Terminologie du houblon
Arôme
Much is spoken of the quality and intensity of dried hop aroma. These are strong varietal characteristics. There appears to be a general relationship between the type and heaviness of a hop aroma and the flavour and aromatic properties of beer.
Acides alpha
A major component of the soft resins. When isomerized, these materials provide the main bitter compounds associated with beer. The alpha acid content varies widely among hop varieties from levels of 3 – 4% w/w in aromatic-type hops to levels of 13 – 16% in the bitter hops.
Acides bêta
Composés de la résine douce, les acides bêta n'ont pas de qualité amérisante, qu'ils se présentent sous forme naturelle ou isomérisée. Certains des produits d'oxydation contribuent à l'amertume, et les acides bêta peuvent être transformés chimiquement en formes amères stables à la lumière.
Cohumulone
The alpha acids exist in three analogous forms, humulone, ad-humulone and co-humulone; and the proportions of these analogues vary markedly with variety. Varieties with relatively low co-humulone levels are strongly favoured.
Stockabilité
Where available, analytical figures on varietal sheets show the % of Alpha Acid remaining after 6 months storage at 68f. Oxidation of alpha acids removes their ability to be isomerized to the required bitter isomers. In comparable circumstances, some varieties lose a greater proportion of their alpha acids to oxidation than others do. Cold storage and anaerobic conditions can delay oxidation. Some oxidation of essential oil components is necessary to produce compounds thought to be important in beer flavours, so controlled ageing is important for hops required for both bittering and aromatic properties.
Huile totale
This characteristic varies widely with seasons, varieties and growths from 0.5 mls to about 3 mls per 100g of hops. While the soft resin compounds are responsible for providing the bitterness to a beer, the quantity and composition of the essential oils are responsible for the amount of hop flavour and aroma in the beer.
Myrcène, Humulène, Caryophyllène & Farnésène
The four major components of the essential oils and between them they account for about 60 – 80% of the essential oils for most varieties. The compounds are all highly volatile hydrocarbons and during boiling of the wort most, if not all of them, are driven off and contribute only a little to hop flavour and aroma in beer. Therefore it is usually necessary to add late hops for additional aroma.
Houblon entier (cônes crus de la plante Humulus Lupulus)
With our unique combination of vacuum Packed “Freshpaks” in 5kg and 20kg packs and our comprehensive stock of over 100 different varieties from growers worldwide, all year round we can offer the brewer an artist’s pallet of flavours to create every type and style of beer.
Granulés de houblon de type 90 (houblon broyé / broyé en poudre puis granulé)
Les variétés les plus populaires sont également stockées sous forme de pellets de type 90. Scellés dans des emballages sous vide, ils sont utilisés à ébullition pour l’amertume ou tardivement pour l’arôme. Ils doivent être utilisés conjointement avec un bain à remous ou un système de filtrage amélioré.
