Hop help!

Who is 'she'?

One of my Saturday drinking pals and a "Wicken" to boot!

 

[highwayman]

Here's some of the pictures of the Wild Hops I found!!

Any ideas chaps :hmm:

 

[jonewer]

Any ideas chaps :hmm:

Bring some wort to the boil and check 'em in!

Every day on the way to work I see wild hops growing on the side of the tracks. I cant get to them. Its almost as if they're mocking me!

 

I cant get to them.

Ever thought of pulling the chain? :whistle:

 

[highwayman]

Bring some wort to the boil and check 'em in!

Good idea jonewer...I'll do that :thumb:

 

[BarnsleyBrewer]

I'd work on 7% AA Steve! :thumb:

 

[highwayman]

Thanks John...I tasted a dried cone last night and it was quite bitter!!! so 7% AA would be about right :thumb:

I picked 2 x Carrier Bags full of these Hop Cones and laid them on a length of Net curtains..which I have hung from the ceiling rafters in my Loft. I have a ceiling fan up there too to circulate the air..and as the weather is good at the moment the hops are drying out nicely.

Anyone any idea how long I leave them drying before I vacuum seal them :hmm:

 

[BarnsleyBrewer]

Last year I gave mine about 2 weeks then froze them :thumb:

 

When the Strig (center stem) breaks when you bend it, then they are dry!

 

[chrisgg]

Just for anyone searching for this topic of Aureus Humulus Lupulus (an ornamental golden-leaved hop) and who comes across this old post like I did. I have the same plant in my garden and picked some fresh ripe hop cones in Sept 2015 to put into my bottles of homebrewed ale, which were lacking in aroma. I put one fresh cone into each of 48 swing-top bottles of my primed ale, full of confidence after sniffing and squeezing the hops. I can report that they gave the beer a strong lemon-grass flavour, a bit sharp and overwhelming. I still drank it all though! That does not mean the hops are no good for brewing if used in the normal way. They do seem to have a very strong citrussy flavour. It shows just how potent the hops are when fresh, compared with when they dried or pelleted. As they dry, aroma must be lost.