From Vol. 6, No. 6, October 2022
It would seem that first wort hopping and decoction mashing are controversial brewing processes that were separated at birth. No matter what scientists measure in a lab, true believers are certain they can taste a difference. Johan Bartazzoni from HVG tossed the most recent log on the fire during Copa Mitad Del Mundo in Ecuador during a presentation titled “The Myth of First Wort Hopping.”
(Please read Part 1 before going on.)
Bertazzoni first presented the results of the newest study, conducted at the research brewery at St. Johann in Bavaria, earlier this year at the VLB International Craft Brewers Conference. The experimental trials included three beers: a control, in which hops were added at the beginning of the boil; a first wort beer, in which hops were added after 50 percent of the wort was collected; and an aerated first wort, with hops again added after 50 percent of the wort was collected.
Each beer was a pale lager fermented at 9°C (48°F). The hops were 2019 Diamant (.315 HSI), 2017 Hallertauer (.450 HSI) and 2020 Hallertauer (.33 HSI). An HSI value of .45 in whole hops was considered typical between 1900 and 1950.
The researchers found:
– Bitterness. The aerated first wort beer had marginally higher IBU, which can be explained by the moderate increase of humuliones and hulupones. A “real increase in bitterness yield” was not observed.
– Aroma compounds. The level of linalool was lower in the AFW beer, which can be attributed to oxidation. However, the difference was “miles away from a sensory impact.”
– Sensory. The control beer rated higher than the other two in triangle tests, and overall difference sensory regimens did not produce meaningful differences.
They concluded that FWH provided minimal aroma and flavor contributions compared to late and whirlpool additions, and that FWH “does not significantly improve bitterness yield or bitter quality.”