In Search of El Dorado (Single hop)

Welcome back to Off The Hinge Brewing!  At the last Portland U-brew Collective meeting, Mark Gillette threw out an idea that we all do a single hop beer.  We all drew a hop out of a hat.  I picked up Bravo, but Bravo was out when I went to pick it up.  El Dorado was in my fridge whispering to me and no one had any objections to that hop.  I decided on a whim to brew last night.  I was getting restless.

El Dorado hop pellets

First, I would like to share an Edgar Allen Poe poem, "El Dorado," which I believe is relevant to brewing...

Gaily bedight,
   A gallant Knight,

Pitching the yeast

In sunshine and in shadow,
   Had journeyed long,
   Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

   But he grew old-
   This knight so bold-
And o'er his heart a shadow-
   Fell as he found
   No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

   And, as his strength
   Failed him at length,
He met a pilgrim shadow-
   'Shadow,' said he,
   'Where can it be-
This land of Eldorado?'

   'Over the Mountains
    Of the Moon,
Down the Valley of the Shadow,
    Ride, boldly ride,'
    The shade replied,-
'If you seek for Eldorado!'

Why is this relevant?  In my thoughts, trying to make a great beer is an endless search, but we still keep brewing to find that golden kingdom of Eldorado.  That aside, let's continue on...

We all had a choice of following a Hop2it recipe or going rouge and coming up with our own.  In the majority of circumstances I go rouge, however I wanted to follow the recipe to better understand the hop and not be influenced by malts and yeast.  This recipe was designed by, Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River.

I did a 90 minute single infusion mash at 154 degrees F.  My gravity was four points higher than the recipe called for, which is because I added two extra pounds of 2-row.  The amount of International Bittering Units (IBU) was to be between 30 - 40, which this beer hit at 34.8.  This beer has a higher alcohol by volume, due to the higher gravity and better efficiency than I expected.  I normally get anywhere between 65 - 75 % efficiency, however on this batch I go 84%!

The Grain Bill is as follows, 7 lbs. of US 2-row, 1.5 lbs. of Maris Otter Malt, 1 lb. of Crystal 15L, 1 lb. White Wheat, and 4 oz. of Acidulated Malt.  The Hopping schedule went like this, .375 oz. of El Dorado first wort hop at 90 mins., next .5 oz. at 30 mins., then at flame out whirlpool 1 oz. of El Dorado.  I will also dry hop 1 oz. for a week.  I did not make a starter due to spontaneity, so I added two smack packs of Wyeast 1056 American Ale yeast.  Can't wait for this one.

Yeast 1056

You may be wondering about El Dorado (the hop)?  Dan Woodske, wrote a book on hops entitled, "Hop Variety Handbook," which I like as a guide when formulating a hop bill.  Here is some info on El Dorado he put in his book.  This US hop is a new high yielding hop, which was trademarked in 2010.  It is a bittering hop and also used for aroma.  Common styles it is used in are Imperial IPA and IPA.  The Aroma includes, dried fruit, some citrus, covers up malt aroma, and watermelony fruit like.  The flavor profile is very sharp/crisp bitterness, tropical fruit flavors of mango and apricot and possible honey taste adds to its sweetness.  The Alpha Acid ranges from 14% -16%, the Beta Acid is 7% - 8%, and Cohumulone Acid 28% - 33%.  Has a good storage rating 7 out of 10.  Myrcene Oil 55% - 60%, Humulene Oil 10% - 15%, and Caryophyllene 6% - 8%.  Good Substitutes are, Zeus, Columbus, Bravo, and Summit.  

Hop pellets

You may now wonder what does that all mean?  I will try to make this short and sweet... Alpha Acid refers to the bitterness, the higher the more bitterness.  Beta Acid, unlike Alpha Acids release bitterness during the aging process and attribute more to the aroma of a beer.  The best hops have a Alpha to Beta ratio of 2:1.  Cohumulone Acid is a type of Alpha Acid that gives your beer a harsh bitter taste, most noble hops have a low Cohumulone Acid percentage, while El Dorado has a high percentage.

Let us review the essential oils.  There are generally 4 types of measured oils in hops.  They include, Myrcene, Humulene, Caryophyllene, and Farnesene.  Farnesene, however is almost negligible in every hop.  These are what gives your beer flavor and aroma from the hops.  Myrcene is the largest oil in your hops and it does not like heat, the longer you boil this hop the more flavor and fragrance you lose. The longer you boil Myrcene the more you get citrus and pine flavors and aromas and the shorter you boil this the more citrus and fruity flavors and aromas come forward.  Orange peel is a common taste you get from Myrcene.  Next, Humulene Oils, which are associated with Noble hops and are heat resistant.  It gives off more of a earthy/herbal/woody character in both flavor and aroma.  This oil is not a fan of oxygen or sunlight!  Caryophyllene Oil is similar to Humulene.  A common aroma is clove and a taste of cracked black peppercorn.  Lastly, Farnesene Oil, which is another oil that breaks down quickly in heat.  It is almost non-existent in many hop varieties composing of less than 1% of the total oil.  Flavors and aromas include pears, ginger, oranges, and nutmeg.  The aroma is compared to lavender and magnolia flowers.

I hope this helps any interested in the composition of hops.  There is a lot more info out there on hops if you are interested in expanding your knowledge of hops.  Remember to drink good beer responsibly and be merry.  Cheers!