Help, I need to identify Perle and Cascade hops ...

[wmelton]

Greetings,

I was planning on brewing a Sierra Nevada clone this afternoon but ran into a problem. The kit I purchased did not identify which hops were the Perle hops and which were the Cascade hops. Both are 2 oz in weight so I can't do the obvious. One set of hops seem a little lighter in color. Any help would be appreciated, thanks much.

:confused:

[Tweek]

not sure how you could tell them apart by looking at them. Taht really sucks that they are not labeled. Fortunately if you just take a guess they are not typically that far apart in alpha acid ratings so either way it could go ok. Think cascade is usually around 6ish and perle is usually around 8.5ish.

Good luck

[brewmonkey]

Which one smells like grapefruit or has a citrusy aroma? That would be the Cascade.

Both of those hops generally have an AA% in the same range so that wont help much. While the Perle is usually a tad higher I have been getting some Cascade recently that is 7%+.

What do the directions for the hop additions say?

[wmelton]

There are no directions!!! Needless to say, I'm not very happy.

Also, I don't have a very good nose since they smell very similar. Perhaps because they were packaged in the same container?

I've been reviewing the various clone recipes I've found for SNPA clones and think I'll use the following .. 1oz Perle bitterring for 60min, 1/2 oz Cascade after 45MIn, 1/2 Cascade after 55min. May also dry hop during the second fermentation ...

Well, I'm of to my "local" homebrew store (50 minutes away) to get some indentifiable Perle and Cascade hops. :mad:

[paul84043]

Unless you're really stuck on a "perfect" recipe, I wouldn't even worry about it. Your beer will still turn out great...maybe you'd even like it better if you got the hops backwards? Who knows!!

[wmelton]

Thanks for the advice everyone ... I decided to take a poll (I've got about 4-5 friends and family coming over) and let the majority decide which are the Perle and Cascade by seeing if they can tell the citrus aroma of the Cascade hops.

[Dave A]

Mix the 2 packages of hops together and use the blend, that way half the hops added at any given time are correct. The other half of the blend won't be different enough to make that big a difference,

[BucksBrew]

Dave, Good answer! Does the A stand for answer? haha

I wouldn't sweat it going this route. I thought that depending on when you add the hops really determine the out come. Early on for bitter, late for aroma. So dry hop or add the citrus late so you don't cook off the flavor or aroma. of course i could be wrong! i have a two yr old on my lap now, typing is tuff. i think i'll read only now.