma is making a bit of a come back), in fact some beers only use alpha acid extracts and don't use raw hops at all (such as any beer you see in a clear bottle which use reduced isomerised alpha acid extracts)

b) The emphasis on the antibiotic effects. Although it is true that iso-alpha-acids do have anti-microbial properties in large concentrations and at a low enough pH, nearly all modern beers don't meet these criteria

c) I think bitterness and flavour should be defined separately (although bitterness is probably technically a flavour?) to clearly separate hop oil flavour/aroma from alpha acid bitterness.

d) In reading the page it wasn't immediately clear where hop aroma/flavour comes from. Hop aroma comes from hop oils and is not related to alpha acids and other resin components.

In my opinion the whole page needs a bit of an overhaul, please let me know what you think.--Benhami 10:42, 14 July 2006 (UTC)

I changed the wording regarding the first use of hops in the 17th century to "documented" because hops were cultivated long before that date. Doesn't make sense to cultivate a crop and not use it. I also removed the head rentention comment as "head" is primarily related to protein in the grains and yeast by products.


 * And I changed to 11th century to agree with what it says later in the article: "although the first mention of the use of hops in brewing was in 1079" thx1138 12:34, 12 April 2006 (UTC)

There is no such thing as "Bitter Aroma" please somebody clarify. Do Beta acids contribute to the aroma "citrus, pine, floral" notes?

-To answer this question. No. Hop aroma comes from hop essential oils, of which there are many. Beta-acids don't contribute much to beer. Beta acids are bitter but like alpha-acids they are insoluble in beer. Unlike alpha acids they only isomerise in very small amounts. They can however be oxidised to soluble hulupones (which are bitter) and therefore can contribute some bitterness to beer.--Benhami 10:42, 14 July 2006 (UTC)

Question: hops also have medicinal uses. In recent years, I've seen more herbal products on the shelves that involve hops--teas, and herbal supplements. First question: do medicinal properties belong on this page? Second, does this warrant mentioning after where it says "there is no major commercial use for hops other than in beer.", because this wouldn't exactly be true. Cazort 03:22, 25 April 2006 (UTC)
 * Actually, it is true unless you do violence to the phrase "major commercial use." True, some health-food store type products such as teas may contain some hops, and head-shops may pretend they are selling bongs and vaporizers to smoke hops among other "herbs," but the vast majority of hops is used in brewing. Surely these alternative products would fall under, at best, "minor commercial use." NTK 06:13, 31 July 2006 (UTC)

Changes to "brewing"
Changed phrase about dry hopping to indicated that it imparts no bitterness, since bitterness depends on alpha acid isomerization which does not happen if the hops are not boiled. Also some sourcing on some of this stuff would be nice: what does it mean that "hops are mildly bitter" before boiling? And I agree with the other commenter that the passage about beta acids is confusing, I don't understand what a bitter aroma is and how beta acids could affect it but not the beer flavor. Rkent

Possible copyright violation
The list of hops appears to be from ratebeer. (The guide was on their site beginning in around 2000 or so. Sadly, it needs to be removed and replaced with something we have come up with on our own here at Wikipedia... unless someone contacts ratebeer and gets their permission. I don't think the changes we have made to date are enough to deal with the copyright problem. I have moved the list here until it can be determined how to deal with the problem &mdash; and so it can be moved back if consensus is that it is not a copyright violation. -- cmh 16:18, 18 May 2006 (UTC)

By the way, I determined it was a copyvio by searching for the suspicious phrase I find them spicier, and more elegant than Fuggles on Google. Some of the other descriptions seem to be slightly reworded, and some seem different. Perhaps there is a common offline ancestor for both of these lists? In which case we seem to still have a copyvio problem. -- cmh 16:35, 18 May 2006 (UTC)

Types of hops
Admiral – An English bittering hop used in some English ales. (Alpha acid: 13.5 - 16%)

Ahtanum – An American aroma-type variety developed by Yakima Chief Ranches, similar to Cascade. Popularity seems to be increasing. (Alpha acid: 5.7-6.3% / Beta acid: 5.0-6.5%)

Amarillo – Popular American mid-range alpha variety developed by Virgil Gamache Farms in late 20th century. (Alpha acid: 8-11% / Beta acid: 6-7% )

Brewer's Gold – British bittering hop developed in 1934. Sometimes used as aroma variety in conjunction with noble hops. Related to Bullion. (Alpha acid 5.5 - 6.5% / Beta acid 2.5 - 3.5%)

Cascade – Very successful and well-established American aroma hop developed by Oregon State University's breeding program in 1956 from Fuggle and Serebrianker (a Russian variety), but not released for cultivation until 1972. Piney, citrusy, and quite assertive. (Alpha acid: 4.5-6.0% / Beta acid: 5.0-7.0% )

Centennial – American aroma-type variety bred in 1974 and released in 1990. Similar to Cascade, perhaps with sweeter fruit notes and a slightly chunkier bitterness. (Alpha acid: 9.5-11.5% / Beta acid: 4.0-5.0%)

Challenger – English hop with a spicy character. (Alpha acid 6.5 - 8.5% / Beta acid 4 - 4.5%)

Chinook – American cross between Petham Golding and a USDA-selected male. Big, rich, robust bitterness, with woody aroma characteristics. (Alpha acid 12.0 - 14.0% / Beta acid 3.0 - 4.0%)

Columbus – A high yielding, high alpha acid American bittering hop. (Alpha acid 14 - 17%)

Crystal – An American triploid variety developed in 1993 from Hallertau, Cascade, Brewer's Gold and Early Green. Quite aromatic, fruity. (Alpha acid 3.5 - 5.5% / Beta acid 4.5 - 6.5%)

Eroica – A strongly flavored bittering hop often used in wheat beers. (Alpha acid 9 - 12%)

First Gold – English dwarf hop. A cross-pollination of Whitbread Golding variety and a dwarf male. It is like a spicier Golding, with a higher alpha and slightly richer bitterness. (Alpha acid 6.5 - 8.5% / Beta acid 3 - 4%)

Fuggles - Main English hop developed late 19th century. Considered by some to be less refined than Goldings, others prefer its juicier, more woody character. (Alpha acid 4 - 5.5% / Beta acid 2 - 3%)

Galena - Hugely popular American bittering hop developed from Brewer's Gold by open pollination in the state of Idaho. Has a moderate bitterness despite its high alpha content. (Alpha acid 12 - 14% w/w Beta acid 7 - 9%)

Glacier - Low-cohumulone American Fuggle descendant. Mild bittering and soft, fruity character with hints of apricot and pear.

Goldings - The traditional and very popular English aroma hop. Developed in 1790. Soft, earthy, vaguely farm-like aroma. Widely cultivated. Called East Kent Goldings if grown in East Kent, Kent Goldings if grown in mid-Kent, and Goldings if grown elsewhere. (Alpha acid 4 - 5.5% / Beta acid 2 - 3.5%)

Hallertau - The original German lager hop; due to susceptibility to crop disease was largely replaced by Hersbrucker in the 1970s and 1980s. (Alpha acid 3.5 - 5.5% / Beta acid 3 - 4%)

Hersbrucker - Common in German pilsners, this noble hop has a grassy, hay-like aroma, and is seldom used for bittering purposes. (Alpha acid 3 - 5.5% / Beta acid 4 - 5.5%)

Horizon - American high alpha cross made in Oregon in 1970 from Nugget. Soft bitterness. (Alpha acid 11 - 13% / Beta scid 6.5 - 8.5%)

Liberty - American cross between Hallertauer Mittlefruh and downy mildew resistant male, developed in 1983. (Alpha acid 3.0 - 5.0% / Beta acid 3.0 - 4.0%) Lublin - The grassy, hay-like signature of Polish lagers. The bitterness is slightly harsher than noble varieties, but the aroma is a little bit softer.

Millennium - Bittering variety, born of Nugget and generally considered interchangeable. (Alpha acid 15.5% / Beta acid 4.8%)

Mount Hood - Soft American variety developed from Hallertau. Frequently used in styles that require only a subtle hop aroma. (Alpha acid 5.0 - 8.0% / Beta acid 5.0 - 7.5%)

Newport - Recently developed American high-alpha bittering hop. (Alpha acid 10 - 17%)

Northdown - Dual purpose hop in England developed in 1970s, with a Northern Brewer-like bitterness, and modest but refined aroma, well suited to backing up maltier style beers. (Alpha acid 7.5 - 9.5% / Beta acid 5 - 5.5%)

Northern Brewer – Developed in England in 1934 from a cross between a female hop of wild American parentage and an English male. Grown in Europe and America as a dual-purpose hop, but best suited for bittering. Versatile, lending a moderate bitterness. Aroma wise it’s quite mellow, and usually used in combination with other hops. (Alpha acid 8 - 10% / Beta acid 3 - 5%)

Nugget – Bittering variety. Nuggets generally have a poor reputation as being cheap and unrefined, but do have a pronounced herbal aroma. Examples include Sierra Nevada Bigfoot (bittering only).

Pacific Gem – High alpha variety from New Zealand, but also contributes a berryish aroma. This, along with Hallertauer, are frequently organically grown in New Zealand, so this is most likely to be found in organic beers outside of NZ. Has a woody, berryish note.

Perle – One of the least distinctive German hops, the dual-purpose Perle is often found in conjunction with other hops.

Pride of Ringwood - Ubiquitous Australian hop. At one time, this was a high-alpha variety, but has been long surpassed. Considered by some rather malodorous, PoR hasn't caught on outside of the Australian lager world. (Alpha acid: 7 - 10%)

Progress – Developed as a replacement for Fuggles, this has a higher alpha rating, and is often found in combination with Goldings.

Saaz – The Bohemian hop, used in almost all Czech pilsners. It gives a soft bitterness, so IBUs can be high without harshness. The aroma is famous, and a fresh Pilsner Urquell is still the best place to learn it.

Santiam – Aroma variety with mid-range alphas.

Select - Disease-resistant Spalt substitute

Simcoe - High alpha variety with piney notes and a rounded bitterness. Has made increasing appearances the past couple of years, in both pilsners and ales.

Spalt - Noble hop, with a fine, spicy aroma. Used in all manner of German-style beers both ale and lager. Is the signature hop for altbier.

Sterling - A Saaz hybrid, similar to Saaz in character but easier to grow and higher yielding.

Strisselspalt - Classic French aroma hop, used mainly in lagers. Fairly neutral character can be tough to detect, but is similar to Herbrucker.

Styrian Goldings – Actually derived from Fuggles, but grown in more continental conditions. I find them spicier, and more elegant than Fuggles, while retaining the delicious woodsy character. Used in a wide range of beers, from English ales to witbier and both English and Belgian strong ales.

Target - Multiuse mid-to-high alpha hop from England. Parentage is from Kent Goldings.

Tettnang – Classic hop of North German pilsners, Tettnang are used for both bittering and aroma (though the latter is often in conjunction with some form of Hallertau). Bitterness from Tettnang is rich, yet soft, so brewers can really crank up the IBUs without rendering the beer astringent.

Tomahawk - Bittering hop. (Alpha acid 15 - 17%)

Tradition - Newish, disease-resistant variety from the Mittelfrüh lineage, with a refined, spicy, grassy aroma.

Vanguard – American aroma cross developed from Hallertau in 1982. (Alpha acid 5.5% - 6% / Beta acid 6 - 7%)

Warrior - New bittering hop, whose popularity is on the rise due to slightly softer bitterness than some its contemporaries and lack of aroma properties.

Willamette – Popular American development in 1976 of the English Fuggle. Mild aroma hop, with a herbal, sometimes gently fruity character. (Alpha acid 4.0 - 6.0% / Beta acid 3.0 - 4.0%)

Zeus – Aromatic American high-alpha hop with a chunky bitterness. (Alpha acid 15.0%)

This has been dealt with. SilkTork 17:52, 27 February 2007 (UTC)