cream ale hop question

[danno]

OK, I'm going to be brewing a cream ale this weekend. here's the recipe I'm planning on using, it's Skotrat's "Genesee my Butt! cream ale".

11 gal

11.5 lb 6 row
4 lb flaked corn
2 lb Vienna
1.5 lbs Munich
1.5 lbs crystal 10

1.5 oz Liberty FWH
1.5 oz Libetty 60 min
3 oz Liberty 5 min

Wyeast 1338 (original recipe calls for Nottingham, but I'll have a cake of this ready by Saturday...)

OK, here's my issue. my system is optimized to use whole hops. I can't get Liberty whole hops locally. so, I need to substitute something I can get locally. the sub charts I see tell me that Mt Hood or any of the Hallertauers would be acceptable subs. problem is, yep, I can't get them whole either. so, here's a list of what I can get locally whole, any ideas about what would be a good hop profile?

cascade, centennial, chinook, EKG, fuggle, northern brewer, nugget, perle, saaz, spalt, styrian goldings, tettananger, willamette.

i'm leaning towards northern brewer for FWH and boil, and maybe EKG for flavor/aroma? any thoughts?

[kevin]

I' think the Perle might be a good choice for bittering

[BrewDog]

I REALLY liked a CAP (alt style -- Wyeast 1007) I made using Spalt for bittering and Saaz for flavor and aroma last summer. The Spalt was only 4.5% alpha, so it took a couple of oz., but boy was it good.

From the list you have, I'd bitter with the Perle or the Tett. You want a very aromatic hop for FWH (counterintuitive though it may seem), so I'd go with Spalt for FWH. If you haven't used Spalt before, give it a try. I really think you'll like it.

[Grog]

Danno - I like your original choices. Homebrewing Vol.1 lists N. Brewer as a posible sub for Hallertau varieties, and EKG should provide some of the sweetness that is described as a character of Liberty. I say trust your first impression!

[mikfaria]

I'm a big fan of cream ales, but don't see any recipes here for an extract version. Is it possible to do an extract cream ale?

[danno]

fyi I did go with my original choices, but it was because I went shopping before anyone replied, not because I didn't like what you said...

mikfaria, I know that Northern Brewer (www.northernbrewer.com) has a cream ale kit. I tried it several years ago, it was pretty decent...

[Otis_The_Drunk]

On a cream ale you will want a Lite flavored hop to be true to style.

Saaz would fit the bill.