Aged hops

Ingredients
1

So I’m doing a Cascade Dark that calls for Warrior and Cascade hops.

At my brew-store, the only Warriors available was a 2007 harvest he found in his private stash in the bottom of his freezer.  They were in an oxygen barrier bag and there were no discernable hop aromas coming from the freezer, so I figures oxidation wouldn’t be a problem.  The proprietor also assured me they would still be viable.

I just transfered to a secondary today and put the sample I took for a gravity reading into my belly.  Awesome flavor after just a few days in the primary, but VERY little hop character or bitterness! At 17.5% Alpha Acid I would assume 1 oz. at a 75 minute boil should impart some bitterness. Please tell me it’ll become more apparent after a few weeks conditioning!  ???

2

It will generally become less bitter over time, but once it is chilled and carbonated the perception of bitterness may increase.

If you’re sure it’s much too light on the bitterness, you can always brew a hop tea and dose the beer to add bitterness.

3

I would dry hop with some Cascade or some Amarillo to add some hop aroma.  That will add to the dimension of the hop character in the beer.