Last Year's Cascade

[hooky]

I'm trying to use up the last of some 07 leaf cascade. I'm seeing that they lose 50% of their alphas every 6 months. Seeing that they're almost 2 years old now, am I correctly adjusting my recipe by assuiming they have only 12.5% of their original alphas? I'm adding a boat load of hops in a pale to get to 35 IBU. Kind of scary to think about.

[vw addict]

Just use em as finishing hops, then it doesn't matter the alpha's.

[hooky]

Too late now, I'm committed. This will either be on the money or a 5% ABV Bitter Hop Bomb.

[hooky]

It's in the fermenter. The hydro sample tasted like a 1.045, 35 IBU pale should taste, so I think the 12.5% number must have been in the ballpark. I've got some centennial that needs to get used to, so this was a good exercise.

[dparsons]

You'll loose even more of the aroma characteristics. The more aromatic oils dissipate more rapidly.

It might just be worth $2 to a batch of beer to use an ounce of fresh hops.

[Mill Rat]

Keep your hops in the freezer. It slows down the deterioration dramatically.

[hooky]

Thanks Mill Rat. Everything has been stored frozen in vacuum sealed bags. I bought these from another source and I don't think they were taken care of that well before I got my hands on them. One of the bags I tossed had lost it's seal and was looking brown. Not the greatest smell in the world either.

I made this beer to use as a starter for a wheat wine on the list. If it turns out well, all the better.

Thanks for the replies.

[Mill Rat]

Not the greatest smell in the world either. That's good enough reason to toss it. Boiling it in your wort for an hour won't improve it, nor your wort for that matter.