I think that’s a GREAT Idea.
What perplexes me is that I know several brewers who jump through hoops with hops that they purchase from their LHBS. I prefer to purchase hops from sources that provide the year of harvest, which is why I always purchase as close to the grower as possible. It is a habit that I developed when I used whole cones exclusively.
Speaking of whole cones, I going back to using whole cones. I prefer the softer bitterness and brighter flavors that whole cones produce (there is a noticeable difference when well-handled hops are used). I will getting rid several pounds of pellets in the next few months. I would rather have beer that requires less conditioning to round off the edges, even if that means less variety.
I would love to try whole hops for a batch or two and do a comparison however now that I use a pump for everything including filling my fermenter, I don’t think it’s possible. I’m assuming it will get clogged.
A lot of really good brewers use a false bottom and whole cones. Gordon Strong is one these brewers.
I shake my head when brewers complain about the difficulty of using whole cones. Whole cones are stupid easy to use when one’s kettle is fitted with a false bottom. Unlike a bazooka tube or a hop stopper/hop taco, one can use an immersion chiller without fear of clogging with a false bottom and whole cones. The cones settle on top of the false bottom with the break and organic matter settling on top of the cones.
If you use a false bottom in your kettle, you will get much brighter cast-out wort than you get with pellets. In fact, if you use this setup enough times, you will think twice about going back to pellets, which I find to be a pain in the backside to hold back in the kettle without resorting bagging or some other non-free swimming technique. Whirlpooling helps, but it is nowhere near as effective as a false bottom with whole hops. Whole hops used with a well-fitting false bottom are stupid proof.
If my false bottom comes loose, the hops will clog the pump. Maintaining a good fit is part of the maintainance. Pellets can be more of a pain in the rear for me.
It comes down to how you system is set up as to which hop format works for you.
It sounds like you are using a keg-based system with a dome-shaped false bottom. I have always used a stockpot-based kettle with a full-coverage false bottom. I have used kettles with and without dip tubes. When there was a dip tube, it was not physically attached to the false bottom.
With that said, I hope that this year’s harvest is better than last year’s harvest. Whole cones were only available in a limited number of varieties last fall. My hop yard was devastated by Japanese beetles last year. It has been raining so much that I fear that my hills will contract some kind of mildew or other rust this year. So many brewers are unknowingly planting infected root stock from the West Coast that it is only a matter of time before hop downy mildew, powdery mildew, or a hop virus shows up. Willamette root stock is notorious for being infected.
A Mike O’brien pico-system, half barrels, and the false bottom plates are soft copper. With use the plates can become a little loose, and I have had them boil up, or dislodge them stirring. Same system that Gordon and many others in the Midwest have.
When I use whole hops, I just put them in a bag to keep them out of my pump. FWIW, for about the first 6-7 years I brewed I was a whole hop snob. I figured that I lived in the middle of prime hop growing territory and that was the “purist” approach. But then I found that the guy in our club who consistently made the best beers used pretty much only pellets. I gave 'em a try and became hooked. Less room to store, longer storage, easier to use. These days, I use 90% pellets.
Or just put 'em in a bag. But I still prefer pellets. And I don’t worry about keeping them all in the kettle. If some get through, it makes no difference.
The catch with whole cones is that one needs to know when they were harvested and how they have been handled since being oasted. You are fortunate in that you live in area where that knowledge is relatively easy to obtain.
While I could probably live with pellets for kettle hopping, something happens to the flavor and aromatics during pelletizing that makes the beer slightly more harsh and less bright, resulting in longer conditioning times in my home brewery. If one uses a lot of “C” American hops, then these subtle changes are not that noticeable. Most of these cultivars are off-the-hook with respect to the essential oils that define their finishing qualities. However, the difference between whole cones and pellets is very noticeable when using noble/noble triploids and other landrace hops such as Cluster, Fuggle, and Golding as finishing hops. Whole Cluster bears little semblance to pelletized Cluster when used as a finishing hop. Much of the lemon is lost during pelletizing. The cultivar where I find the biggest difference between whole cones and pellets is Liberty. Whole Liberty is a thing of beauty.
Well, it’s easy to get around the catch…just order whole hops from the same place I do! The quality and transparency of info is amazing.
And I have to say that of you’re getting pellets like that, it may be due to poor pelltizing techniques. I use pellets exclusively for continental hops and find thenm far better than the leaf equivalents.
I have been meaning to give Ted’s hops a shot for quite some time. I need to get an up-to-date list just before I place an order instead of attempting to use an older list to put together an order. His eBay store is currently offline.