I just finished brewing my first Saison (day 3 in primary). When I added the Saaz hops I really loved the aroma. Has anyone brewed an IPA or pale using Saaz? What other hops did you use and what for? (bittering, dry hop, etc) I'd be very interested to understand how an IPA with lower AA hops comes out...I may try it regardless
Urban Chestnut in St. Louis does a beer called Hop Switch. it's a super clean pilsner beer with 1 hop in it to about 150 IBUs. every time I've had it they used a noble hop. I remember having the hersbrucker one which had a lot of complexity. Saaz could be really cool too. I'd definitely try a single hop Saaz IPA, just use enough of it to get the IBUs up. last I checked Saaz was clocking in around 2.4 AA%
Saaz is pretty awesome, but I find as a flame-out or dry-hop it can get grassy. For that reason I like to keep Saaz at 15 minutes or more in the boil. I like Sterling which is an American Saaz substitute and has a little more fruity notes along with the spice and also Magnum is a high AA hop that gives all the big noble aroma and flavor with a little floral and fruit profile as well. For an IBU where you'd like to get the IBUs up, I'd use Magnum at 60 minutes and SAAZ throughout the late additions. A single ounce of Magnum at 60 will give you over 45 IBUs and it takes 4 ounces of Saaz to do the same thing. You might consider an all-Pilsner malt bill or Pilsner/Vienna, keeping the color light and the flavor malty for a GPA - German Pale Ale - maybe even use a Kolsch yeast. The more I think about it, the more I like this idea.
Why not a magnum IPA! Ive not used it lately but like someone stated in another thread it sure does smell good in the bag. I love me some saaz too mmm mmm delish my dessert Island lager hop.
I've tried the Saaz IPA but cheated - I used Magnum for bittering. Saaz works very nicely, although too much can get harsh.
I like the idea of the Magnum at 60 or maybe Simcoe; then Saaz at 30 and 15. Magnum can be a little harsh for me sometimes. In the recipe calculator the magnum gets me 60 IBU and Simcoe at 52 so not a huge difference but the profile will change.
I love Simcoe, but to match up with a noble hop it might throw in enough pine and mango to "clash" a little. I've never gotten any harshness with Magnum but I usually only put about 1/3 of the IBUs for any Pale or IPA recipe in the 60 minute addition, so my Magnum amounts are usually .5 oz or less, depending on the beer. If Magnum was a no-go, some Northern Brewer might be just the ticket, though I've never used it and can't specifically recommend it. Or just buy a half pound quantity of Saaz and go for it.
Hops pairing is an area I am still learning- you're saying that because Saaz and Simcoe are from different parentages (Saaz being a noble) that they would clash? or just from a bittering vs aroma perspective?
Simcoe is an awesome hop and I use it in just about every IPA I make, but it has a very distinctive flavor and aroma profile that includes dank piney-ness and tropical fruit, mostly mango/passion fruit/sweet citrus. It'd make a great beer and the combination would probably work very well, but since you want to play up the Saaz noble herbal/spicy flavor, those piney/fruit notes that make it through the boil might get in the way of that. I can't say how much Simcoe would take over if you just used a small amount to establish a base-line of bitterness, but used later in the boil, it really asserts itself.If it were my beer, I'd opt for something with more noble hop character like Magnum, Northern Brewer or maybe Perle which are all German hops and are bred ( to the best of my knowledge) from crosses with European noble hops.
Hello guys.Need your opinion about it. So I got some hops I want to use up and thought I would put a recipe together. They all seemed to fit into an IPA. I'm just not real sure about using Saaz with these others, I think it will add a nice spicey note to the beer. I haven't used Honey malt before either, but I think I've read that it is pretty strong. Here's the recipe, please comment & make suggestions. Target OG 1.060 IBU's 60 9 2/3lbs Two Row 1/4lb Honey Malt 1/2lb Wheat 1/2oz Magnum(13.5%) @ 60 1/2oz Magnum @ 30 1/2oz Saaz(3.5%) @ 15 1/3oz Columbus(14.4%) @ 10 1/2oz Saaz @ 5 1/2oz Centennial(10.1%) @ FO Dry Hop with about 2/3oz Cascade5-7 days Yeast will be US05 I'll probably brew this in about 6 weeks, so I have some time to mess with the recipe if need be. Thanks for looking
Yeah! That should work nicely for you. That half ounce of Centennial won't do a lot for you, though. You might consider throwing in an ounce of your Cascade and leaving it in for a whirlpool, The bit of Columbus is going to give you some nice IPA-ishness without covering up the spice of the Saaz and the stronger presence of Centennial/Cascade in the flavor and aroma will round it all out.
I did a Saaz SMaSH during the summer and while it wasn't my favourite outcome it wasn't bad. Could be something to tinker with.
I did not really like Saaz for dry hopping in neither of the beers I made. It depends of course on what dry hopping is for you. I usually use between 8 and 14 oz for dry hopping in a 6 gallons batch. Saaz did not cut it for me.
