Was perusing threads earlier today in another forum and ran into one that mentioned Motueka hops. Did a little researching and found they might be good as a late addition to an IPA or Pale ale. I guess my question is, has anybody used them and what did they bring to the party? I am in search of new stuff to try, not because I have gotten good at what I have done so far, but just kinda curious. Anybody with any recipes they would be willing to share that has used those hops? I am mostly an IPA drinker, but Pale Ale’s and other Ale styles are cool too. I had a black IPA that was awesome, so if that is a possibility I am willing to check it out.
Motueka is a neat hop in that is a daughter of Saaz, and you definitely pick up that spicy note in the flavor profile at typical lager hopping rates. Once you push it to higher hopping rates you start to pick up a cool lime zest character on top of the herbal/spicy noble-hop character. I will say that it isn’t going to give you that saturated citrus character that you get from typical IPA hops. It works great as a single hop in something like a Pale Ale, or in a lager if you are looking for some non-traditional hop flavors. I don’t think it excels as the main hop in an IPA, but it’s a great accent hop when added to something like Nelson Sauvin, Galaxy, Vic Secret, etc.
I recall using it many years ago when we first got it at the homebrew shop, because of the name at the time (NZ saaz) I used it like I would saaz, basically a couple ounces with 20 minutes left in the boil of a ligther beer. I wasnt very impressed, it gave off a weird gummy bear fruitiness that I didnt like. Clearly I wasnt using it right, as its now a very popular IPA hop.
I would say it is definitely different. The last beer I brewed with it was a “Cold IPA” at the tap room (it was a commercially produced beer). Many people loved it but, to some, it was off-putting. I happened to love it.