Brewers understanding and appreciation of hops has increased, improved and is much enhanced on the situation even only one or two decades ago.  Through better use of hops, brewers are creating incredibly tasty beers – and the style and character of new beers are often showing great finesse as brewers further develop their ability to get the most out of this unique ingredient.

Our two beers to-day showcase a range of hops – all beginning with ‘C’.  Triple C from the Crafty Dan range of beers features a blend of Chinook, Cascade and Centennial hops.  Cascade Pale Ale from Saltaire brewery is a single hop pale ale featuring Cascade hops – the hop that has emerged as most associated with West Coast U.S. craft brewing. 

Hops –

Hops are a relative of the cannabis plant – a vine with green, leafy flowers the contents of which can deliver flavours that make beer beer.  Hops have one and only one use – as an ingredient in beer.  As such, they are quite different from other produce that can often be used as an ingredient in various foodstuffs.

Hops contain three broad categories of constituents that influence flavour in beer - alpha acids, beta acids and essential oils.  Alpha acids and beta acids are insoluble in beer in their natural form.  However, when alpha acids are boiled, they change to become soluble in beer.  Alpha acids are the main factor contributing to bitterness in beer.  Beta acids are insoluble in beer.  They can contribute to bitterness, but are more associated with aromas derived from hops.  When talking about bitterness in beer, the idea of I.B.U.’s (International Bitterness Units) has become more understood by people enthusiastic about understanding beer.  The more I.B.U.’s in a beer, the more bitter that beer is.  However, the perception of this bitterness is also dependent on the balance of flavours in the beer.  A beer rich in malt character might taste nicely balanced (but also noticeably bitter) with 60 I.B.U.’s.  Likewise, a beer that is thin in body and other flavours might taste particularly bitter with 25 I.B.U.’s – even though there is less bitterness in absolute terms in the second beer.  Lack of balance can make this bitterness stand out in the same way that salty water tastes more salty when compared with a flavourful dish with the same amount of salt added.

Essential oils in hops are many and varied.  The flavours and aromas that can derive from essential oils bring the mystique in brewing to a new level.  Flavours such as rose, pine, citrus, tangerine, melon, woody, passion fruit, red and black currant can all derive from essential oils in hops.  Furthermore, achieving these flavours is not always a simple matter of adding ‘x’ amount of a particular hop to achieve ‘y’ amount of a particular flavour or aroma.  These oils can change, combine and transform during fermentation and during the brewing process so that what is put in is not always directly related to what ends up in the final beer.  It is probably fair to say that hops have been particularly responsible for bringing the ‘art’ back into brewing.  No surprise, therefore, that styles of beer that are rich in hop character – such as India Pale Ales – have become cornerstone styles for lovers of craft beers.

The relevance of hops in brewing has changed considerably over the years.  Indeed, tracking brewers’ attitude towards hops parallels the attitude towards craft beer.  During the time of the Lager Revolution, the focus of mainstream brewers was on producing beers that were ‘accessible’ (read relatively bland) to the mass market.  Image, through investment in marketing was the basis for differentiating different beers, and the last thing a brewer of mainstream beer wanted was to have too much flavour in the beer that might alienate beer drinkers attracted by the image generated by the multi-millions that they were spending in advertising.

The focus of these brewing companies was to maximise volume, and to minimise costs.  The more money they could save in brewing the beer, the more could be invested in marketing.  The more volume of beer that they could sell, the more money could be re-invested in marketing.  This resulted in a spiral that was reflected in their attitude towards hops.  In simple terms, they viewed hops largely as a one-dimensional ingredient – balancing flavour in beer with bitterness.  The focus on large breweries was on convincing hop growers to produce hop varieties high in alpha acid (the key constituent contributing bitterness), and then to formulate recipes that resulted in beer with less and less bitterness in it.  The beer needed less hops because it was brewed to be less bitter, and the amount of hops needed to achieve this bitterness was reduced because the hops grown were high in alpha acid.

This one dimensional perspective on hops completely disregarded what could be achieved through a more impassioned use of hops in brewing.  As craft brewing took hold, initially craft brewers challenged eachother by brewing beers with excessive levels of bitterness.  Where mainstream beers in the U.S. might have between 5 and 10 I.B.U.’s, craft brewers of the 1980’s started out brewing I.P.A.’s with bitterness levels of 40 to 60 I.B.U.’s, and then, through a constant ratcheting of competition, brewed beers with over 100 I.B.U.’s – literally ten to twenty times more bitter than their mainstream competitors.

However, as time moved on, the finesse of flavours that could be achieved through hops was better understood, and craft brewers moved away from this simple, one-dimensional view of hops as a bittering component, and viewed hops as a multi-dimensional palate of expression, the results achieved in beers came forward exponentially.

We still don’t have a full understanding of exactly how all flavours are achieved in beer through the use of different varieties of hops.  Some hops are associated with certain flavours, but the manner in which those hops are used in the brewing process can result in varied results.  Likewise, blends of hops used in brewing can result in interactions that yield unexpected, sometimes wonderful, flavours coming through in beer as a consequence.  With craft brewing, and with more experimental use of hop varieties and brewing methods, the art has very much come back into brewing.  Science is rushing to catch up, and as it does, innovative brewers surge ahead with more creative use of hops, and ever interesting results.

Hop Varieties –

Given that hops grow on a vine, and grapes grow on a vine, it is probably inevitable that there be some comparisons between hops and grapes and their influence on the alcoholic drinks in which they are used.  Hops differ from grapes in that grapes are the source of both liquid and sugar in wine – grapes provide the sugary juice that is fermented to yield wine.  In brewing, the liquid comes in the form of water, and the sugar source is typically a grain – most often malted barley, but sometimes wheat, oats, corn or other grains, and sometimes sugar.

Leaving this fundamental difference to one side, there is much in common between grapes and hops.  Hops are an agricultural ingredient, and so many factors influence the quality of the hops that are grown.  The skills and dedication of the hop grower are fundamental – just as is the case in the tending of vines growing grapes.  Geographic location dictates soil quality and climate – and both of these have a strong influence on how successful hop growers are in cultivating particular varieties of hops.  Because of the importance of geographic location, many hop varieties are strongly associated with geographic regions – hop growers discover that certain varieties of hops grow well in certain locations, soils and climates, and as these hop varieties become successful, they become associated with the areas where they are originally, most successfully grown.

Just like grapes, however, certain hop varieties have been found to travel quite successfully.  Increased demand for popular varieties of hops incentivises hop growers in other countries to try their hand at growing that variety.  As a consequence, while certain hop varieties are closely associated with, for example, England, the West Coast of the U.S., Germany, Eastern Europe or New Zealand, one sometimes finds that these hop varieties (just like varietals of popular grapes) are not exclusively grown in one location.

How hops are used by brewers can also impact on the flavours achieved from hops.  However, hop varieties do tend to have characteristics that result in similar flavours when used across different beers.

The beers that we are tasting to-day feature a blend of three hops (whose name all begin with ‘C’) in the first beer, and the use of two hops (again, beginning with ‘C’) in the second beer.  Crafty Dan Triple C has a blend of ‘Chinook’, ‘Citra’ and ‘Centennial’ hops.  Cascade Pale Ale is a beer featuring two hop varieties – ‘Cascade’ and ‘Centennial’ (sometimes nicknamed ‘Super Cascade’) hops  Below is a little bit more information about these four types of hops –

Cascade –

Cascade is probably the hop most associated with West Coast U.S. brewing, though in saying this, the variety and diversity of hops used by American craft brewers means that no one hops dominates the American craft beer scene in reality.  It is grown in a variety of locations, and can vary according to the location in which it is grown.  Citric (lemon/lime or grapefruit) flavour is often associated with this hop, as is pine, floral aromas and floral-fruity character.

Centennial –

Centennial hops were first grown in 1974, and released for use by brewers in 1990.  They are a daughter hop of Brewers’ Gold, Fuggles, East Kent Goldings, and Bavarian hops.  They are sometimes nicknamed ‘Super Cascade’ for delivering the citric / pine character associated with Cascade, though it does tend to be lighter on citrus aromas.  Centennial hops can also give a floral aroma character to beers.  This hop was named for a Washington State festival of the same name.

Citra –

A hop that has grown considerably in popularity in the last five to ten years, Citra is a daughter of Hallertauer, American Tettnanger and East Kent Goldings.  While one might expect that this would be the poster child for citric character, in reality it delivers a laundry list of potential flavours in beers that can include passion fruit, lychee, peach, gooseberries and other, relatively unusual, hop flavours.

Chinook –

Originally bred for bittering, this hop variety has a high alpha acid content.  However, it also delivers complex fruity-piney contributions in beers.  Spicy and herbal notes can also come through with the use of this hop.  This is another hop that is closely associated with hopcentric American craft beers.

Crafty Dan Triple C –

Beer Style                           -  Golden Ale

Alcohol by Volume          -  5.3% a.b.v.

Brewed by                          -  Daniel Thwaites (Crafty Dan Microbrewery)

Brewed in                           -  Blackburn, England

Daniel Thwaites is a brewery in Blackburn with over 200 years of brewing tradition on its site in Blackburn.  In recent times, this brewery has been faced with two distinct challenges – an aging brewery, and a city centre site where the land value, and the need for additional space has accelerated past what makes logical sense for the brewery is situated.  Their response to these two challenges is inspiring both in their commitment to great beer, and in the innovative approach that it reflects.

A number of years ago, Thwaites set up the ‘Crafty Dan’ brewery – a microbrewery on the site of their main brewery in Blackburn.  They used this smaller brewery to innovate with new beers, and brought out a range of beers under the ‘Crafty Dan’ name that reflects the best of modern day craft brewing ethos.  In parallel with this, they maintained their tradition and heritage in their cornerstone Thwaites beers – brewed in the original, bigger brewery.  The medium term plans are to build a new brewery for their heritage Thwaites brands outside of the city, and to continue the city centre brewing tradition with the Crafty Day brewery range.

Triple C is one of the beers that has come out of the Crafty Dan brewery.  Brewed with a blend of Chinook, Citra and Centennial hops (and also, possibly based on the web-site, Cascade in all stages of brewing), this beer is a demonstration of what can be achieved in a clean tasting and refreshing golden ale with the judicious use of an appropriate hop blend.

Orange, lemon, grapefruit, pine, floral sit on top of crackery and biscuit malt character, while aromas of perfume and floral blend to further compliment this array of flavour and aroma.  Triple C is quite simply a delicious beer.  While often officionados of craft beer celebrate the hop character of I.P.A.’s a golden ale can equally deliver the level of complexity and character associated with an I.P.A. without losing the balance necessary for the beer to be incredibly delicious.

Triple C is a superb example of a modern craft Golden Ale.  Well worth a try!!

Cascade Pale Ale –

Beer Style                           -  (American Style) Pale Ale

Alcohol by Volume          -  4.8% a.b.v.

Brewed by                          -  Saltaire Brewery

Brewed in                           -  Yorkshire, England

Brewed in Yorkshire, Cascade Pale Ale is Saltaire brewery’s tribute to the American Pale Ale.  A blend of Cascade and Centennial hops are used in brewing this pale straw gold beer.

Floral and pine come through on the aroma, blending with the honey biscuit from the malt and torrefied wheat base of this beer.  Orange oil, citrus, pine and floral character from the hops also comes through in the taste, and this blends with the nectar and digestive biscuit base.  The torrefied wheat and crystal malt in this beer provide a delicious backdrop to the character derived from the two signature hops used in this beer.

Overall, this is a classic pale ale brewed in accordance with American Pale Ale traditions – clean, easy drinking malt character is balanced by signature character from two hops that are closely associated with American craft brewing traditions.  While the label proclaims the beer and beer style in very simple terms, the liquid inside demonstrates how complexity and character can be delivered in a distinctly refreshing beer.

Beers Available –