The Hop Chronicles | Saphir (2020) Pale Ale

Author: Mike Neville

Released in 2002 by the Hop Research Center in Hüll, Germany, Saphir is the daughter of two proprietary hop varieties and is said to contribute notes of spice, citrus, juniper, and berry to beer. With its notably low cohumulone content, Saphir imparts a smooth bitterness that works well in styles such as Pilsner, Weissbier, and Witbier.

Alpha: 2.0 – 4.5%
Beta: 4.0 – 7.0%
Cohumulone: ​​12 – 17%
Total Oil: 0.8 – 1.4 mL/100g
Myrcene: 25 – 40%
Humulene: 20 – 30%
Caryophyllene: 9 – 14%
Farnesene: < 1%
Linalool: 0.8 – 1.3%
Geraniol: < 1%
ß-Pinene: < 1%
Parentage: Daughter of two proprietary hop varieties

I’ve used Saphir in many batches of German Pils and Kölsch, and I’ve loved the results, but I’ve never used it in larger quantities. After picking up a bag from Yakima Valley Hops, I decided to put it through the rigors of The Hop Chronicles and was excited to taste the results for myself!

| MAKING THE BEER |

I went with our standard Hop Chronicles Pale Ale recipe and made adjustments to the kettle hop additions to ensure a proper level of bitterness.

Saphir Pale Ale

After collecting the full volume of water, adjusting it to my desired profile, and getting it heating up, I weighed out and milled the grain.

When the water was properly heated, I incorporated the grains and set the controller to maintain my desired mash temperature of 152°F/67°C.

During the mash rest, I prepared the kettle hop additions.

Once the 60 minute mash was complete, I removed the grains and proceeded to boil for 60 minutes, adding hops at the times stated in the recipe.

When the boil was complete, I used my JaDeD Brewing Hydra IC to quickly chill the wort.

A refractometer reading showed the wort was at my target OG.

After transferring the wort to a sanitized fermented, I direct pitched a single pouch of Imperial Yeast A07 Flagship.

The beer was left to ferment at 68°F/20°C for 8 days before I took a hydrometer measurement confirming FG was reached.

With fermentation complete, I cold-crashed the beer for 24 hours then pressure-transferred it to a CO2 purged keg, which was placed in my keezer and burst carbonated overnight before the gas was reduced to serving pressure. After a week of conditioning, it was ready to serve 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 write-in 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 9 rating 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 21 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:

Next, participants were asked to rate the pungency/strength of the hop.

Tasters were then instructed to identify beer styles they thought the hop would work well in.

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

My Impressions: I perceived this beer as having big notes of red berry and cherry in both the flavor and aroma, and I also got some low floral and spice notes that lingered in the background. I was pleasantly surprised with how Saphir worked in an American Pale Ale, as the beer was quite tasty and refreshing.

| CONCLUSION |

Germany is known for lager beer and the hops that go into them, which includes Saphir, a low alpha variety released in 2002 that’s said to contribute spice, citrus, and berry characteristics to beer.

The most prominent characteristics noted by tasters of a Pale Ale hopped solely with Saphir were citrus, tropical fruit, and stone fruit, while onion/garlic and dank/catty were rated as being the least prominent. Berry was also rated low, which is interesting not only because it’s a descriptor commonly associated with Saphir, but I felt it was quite noticeable in this beer.

While I was rather pleased with how this Pale Ale turned out, I agree with the tasters who felt it would work best in lighter styles such as pale lager, which would likely help to emphasize some of the more nuanced spicy and herbal notes. Having used Saphir in such styles many times, I’m definitely a fan, though I think it may work well in conjunction with more pungent hops in styles like Pale Ale and IPA.

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

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