Changes

Traditional spontaneous brewers use high hopping rates of aged hops in a long boil (~4 hours or more). The high hopping rates help to regulate [[Lactobacillus#Hop_Tolerance|bacterial activity]] and select for the desired bacteria (''[[Pediococcus]]'' rather than ''[[Lactobacillus]]''). Aging of the hops lowers the flavor/aroma impact the hops provide and also lowers the bitterness. The aged hops still do provide some bitterness as both oxidized alpha acids and oxidized beta acids can contribute to perceived bitterness and measured IBUs <ref name="OSU talk at CBC 2015"> Understanding How to Control Flavor and Aroma Consistency in Dry Hopped Beer. Dan Vollmer, Dan Sharp, Dr. Tom Shellhammer (Oregon State University). Oral presentation at the 2015 Craft Brewers Conference</ref>. Cantillon uses hops that are on average 2-3 years old at hopping rate of 250-300g/100 L (0.334-0.40 oz/gal) <ref name="Spontaneous Sour Hour">[http://www.thebrewingnetwork.com/membersarchive/sourhour2015_05_wildfriendship.mp3 The Sour Hour Episode 11 with Rob Tod and Jason Perkins from Allagash, Jean Van Roy from Cantillon, and Vinnie Cilurzo from Russian River]</ref>(~49 minutes in). See also the note about Cantillon's hopping on the [[Cantillon]] wiki page, as actual hopping rates may be slightly higher than the 250-300 g/100 L quoted here. Other producers such as Oud Beersel are report using higher hopping rates <ref> Conversation between Dave Janssen and Gert Christiaens of Oud Beersel, 19-September-2015 </ref>. The use of significantly lower hopping rates may result in less bacterial inhibition and lead to different types of bacteria present. Some lambic producers are experimenting with the use of fresh dried hops in addition to or instead of aged hops <ref> [http://www.cantillon.be/br/3_108 Cantillon Iris]</ref> <ref>[https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1004839069568069&id=110627652322553 Cantillon Facebook Page post 22-Sept-2015]</ref> <ref>Conversation between Dave Janssen and Jean van Roy of Cantillon, 17-Sept-2015</ref>. James Howat of Black Project Spontaneous Ales uses 0.5 ounces of aged hops per gallon of beer for spontaneously fermented beers brewed using traditional lambic techniques <ref>[https://www.facebook.com/blackprojectbeer/videos/580667305468055/ Howat, James. Facebook live video stream. 12/23/2016. ~5:30 minutes in.]</ref>.