Smoked hops?

[Gregg]

Chatted today to a chap who said he had prepared some smoked hops for a brewery a few years ago. Familiar with smoked grains, but never heard of smoking the hops before - anybody have any practical experience?

[Moonlight]

Sounds like something I did in college...

[Rosie]

Yeah, just gives you a headache

[HinduKush]

Yeah, just gives you a headache

Not if you don't inhale.

[Gregg]

Yersss... very droll. Any more comedians wish to contribute? Beer is, like, serious business, dudes.

[HinduKush]

Yersss... very droll. Any more comedians wish to contribute? Beer is, like, serious business, dudes.

Conesmoker was originally brewed with smoked hops. I believe they use smoked malt now. Maybe e-mail those guys?

[tarmadilo]

Beer is extremely important business, and absolutely vital business. But it's never serious business!



Tim

[scott isham]

I know a local homebrewer that smokes his own hops and brews with them. The aromas and flavors are very different than smoked malt. The results from the smoked hops are light, almost fleeting, but very evident. There is almost no smoke flavor per se, like you might get in a smoked malt beer, but the aroma is there. It's hard to describe, smelling the beer you expect it would be a smoked malt flavor, but when you drink it the smoke isn't there. I've been very suprised some bigger micro hasn't taken off with this yet and made a big splash. It's a very interresting and different tasting beer.

[McNatt]

Hey Scott,

do you know what kind of wood he's using?

[scott isham]

That I don't remember for sure. I want to say cherry, but not sure. Smoke all tastes the same to me. I just remember how great the beer tasted, not being a big fan of smoked beers,or now I should say smoked malt beers.

[McNatt]

cool.

i live in hardwood country and wild cherry is awesome for flavoring foods. any fruit wood is excellent because it's fairly mild compared to oak, hickory, etc.

another project in the works now. thanks

[Lighthouse]

We've done this. We took some whole Cascade to a local artisan salumeria and they hot smoked them for us in an empty smoker. They took on a lot of the flavours of the meats that had been smoked in there previously: ham, bacon, chorizo, etc. Really interesting. We brewed a delicate wit and ran the hot wort through a hop-back filled with the smoked hops. It was delicious.

[thejiro]

We've done this. We took some whole Cascade to a local artisan salumeria and they hot smoked them for us in an empty smoker. They took on a lot of the flavours of the meats that had been smoked in there previously: ham, bacon, chorizo, etc. Really interesting. We brewed a delicate wit and ran the hot wort through a hop-back filled with the smoked hops. It was delicious.

Lighthouse I would have been a little worried hot smoking the hops due to possible over oxidation with an overwhelming cheesy flavor and aroma from the hops. Suprised that didn't happen. I would think that cold smoking the hops would be a better bet but I do think a smoked hop beer would be very interesting. I may have to try this at some point.