Kefir lime leaves; hops combo

I have some stuff I want to use up while its fresh, kefir lime leaves and american hops. I want to make an ipa with the kefir lime leaves. Anyone do this? Or have ideas? I’m not sure how much. I’m thinking they will go in the fermenter a couple days before bottling. They smell fantastic which is what I want to capture.
Also, any ideas of what combo of hops of these would work best? : galena, crystal, summit, centennial, cascade, amarillo. I’m looking for a firm but not harsh bitter and aromas that will stand up to the keffir lime aroma but not clash.
I have’t made any IPA’s in a while so this should be fun.

Motueka hops have a definite lime character. Past that, Keith puts kefir leaves in his wit. He’s the expert there.

I do a blonde ale with lime zest and lemongrass. I use centennial hops and I think the combo is great. That may not be the best comparison for what you are trying to do.

Good to know but not going to HBS first so working with what I got.

Actually that might be s good comparison. Lime leaves have a similar pungency as lime zest.

As for hops, you couldn’t go wrong bittering with Centennial and finishing with Centennial and Amarillo. Citrusy hops would complement the citrusy lime leaves really well.

Sounds good Jon. I’m usually about balance but I think this time I’ll go for an all out citrus assault. I suppose the balance will be in a good malt backbone.

Yep, sounds great. FWIW, I love some Munich in IPAs, usually 20%, while holding crystal to maybe 5-6%. Gives a nice malt balance without the overly sweet crystally character. Sounds like a good beer.

Ive not experimented with hops and lime leaves much. I don’t have any recommendations. I do recommend some flaked barley. The lime leaves mess with head retention some. And a little goes a long way. In use about 30 grams per 372 gallons. And the bad news is some are more potent than others. You will have to determine how much to use each bactch with experience. And even that is hard to nail down.

How do you plan on processing them? I puree them in a blender with some hot water or wort. Add them at flame out.

I actually wondered about head retention. Something about their pungency suggests lots of oils to me, so yes, definitely flaked barley. I like your idea of pureeing, I didn’t think of that. Its like roughly chopping herbs to release their aroma. How about adding that to a hopstand? What about " dry leafing" a couple days before bottling? Thanks for the amount info. I had a feeling that a light hand is neede to avoid turning it from a citrus bomb into bug repellent (citronella).

Exactly the kind of advice I’m looking for. Malty but not sweet. Not trying to make sprite.

Careful when using lime leaves. The essential oils they’ll release into your beer tend to be harsher and less pleasant than what your experience in nice Thai food dish. You may very well end up with a brew which smells and tastes like exotic dishwasher liquid.
And yes, that’s first hand experience, that :slight_smile:

Yes, use a light hand. But if the balance is right it can be very, very nice. I love them in my Belgian White. If you over do it you come away with exactly as the above poster described - dishwasher soap.

I thought I had some munich but don’t. I have Vienna but not enough to get to 20%. I’m thinking 80 % 2 row, 15% Vienna, and 5% 10L carmel. and oh yea, flaked barley. I guess I’ll be giving 110% like coaches say. Maybe 1.065-70. I think that will get me malty but not sweet with a dry finish.
I absolutely will be using the lime leaves sparingly. I’m thinking bittering with a combo of centennial and galena then doing a hopstand with centennial, Amarillo and cascade. I’ll chop up the lime leaves in a processor with hot wort and add to the hopstand. I’ll take a gravity sample a week later and taste to see if it wants some more dry hops or lime leaves.
This could be real good or real bad. Its a 2.5 gallon batch and I’ll be bottling two batches this week so its a good time to take a chance. I’ve been concentrating on simplicity and classic styles lately so a little playing around will be fun.

Since there isn’t a lot active in this category I thought it would be OK to bump this up and say since there are quite a few people here who are really into making IPA’s I would love what people think of this outline of a recipe.

I’m not a big fan of flaked barley in an IPA - it has a grassy, raw grain flavor that sticks out like a sore thumb in pale beers. At least to my palate - others may disagree. Otherwise, the grain bill looks good to me. Hops do wonders for head retention, so you might be OK. If I felt the need to add some head insurance I’d use maybe 5-10% wheat malt or flaked/torrified wheat.

Your hop schedule looks pretty good to me. I’d shoot for 60-70 IBU from your bittering addition. I have no idea how the hop/lime leaf balance is going to fall, but I’d go with maybe 1 or 1.5 ounces of each hop variety in the whirlpool.

What yeast are you planning on using? Are you sticking with the typical 001/1056/US-05, or something else?

I’m very curious to hear how this turns out. Keep us posted.

Thanks Eric. Yes, 1056.
Good point about hoppy beer and head retention. I think I have only used flaked barley in a stout so wasn’t thinking about if it would not perform well in a paler beer. OTOH there’s been a lot of pushback on the idea that wheat helps with head retention. I don’t think I’m convinced to nix the flaked barley but I’ll go with a light touch and hope the hops help too.
Are your hop amounts based on 2.5 gallons?

Yes, I was thinking for 2.5 gallons. One to two ounces whirlpool hops per gallon should give you good hop flavor and aroma but still leave some room for the lime leaves.

I tasted a gravity sample last night. This is actually turning out better than I thought, I wasn’t expecting to get it right the first time but maybe I will. There is nice bright, fresh citrus aroma and flavor without it being perfumy, which I had been fearing because the lime leaves have such a strong aroma. I need the yeast cake for an IPA I’m brewing tonight so I’m going to rack over a little more cascade and a tiny bit more lime leaf then bottle this weekend. That should insure a fresh aroma.

Sounds awesome! Did you end up adding the chopped up leaves at the hopstand? How much did you use for 2.5 gallons? Sorry if I passed over that info.