Hops and Lagers
WHEN WE THINK ABOUT
“hoppy lagers,” traditionally, the only one that really comes to mind is the Pilsner. Both the classic Czech and German Pilsners are moderately hoppy compared to other lagers—but can we really, in a beer world that routinely sees beers with almost 100 IBUS and all late or dry hopping, call those beers “hoppy”? Only if we accept that the lager family simply doesn’t do hoppy in that way.
However, for about ten years, brewers have been pushing the limits of what “hoppy” can look like in a lager, and the result is a new crop of high-ibu, heavily hops-flavored lagers that provide a distinct stage on which brewers can showcase hops. The trick, as with nearly all beers, is knowing how to use the ingredients to hit the target at which you’re aiming—and what will reward your palate once the beer hits it. When it comes to hoppy lagers, you need to consider the unique flavor character of lager yeasts, the way in which lager yeast fermentation will change how you use hops in the process, and what it is you hope to get out of that process.
A Clean Slate
Fermenting any beer with lager yeast tends to create a cleaner, less-muddled flavor profile, which allows the other ingredients to shine through. Historically, this has usually referred to malt: whether it’s the “Pils malt showcase” of the Munich Helles, the rich melanoidins of a Bock, or the oily-rich anise of a Baltic Porter, lagers have traditionally been malty beers. Heck, that’s why Pilsners stand out so much within that family! But nothing is stopping brewers from using that clean slate to showcase hops that heretofore have been used only in American ales or only in limited quantities. Yet while there’s nothing stopping them, there are some considerations that need to be brought to bear.
Changing up the yeast from an ale strain to a lager strain means significantly changing the underlying beer on which the hops will be used. Lager strains produce fewer esters, phenols, and other fermentation characters that we often associate with (or that contribute to the flavor of) hops—which means that the hops must be able to stand on their own. They won’t get help from a citrus ester or an herbal phenol. Lagers also ferment cooler and longer, which means that if you’re hoping for bright and fresh hops flavor, you need to account for the longer process. And despite the notion that lager yeast strains produce starkly “clean” beer, you also need to contend with the things that lager yeasts do tend to add, particularly things such as sulfur and diacetyl, which may result in a very different flavor than you intend.
To make your best hoppy lagers, you need to consider specific recipes, processes, and style goals. Hops-forward lagers may be the last genuinely unexplored area of beer composition and style: let’s enjoy it and help define it.
The Hoppy Lager Recipe
When we get into hoppy lagers, we’re leaving traditional style considerations behind. As a result, it should not surprise you to read that brewers have no consensus on what these beers should look and taste like. Hoppy lagers can be simple, focusing on producing a clarion hops profile; or they can be complex, featuring a symphony of hops characters and flavors. You can choose to overwhelmingly feature hops or seek out a grand-but-balanced contribution from malt. You might even use the fermentation characteristics of lager yeast strains, teasing out the sulfury notes of a German lager strain to accentuate a resiny hops profile. In other words, there are no rules here—don’t treat this like an IPA in all but name. Doing so does a disservice to the brewers who make them and undermines the very creative opportunity that the “style” (not yet defined) offers. Having said that, there are some considerations common to most (if not all) varieties of hoppy lagers.
Hops First, you should probably consider the hops themselves. In terms of flavor, most brewers are tending toward the intense citrus and tropical fruit flavors of American hops. They’ve already been successful in building IPAS as the dominant beer style in the marketplace, so continuing that trend is a logical place to start. These are flavors