Ted sells not only whole hops but pellets as well. Great business model, fast service, couldn’t be happier with the outcomes of my purchases from him. I like knowing what yr my hops are harvested and he among others is one way to buy by the yr.
I have a kettle with a removable false bottom from NorCal. Works great. I highly recommend Jay’s work. I believe the business suffered from the fires which sux.
I have used both T-90 pellets and whole cone hops. Both have advantages and disadvantages. I think everyone should try both and see what you think. This is my take:
Whole hops do create a much larger mess to have to deal with IMO. In my experience, the mass of ‘leaflets’ get everywhere for months to come, it hard to get all of them off the Hydra IC, they absorb more wort, and certain varieties are harder to find than pellets. Storage is bulky but I am not so concerned about that. They do filter the grain bed nicely and produce beautiful wort. I haven’t found the ‘rounder’ bitterness some claim. It’s about the same to me.
Pellets on the other hand are very compact, simply rinse off equipment, absorb very little wort, and a larger variety is readily available which is really the big plus. But they do produce sludge which has to be dealt with. I try to get clear wort into the fermenter but if a little trüb gets in its not the end of the world because I don’t harvest yeast. The specialty pellet products marketed now create new possibilities (Lupomax, Cryo, etc).
I made side-by-side hop teas a while back to see the difference. The pellet hop tea was a greenish tint suggesting plant matter was accompanying the Lupulin. The whole cone hop tea was a golden tint suggesting more Lupulin less plant matter. The whole cone hop tea looked more appealing to me.
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