I normally use citrusy American hops and think I could benefit by mixing them with something more mild with different characteristics like willametted to get a more balanced hop profile.
For those who use willamette, how do you use it? Aroma, dry hop, late in boil? What characteristics do you get out of it?
I have seen it used in Lagunitas IPA clone recipes in the middle of the boil with Centennial which I thought was interesting.
I get spice and floral from Willamette. I bought two pounds two seasons back and I am still trying to use it all up. I like to use it in place of noble hops. Lots of English Milds, English IPAs, 50/-, Kolsch, yada yada yada.
Does it pair well with anything like Cascade, Centennial, Amarillo?
I get a pleasant earthiness and mild to moderate floral aromas from Willamette. I tend to use it in lagers and darker beers. That said I think it pairs well with cascade and centennial. I would guess that amarillo could easily overpower willamette.
I like it with cascade. Never tried it with Centennial and Amarillo. I would imagine Centennial would be pretty good.
I’ve heard that Willamette can act as a “booster” for the C-hops. I tried that once but with nothing to compare it to, I couldn’t really say whether it worked or not. Also, that’s back when I was adding 5.2 Mash Stabilizer to RO water and calling it good… um, it wasn’t very good!
Might be worth a shot one of these days. I’ve enjoyed them in brown ales and porters.
I like using them from 20 min on out to dry hop. Pairs well but gets lost in IPAs with lots of citrus
+1
For me boiling them any longer than about 20 minutes and you’re wasting them.