A Scientific Look at Hop Aroma and Flavor

In Columbia, Maryland, the suburban brewery known as Sapwood Cellars has a unique origin story: Its cofounders Michael Tonsmeire and Scott Janish are authors of two of the most influential brewing books of the past 15 years. In the first of two video courses led by the Sapwood cofounders, Janish—author of The New IPA: A Scientific Guide to Hop Aroma and Flavor—walks us through many of his more important and useful findings, both from his book as well as what he and Tonsmeire have learned in five years of brewhouse experiments at Sapwood Cellars. 

In this 69-minute course, Janish explains: 

• the main classes of hop compounds you should know
• the benefits of adding hops to the mash
• the synergy of mash hops and thiolized yeast strains
• whirlpool hops and temperatures
• the usefulness of knowing which hops are high in survivables
• dialing in bitterness from whirlpool additions
• dry hopping and biotransormation
• adjusting dry hops for haze or clarity
• the benefits of shorter, cooler dry hopping
• rousing dry hops back into suspension in the tank
• selecting hop varieties, yeast strains, and grist for haze stability
• adjusting pH to improve hop flavor
• ways to minimize oxygen exposure
• using Biofine, even in hazy IPAs

And more.