We have asked ourselves this question from time to time. There has to be a hops flavor limit in beer, right? Looking over the large amount of homegrown hops in his freezer, John set out to push the boundaries and see if he could figure out if there was an answer. Watch this video that explores an over-hopped beer:

What Did We Learn?

John brewed a pilsner with over a pound of homegrown hops added to a 60 minute boil. The beer had no strong hop aroma but the bitterness was a little overwhelming in the taste. It had to be endured. There wasn’t too much pleasure in it.

As compared to a 1990s style IPA, it wasn’t terrible. The hops were spicy and didn’t cause too many grimaces when we were tasting it. Mike started to say it was OK. The soft malt profile and extended lagering probably helped.

Was just over a pound of hops too much? No-ish. The beer was drinkable but not enjoyable. Next time, we’ll try it with 2 pounds.

BREW ON!