Hops-Free Brews: Exploring The World Of Hopless Beers

While hops are a key ingredient in most beers, there are some varieties that use very little or no hops in their brewing process. Hops are used to balance the natural sweetness of beer, and their presence is often associated with bitterness. Beers that are known for their hoppy taste include IPAs, which have become the mascot of craft beer. However, not all beer enthusiasts enjoy the distinct taste and flavour of hops. For those looking for less bitter options, here are some alternatives:

Wheat beers

Some examples of wheat beers include Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier, Sierra Nevada Kellerweiss, and Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat.

Stouts

While hops are traditionally used in stouts, some home brewers have experimented with reducing or eliminating hops from their recipes. One home brewer shared their experience brewing a hopless stout, noting that their results were good. They increased the amount of roasted barley to maintain balance and found that their final product tasted like coffee with a sprinkle of sugar.

For those looking to reduce their hop intake, stouts are a great option to explore.

Lagers

For those who want to avoid the taste of hops altogether, wheat beers are a good option as they can be brewed with or without hops. They tend to have a hazy appearance due to the yeast and wheat proteins remaining in the finished product, and a creamy texture from the mixture of wheat and barley. They also have hints of bready and citrusy flavours, with notes of wheat imparting a bright and lemony taste.

Scottish-style ales are another option, as they are defined by their malt focus and limited hop influence. These beers are all about caramel, with hints of coffee-like roast that boost the impression of dryness. For a lighter option, look for a Scottish export style such as Belhaven Scottish Ale, or for something more robust, try a Wee Heavy.

Sour beers

Sour beer is a broad category, with various substyles that give special attention to the acidity level a drinker will perceive. Some sours are mild and refreshing, while others are intense.

Some popular sour beer styles include:

• Lambic: an uber-sour, spontaneously fermented beer from Belgium. Lambics often include specific fruits to temper the acidity, such as raspberries in Framboise, or cherries in Kriek.
• Berliner Weisse: a dry and tangy wheat beer from Northern Germany with low ABV and bright carbonation for easy drinking.
• Gose: a beer that mirrors Berliner Weisse in some ways, like its wheat malt and low alcohol content. However, Gose highlights a key difference with its salinity, which traces back to the salty water supply in Goslar, the town where this style originated.

Gruit beers

Gruit is a blend of herbs, commonly including common heather, ground ivy, horehound, mugwort, sweet gale, and yarrow. Gruit recipes vary, with brewers including different herbs to produce unique flavours and effects. Other adjunct herbs may include juniper berries, ginger, caraway seed, aniseed, nutmeg, cinnamon, mint, and occasionally hops in variable proportions.

Gruit ales were the standard in medieval Europe for centuries, but they eventually fell out of style and were replaced by hopped beers. Today, gruit beers are making a comeback, with craft brewers worldwide exploring these historic beer types once again.

Frequently asked questions