The Secrets to Successfully Blending New Slovenian Hop Varieties
As craft beer brewing continues to grow in popularity, so too do the demand and variety of hops used in brewing. In particular, Slovenian Hops has grown in popularity due to their unique characteristics and flavour profiles. If you’re looking for tips on blending these new hop varieties successfully, look no further! In this blog post, we’ll explore the secrets to blending new Slovenian Hop varieties and discuss the different ways you can use them to craft the perfect beer.
Do your research
When it comes to brewing beer with Slovenian hops, it is essential to understand their character and flavour complexity. 99% of hops are planted with Slovenian varieties bred at the Slovenian Institute for Hop Research and Brewing. The new varieties must consider quality parameters, diseases, and climate change. To ensure these hops are of the highest quality, hop farmers, hop traders, and experts cooperate with the Committee of Hop Technology and Breeding. Various research projects that explore the newest hop varieties complement this professional work.
The key factor to getting optimal flavour and aroma from the newer Slovenian hop varieties is understanding how to blend them with other hop varieties. Some popular Slovenian hop varieties include:
- Aurora
- Celcia
- Styrian Dragon
- Styrian Fox
- Styrian Cardinal
- Styrian Wolf
These offer a range of flavours from spicy, herbal and earthy tones. Blending these hops can be daunting, but with some research and experimentation, you can achieve a fantastic craft beer with your favourite hop varieties. Start by asking what kind of aroma and taste you want to achieve. Once you have determined this, choose one or two base hops to build around, such as Styrian Dragon or Wolf. Each hop has unique characteristics, so don’t be afraid to try something different. Mix and match the aromas and flavours available from each until you find the perfect combination. You can experiment with combining multiple varieties like Styrian Cardinal and Fox for more complex flavours and aromas. Remember that balance is key when blending. Too much of one will overpower the others and affect the final product’s taste. With patience and practice, you’ll succeed in crafting delicious beers using Slovenian hops!
Know your desired outcome.
When starting out with Slovenian hops, thinking of some common hop pairings in your favourite beers can be helpful. For example, if you like a hoppy IPA, it is likely built on a foundation of two or three hops. This includes a bittering variety and one or two aromatics. To help you get started, we’ve gathered the hop bills of many beers and broken down possible blends using Slovenian hops.
While most of the flavour and aroma comes from the dry hop, thousands of combinations exist. After testing a few different recipes, we have found a few that work! Research has shown that 74% of popular hoppy beer recipes utilize two or three hops. While more than 4 hops are usually used in dry hopping. The different kinds of hops available are aroma, bittering, and dual-purpose. Some popular Slovenian varieties include Styrian Golding and Aurora. These are predominately used in traditional styles . We recommend the new Slovenian hop varieties Styrian Cardinal, Styrian Wolf, Styrian Dragon, and Styrian Fox.
By understanding the desired outcome and exploring the many varieties of Slovenian hops available, brewers can have fun creating new recipes and building their own hoppy beer blends. A great combination for a Pale Ale could involve pairing Styrian Aurora for bitterness, along with Styrian Dragon, Styrian Fox and Mosaic for citrusy flavours and aromas. If a maltier profile is desired, Styrian Wolf may offer an additional layer of complexity to the beer’s flavour profile. Lastly, an Imperial Stout could benefit from adding a touch of the intense citrusy flavour in the Styrian Dragon hop variety. Experimentation with different Styrian hops will allow brewers to create unique, flavorful beers that embody the spirit of Slovenia’s ancient brewing tradition.
Slovenian Hop Varieties: blends that work.
- Styrian Dragon x Citra
- Styrian Dragon x Mosaic
- Styrian Wolf x Mosaic
- Styrian Fox x Styrian Wolf x Simcoe
We recently visited some breweries and hop farmers in Slovenian and loved the Green Gold Brewing Dragon Slayer, which the team kindly shared was 33% citra & 66% Styrian Dragon.
Test, test, test
At Geterbrewed, we understand the importance of nailing down a process and changing one variable at a time. We applied this method to explore blending Slovenian hops, resulting in success! In one experiment, we replaced a small portion of Saaz hops with Styrian Goldings. The beer scored 44/50 and won a gold medal in a homebrew competition.
Regarding hops matchmaking, it is important to have a stable process. Take a good recipe and process notes and get systematic feedback. That’s why we suggest running several tests before selecting your perfect blend. For example, you can replace the percentage of Mosaic and Citra in your IPAs with Styrian Fox, Styrian Dragon, Styrian Cardinal, or Styrian Wolf, to name a few. Experimenting with different hop blends will give you insight into which combination will best complement your desired outcome.
Remember to be patient and take your time when testing out hop blends. Have fun experimenting, and don’t forget to document each blend’s unique characteristics as you go!
Be patient
In recent years, the hop supply has been challenging due to weather conditions, and proprietary hops have been particularly difficult. Therefore hop pricing is staying high for these varieties. When it comes to blending new Slovenian hop varieties, predicting the final characteristics of the beer is more art than science. Brewers must take sensory and analytical approaches to understand what happens to hop compounds throughout the process. Hop teas are a poor predictor of the hop characteristics in the final beer product. Brewing individual hops through to the final beer and taking sensory and analytical data as a whole is the best way to blend different Slovenian hops such as Styrian hops, Styrian Dragon, Styrian Fox, Styrian Cardinal and Styrian Wolf to get to the final beer. Patience is key when successfully blending Slovenian hops. Brewers must trust their senses and approach with an open mind to succeed.
Examples of Slovenian Hop Varieties in Beers
We visited Green Gold Brewing in Slovenia and chatted with Luka about how to get the best out of Slovenian hop varieties. As a hop grower and brewer, he has highlighted the unique combinations of Styrian hops (Styrian Dragon, Fox, Cardinal and Wolf). Resulting in a sweet and fruity taste perfect for IPAs. You can make an incredibly flavorful and aromatic beer by blending Styrian hops. For example, the combination of Styrian Dragon, Styrian Fox, Styrian Cardinal and Styrian Wolf offers a smooth mix of apricot and melon notes with hints of lemon zest. These flavours are ideal for other additions like fruit juice, herbs and spices.
Blending different varieties of these hops can result in a different flavour profile than just one used alone. In addition, these combinations can also add complexity and intensity to your brews, making them even more enjoyable to sip on. Experimenting with these hop varieties can be exciting as you explore different flavour combinations and profiles – a great way to craft an exquisite creation!