Beer Forum

Maybe this would be better in the Brewing ingredients forum, but I thought Id start here. Reviewing Palmers book How to Brew, I read about First Wort Hopping (p.43). I missed this the first time through. I was wondering if anyone does this? I have never heard Jamil or anyone talk about it on the podcasts. Im thinking this could be accomplished in extract brewing by adding hops to the kettle after adding extract and allowing them to sit for 20-30min with the fire off. Its hard for me to understand, but the oxidation that occurs increases the solubility of the hops, which prevents the loss during boil? That seems to be the idea. Im just wondering why its not mentioned more here on the forum. Im also wondering what kind of effect this will have on the malt character if any. Im usually on a relatively tight time schedule on brew day, so for that reason if I dont notice a difference I will probably not do it often. Any comments appreciated.

Jamil Talks a little bit about it on the Hop Calculation show on Brew Strong during the last 20 minutes or so of the show. He says he finds it gives a harshness to the beer in hop flavor and is not a proponent of it. You could give it a shot though...I did it one time and didn't notice any real difference than just adding hops at the start of boil, but it is a fun other step to do.

There are tons of posts on fw hop additions. To make it quick and short analytically you will get a fraction more ibus than a 60 min addition. People say that there is more hop flavor and a smoother bitterness, however when done in triangle taste tests with highly ranked judges no one could tell the difference. So go ahead and try it and decide for yourself. You want the wort to be above 150 but below boiling, i don't think steeping it in the cold water will have an effect.

I made a black IPA recipe from Zymurgy, called Barley Brown's Turmoil. It also called for First Wort hopping. I can't argue the science of it, but it is now my favorite beer! It does have the best hop profile of any beer I've tried. I've had many Black IPA's found at BevMo, but this is the better than them all. I can't find this stuff where I live. I wish I could. I've already made it twice and can't wait to make another.
I, for one, am not messing with their recipe. They say to do it, I'm doing it. Great beer!

John

I really liked the results I have gotten from FWH.....I was under the impression FWH gives you about the same perceived bitterness as a 20 minute addition....so far that seems about accurate to me..

I would still calculate it as a 60 min addition because that is how many ibus you are really getting. Its not going to make a difference in 100+ IBU beers. But if you only calculate it as a 20 min addition in a 20 ibu beer you are going to be about 10 ibus off. That is noticeable amount and will drastically change a light beer.

My next batch (Ale Industries Uncle Jessie XPA clone) calls for first wort hopping, which I've never done before. What's the drill for this hopping technique?

Put the hops into your kettle before draining the lauter tun. Simple as that