Has anyone used this hop or know anything about it? I just got a couple of pounds from my boss. The only thing I can find out about it is that Sierra Nevada uses it in one of its Harvest Single Hop beers. Their words: “Complex fruity aromas of orange and apricot mesh with hints of black tea-like character and a pleasant fresh herbal bouquet.” Apparently it is also now being called: “007: The Golden Hop.” I like Idaho 7 better…
The harvest Alpha was 14.1, so I’m guessing the pelleted is around 12+. No info on oils.
You know what I’d really like to do is send half of these hops to someone who is good at brewing IPAs and wants to experiment with them. All I ask is that you post what your recipe is and tasting notes. PM me if you’re interested.
A local brewery here who makes great IPAs made a single hopped IPA with them and I hear it was pretty good but I have not tried it myself.
You could try emailing them to see if they have more specific information regarding the hops they got. Just an idea. The name of the brewery is Cannonball Creek in Golden, CO.
EDIT: I see that Yakima Valley hops has “The Golden Hop” available. I didn’t realize they were the same.
AROMA: Complex fruity aromas of orange and apricot mesh with hints of black tea-like character and a pleasant fresh herbal bouquet.
I’ve never tried a hop quite like it. The description is actually pretty accurate with this one - apricot and orange up front, with a definite, pleasant black tea character. Underneath it all is a subtle earthy/herbal character. It really works. There aren’t many where I’d say it, but it’s a hop I’d have a hard time blending with something because there’s a lot going on. Can’t wait to use it.
wow - so you thinking something like 95% 2 row/5% light crystal, warrior/Apollo for bittering and then just pound it with all I-7 at like 10, whirlpool, and dryhop?
Thank you again, Steve. Really looking forward to using these hops. I think I’m gonna go with this recipe, to try to get close to what I remember from the SN beer - it was very pale, wasn’t overly bitter, was dry but not crazy dry, but it was a perfect base for those hops. By the way, I think our whirlpool and dry additions look pretty similar. ;D
1.062 OG
1.009-1.010 FG
70 IBU (kettle). I’m sure the stand adds a few.
5.6 SRM
6.4% abv
94.6% Briess 2 row
2.7% C40
2.7% Carapils
Mash 152F/75 mins @ 5.4 pH
Sulfate 180ppm
Chloride 60ppm
70 IBU Columbus - 60 mins
9 oz Idaho 7 - 170-175F hopstand for 30 mins
5 oz dry - crash to 32F, gelatin fine, then keg and dry hop in keg
WY1056
I’ll repost the recipe afterward (in case anything changes) along with tasting notes. I’ll bet both beers are killer. Thanks again !
Final result: I posted a pic in the ‘Pics of recent beers’ thread a couple hours ago of the IPA I brewed with this hop. I used the exact recipe I posted, with the exception that I used 70 IBU Warrior to bitter instead of Columbus because I felt that the SN beer had a smoother, unobtrusive bitterness. Otherwise, OG was spot on, FG was 1.010 (spot on), mash temp was 152.5F , close enough. This is a good beer, pretty similar in appearance, flavor, and body to the SN beer.
Aroma and flavor are upfront tangerine and apricot, followed by an earthy black tea and subtle cannabis character. In intensity, I’d put it slightly above Centennial as a reference. I wanted the same character I got from the SN beer and I got something in the ballpark anyway. It’s a balanced, not ‘one note’ hop. The one drawback was a slight onion/garlic note that I hadn’t experienced in the commercial version. That’s often a harvest/terroir related thing to my understanding. I have an unopened lb from YVH in my freezer because I like the upside so much in American styles. I want to try it again soon before I make a final pronouncement. But I like it a whole lot so far. Thanks again, Steve !
Edit - Here’s a great source if you’re interested:
I would have brewed this by now but I am just getting over a 2 week flu bug. Never again will I say “No, I don’t want to spend the money on a flu shot.” Maybe next weekend.
I am finally at the drinking stage for this beer. I really like the flavor and aroma, but IMO it is not the new Citra. On the nose I mainly get pear with a bit of marijuana. On the palate I get stone fruit and pear complimented by tangerine. The last thing I will note is that this hop is delicious all by itself. It is certainly blendable, but totally unnecessary.
As I said I really like it, but I don’t think this is going to be an IPA hop. I think it will make an outstanding Pale Ale hop. The flavors aren’t big enough for an IPA. They are wonderful, just too soft or delicate. And that is with a 9 oz. hopstand and 5 oz. for the dry hop.
Also FWIW we did do a total oils distillation on this hop. It came out at 1.2 (mL/100g)
I thought the same about it as an APA hop, Steve. I really like the character of it but wasn’t able to get an IPA level punch with a hop schedule that normally gives intense hop character. SN’s IPA version had a ton of great hop character FWIW (and was single hopped). I still like it and will use some in an APA this year.
