The Hop Chronicles | Summit (2017) Pale Ale

Author: Marshall Schott
Brewer: Alex Brehm

With its strikingly high alpha acid content, Summit was viewed by many as a hop to be used primarily for bittering when it first hit the market in 2003, though has gained popularity as a late addition variety for its ability to impart unique aromatics. Bred by the American Dwarf Hop Association, Summit holds rank as the first dwarf hop regularly produced in the US, meaning it has the agronomic property of growing well on lower trellis’.

Alpha: 15 – 17%
Beta: 5 – 6.5%
Cohumulone: 29 – 32%
Total Oil: 1.5 – 3 mL/100g
Myrcene: 30 – 40%
Humulene: 18 – 22%
Caryophyllene: 12 – 16%
Farnesene: <1%
Linalool: 0.2 – 0.4%
Geraniol: 0.1 – 0.6%
ß-Pinene: 0.3 – 0.6%
Parentage: cross between Lexus and an unspecified male derived from numerous hops

Having used Summit a handful of times in pale hoppy ales, I’ve come to expect this particular variety to impart characteristics some might refer to as “dank,” which can leave the beer tasting like it was made with the wrong stash of green nugz. Curious how blind tasters would perceive a beer hopped only with Summit, we put it to the test in this edition of The Hop Chronicles!

| MAKING THE BEER |

Major shout-out to Oregon homebrew, Alex Brehm, for brewing this beer and bringing it with him to Homebrew Con in Portland, OR! As is usual, we designed a simple recipe with the goal allowing the Summit hop characteristics to take center stage.

Summit Pale Ale

Alex started off his brew day by collecting the water needed for this batch and adjusting it to the desired profile.

The grains were measured out and milled while the water was heating to strike temperature, at which point Alex mashed in to hit the 152°F/67°C target.

Following a 60 minute mash rest, Alex removed the grain bag and began heating the wort. While waiting for a boil to be reached, he measured out the kettle hop additions.

The wort was boiled for 60 minutes with hops added at the times stated in the recipe, after which the wort was chilled and transferred to a fermentation bucket. The fermentor was placed in a temperature controlled chamber and allowed to chill to the desired fermentation temperature of 66°F/19°C before Alex pitched a pack of Imperial Yeast A07 Flagship yeast.

Fermentation kicked off within 24 hours and signs of activity began to fade a few days later, which is when Alex added the dry hop addition of Summit.

After 3 more days, the beer was kegged, cold conditioned, and carbonated in preparation to be served to blind tasters.

| METHOD |

Participants were instructed to focus only on the aromatic qualities of the beer before evaluating the flavor. For each aroma and flavor descriptor, tasters were asked to rate the perceived strength of that particular characteristic on a 0-9 scale where a rating of 0 meant they did not perceive the character at all and a rating of 9 meant the character was extremely strong. Once the data was collected, the average rating of each aroma and flavor descriptor was compiled and analyzed.

| RESULTS |

A total of 25 people participated in the evaluation of this beer, all blind to the hop variety used until after they completed the survey. The average aroma and flavor ratings for each descriptor were plotted on a radar graph.

Average Ratings of Aroma and Flavor Perceptions

The 3 characteristics endorsed as being most prominent by participants:

The 3 characteristics endorsed as being least prominent by participants:

Participants were then asked to rate the pungency of the overall hop character.

Next, they were instructed to identify beer styles they thought the hop would work well in.

Finally, tasters were asked to rate how much they enjoyed the hop character on a 1 to 10 scale.

My Impressions: I was excited to taste the beer and did my non-blind evaluation as soon as it was put on tap. Similar to the way the smell of baking cookies takes me back to grandma’s kitchen, I was immediately transported to the time in my garage when I sampled an IPA I made using a large dose of Summit for the first time, the aroma was exactly what I recall– onion, garlic, subtle citrus rind, and just the slightest hint of weed. The flavor followed suit with most of the malt character being overshadowed by the pungent hop notes.

| CONCLUSION |

Lancelot is the delicious flagship IPA at my local watering hole, House Of Pendragon Brewing Co. A few years ago, some local brewing friends and I did a fun competition where we all brewed Lancelot per the recipe provided by owner/brewer, Tommy Caprelian. This was when I learned Summit held on a place on this delicious beer’s hop bill, and marked my first time using this variety.

I’ve consumed my fair share of Lancelot over the years and I’ve never perceived in it the onion/garlic character I got from this THC beer. Same goes for my homebrewed version of Lancelot and the subsequent beers I brewed with my leftover Summit. While seemingly more desirable characteristics of tropical tropical fruit, citrus, and stone fruit were rated highest by tasters, it’s notable that this Summit Pale Ale received the highest rating for onion/garlic of all beers brewed for The Hop Chronicles series, by a relatively large margin.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, preference ratings of blind tasters were fairly split with a good chunk really enjoying the beer and another portion liking it a bit less. A hint at subjective sensitivities to certain characteristics? Either way, considering my personal impressions along with the blind data, I’m of the opinion that Summit works beautifully in conjunction with other fruit-forward hops, providing a whisper of savory to fill in the flavor gaps. I’ll definitely be using more Summit in future brews!

Summit is available now at Yakima Valley Hops, get them while you can! If you have any thoughts on this variety, please feel free to share them in the comments section below.

Support for The Hop Chronicles comes from Yakima Valley Hops, suppliers of over 40 varieties of hops ranging from classics like Saaz and Cascade to yet-to-be-named experimental options fresh from the source. Offering great prices with reasonable shipping, consider Yakima Valley Hops for your next hop purchase.

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