Welcome to GAB (Girls for the Advancement of Beer). Spreading the love of Craft Beer through Knowledge and Education.

Being summertime, my go-to beer selection as of late has been all about hops.  Big, bright, hoppy, beers are so refreshing in the warm weather.  But that brings us to an issue here that has been brought up so many times before.  Ah, it’s the Great Hop Debate.  It’s certainly a hop topic.  Oh I could go on all day with the puns, but let’s hop to it shall we?

Among the reasons I’m given as to why one doesn’t drink beer, one that comes up pretty frequently is that it’s “too bitter.”  I admit, there was a time several years ago that I was inclined to turn down an IPA or a well-hopped pale because I hadn’t come to appreciate the flavor just yet.

one hoppy group of beers!

Now this mindset is definitely not limited to females.  In fact, this post is inspired by a conversation I had last week while on a trip to CT with a middle aged man who considered himself to be a “big beer-drinker.”  What I tried to explain to him is what I have learned over the years, at least in my experience.  It may take a little education to appreciate the hop, but once you do, it’s a whole new world of wondrous flavor to delve into.  Trust me, it’s worth it!

So I guess we should start from the beginning.  What are hops?  What does it mean when a beer is referred to as “hoppy”?

Good questions.

HOPS are the actual cone-shaped flowers of the plant known as Humulus Lupulus.  They are one of the four main ingredients in any beer (along with barley, water, and yeast).  Various types of hops are added to beer at different times during the brewing process to contribute bitterness, aroma, and flavor.  

fresh hops are good!

Hops are usually added to a beer in a pelletized form that looks like this - 

looks a little like rabbit food, but smells wonderful!

When hops are pressed into these funny little pill-sized shapes, the resins that are natural to the flower act as a seal and keep the hops fresher longer.  And believe me, hop flavor is all about freshness!  The essential oils in the hops are highly volatile and the big flavors and especially aromas can dissipate and deteriorate faster than we’d like them to.  That’s precisely why these beers are not usually good candidates for cellaring, and also why some serious beer drinkers will search through boxes and bottles at the package store to find the youngest and freshest of their favorites.  

Hoppy, fresh and full of life!

Brewer’s use hops as a way to balance the sweetness of malt, and they also act as a natural preservative in the beer.  Many people, particularly initially, pick the hop flavor out as the bitter part of beer.  This is true, however, a good hop profile should be so much more!

The next time you try an IPA (India Pale Ale, a particularly hoppy style of beer), take a few moments to really appreciate the nose of the beer.  Aroma hops would be the first to stand out and you may notice big, bright, citrusy smells.  Or perhaps you get more of a piney, woody aroma.  Maybe you even get a whiff of weed (hops are of the genus Cannabacinae, and are  a cousin of – you guessed it – Cannibis).  

Aromas and flavors of hops can run the gambit and they vary greatly depending on the type of hop and the process through which it’s added.  Dry-hopping, for example means that hops have been added to the beer after fermentation.  This contributes flavor and aroma.  Bitterness is usually the product of hops being boiled.  There are a gaggle of different hop strains (some with very funny names I might add, such as Strisselspalt, Fuggles, and Magnum) that work in different ways to create great beer. 

The three different types of hops (flavor, bittering, and aroma) are not always utilized together, however each plays a specific part in making your beer what it is.  

IBU’s or International Bitterness Units measure the bitterness in the brews with a scale from 1 – well, there doesn’t seem to be a cap to the scale these days.  IPA’s are generally around 40 or higher (where in comparison a blonde ale might be around 15-25), however I’ve seen beers pushing 100 and up!

In recent years, the attitude of a specific community of beer drinkers has become “the hoppier, the better.”  Yes, I’m talking to you Hopheads.  Your insatiable desire and incessant calls for MORE HOPS have led to the production of some very amazing, as well as some not-so-amazing beers.  

Apparently every subculture in the universe has had their own trucker hats at one time or another.

The west coast, particularly San Diego County, became the stage for a lively battle of the breweries for who could create the hoppiest, rip-your-taste-buds-off-your-tongue concoction worthy of a spot in every Hophead’s fridge.  Enter Stone Brewing Co., Ballast Point, Green Flash, Alesmith, and Port Brewing just to name a few of the beer companies that began brewing up the most bitter beers they could churn out.  These “West Coast IPAs” got plenty of attention, but they certainly weren’t the only game in town.

Breweries all over the country, from Delaware’s Dogfish Head to Bell’s Brewery in Michigan and almost every one in between now create some form of highly hopped beer.  For a beer producer, it’s become almost imperative to do so in order to please these hop-headed patrons.

Coast to coast, beer makers answered the call.

Then came “imperial” or “double” IPAs that are generally higher in alcohol and use far more hops than a standard IPA.  These beers are big, bold, full bodied, flavorful beers that are a serious punch in the mouth.  Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA, a beer that is continually hopped for 2 hours, weighs in at approx. 20% ABV, 120 IBU’s and the bottle promises that it is the “holy grail for hopheads.”  Talk about a heavy-weight!

One of the most sought after examples that I can think of (mind you I’m currently on the west coast) is Russian River’s Pliny the Younger.  It’s rarely brewed, and it’s a knock-down drag-out struggle to find, but the one time I was able to wrangle a glass of it I was blown away by the grapefruity, floral goodness that I got.  Now, doesn’t that sound delicious?  

The elusive Younger...

So before you banish hoppy beers from your brew book based on a disdain for bitterness, give it another go.  In fact just keep going with it.  Explore the different flavors the hops contribute to the beers you drink.  

You may find you’ve become a Hophead before you can say “Humulus Lupulus”.

Let’s talk about all the good things and the bad things. That’s easy when it comes to Brett. Although I tend to favor the good.

We’ve all known someone who shares traits similar to Brett. You know the type; mysterious, captivating, funky, kinda smelly, yet strangely attractive. And dangerous, very dangerous. I guess it’s just human nature to desire the experience that comes with Brett.

But then again, is Brett dangerous? Or just misunderstood?

The Dangerous Type

No, we’re not talking about Brett Michaels at the height of the Hair Band craze (although it appears he’s just as dangerous today in the form of a VH1 reality star). We are talking about none other than Brettanomyces. The name alone strikes fear into the hearts of some brewers and vintners. So what is this fearsome creature?

INfamous is when you're more than famous. Brett is not just famous, it's INfamous.

Brettanomyces is a wild yeast strain. It’s used primarily in Belgian and Belgian-style beers, and has been steadily gaining popularity in American craft beer. Brett produces characteristics that are often described as “horsey”, “horse-blanket”, “goaty”, “barnyard-ish”, “cheesey”, “wet doggy”, and even “sweat socks.”

Barnyard? Goats? Not usually synonymous with delicious.

If that doesn’t sound like your idea of delicious, you may be wondering why in the name of all things that are good in beer would brewers actually utilize such a thing.

In fact, many of them don’t. Like some bacteria, Brett’s presence in a beer or wine could be interpreted as a flaw. It can even infect some of the equipment that is used to create the beer or wine and it is incredibly difficult to eradicate, which is why so many beer and wine makers stay as far away as possible.  

No matter how much scrubbing one does, Brett isn't likely to go anywhere...

When used carefully and properly though, much like the bacteria we discussed last time, Brett can add depth and complexity to a finished brew, complete with totally unique flavors that range from rich and earthy to spicy, mildly fruity and leathery. Also, because the flavors take time to develop, Brett beers are perfect candidates for aging.

At such a concept I’ve heard some of my wine drinking friends scoff. “Cellar a beer?” they say. “Rubbish! What ever for?”

Stop the Beer/Wine Snobbery!

I then tell them to turn their noses back down, take a good look through their monocle and behold the beauty of craft beer. This is the kind of snobbery that perpetuates the barrier between wine and beer drinkers (and it goes both ways – I’m talking to the beer snobs out there too!). Tear down the wall, I say! There’s room for both beverages to be appreciated, dammit! But I digress . . .

If you ever encounter such a question you can answer that certain beers, like those brewed with a Brett strain, will age gracefully just like, dare I say it – a fine wine. The Brett character in these beers will change and develop over a year or two when stored properly (in a dark spot where the temperature doesn’t stray too far from a 55-65 degree margin).

Some breweries recommend a cellaring time. If you have the option (and more than one bottle), try the beer when you get it and then again after some aging and note the difference in the flavors and aromas. But we can talk more about aging practices another time.

My "cellar" is actually a closet. Not quite this fancy...

You can find Brett beers much more readily today than in the past. As we discussed with sour beers, the “funky” flavors delivered by Brett, Pedio, and Lacto have become something of a phenomenon. Something important to remember, though, is that NOT ALL BRETT BEERS ARE SOUR.

So if you’re taste buds are turned off by tartness, it doesn’t mean you have to write Brett off as well. It works well within the confines of a sour concoction, but while Brett can sometimes bring a tad bit of a tang, it’s not primarily the flavor you’ll get from it. Many Belgian-style saisons, quadruples and others are made with Brett, without any sourness to speak of.

Now, after reading this, you may not be entirely sold on the idea of Brett, but I’m willing to bet that you’re intrigued. You’ll find yourself thinking about Brett and wondering what it would be like. . .

I highly recommend that you give in to the temptation and dance with the devil. Walk on the wild side. Embrace the danger. I think you’re going to love it.