Brewing Beer Without Hops: Is It Possible?

Beer without hops is possible, but it's not easy to find. Hops are flowers or plant cones that give beer its distinct flavour and aroma, adding bitterness and helping to preserve the drink. While some beers are made with low levels of hops, others use alternative ingredients to achieve a similar taste. Beers without hops are often sweet, and some drinkers may find them unpleasant. For those who are allergic to hops or simply prefer a different type of brew, there are a few options available, including gruit, a mix of herbs used to make beer before hops were introduced.

Beers without hops may be too sweet to drink

Hops are flower or plant cones that give beer a distinct flavour and aroma. They are not necessary for the brewing process but are instead used for taste. Hops also act as a preservative, helping to retain the foam and freshness of the beer.

Before the use of hops became standard, beer was flavoured with other additives, including gruit (a mix of herbs), myrtle, and elderflowers. Gruit beers are still brewed today and can be considered a good alternative for those who dislike the taste of hops. However, some purists refuse to drink gruit beers because they often contain low levels of hops.

Other alternatives to hops include sour fruity beers, such as Spring Tonic by Scratch Brewing, which uses carrot tops, dandelion, ginger, clover, and citrus sprouts as bittering agents instead of hops. Another option is to use modified yeast, such as the type developed by scientists at UC Berkeley, which tastes hoppier than hops but uses minimal environmental resources.

While it is possible to brew beer without hops, it may be challenging to find hopless beers on the market. This is because hops have become the standard way of stabilising and flavouring beer, and most beers use hops to some degree. Additionally, in some places, such as the US, beer is legally required to contain a certain amount of hops, although the level may be so low as to be imperceptible.

Gruit (or gruits) is a special mix of herbs used to make beer before hops were discovered

Gruit is used in some beers today, including Gentse Gruut, which is a hop-less beer named for its hometown, Grote Huidevettershoek in Ghent. It comes in blonde, white, amber, brown, and inferno varieties. It took over two years of research to perfect the recipe in a top scientific lab. The gruit in Gentse Gruut replaces hops with traditional herbs and spices.

Other beers that use gruit include Fraoch, a Scottish brew from Williams Brothers that uses heather flowers, malted barley, and sweet gale; and Fat Tire, which has some hops but the other herbs and flavours overpower them, giving it a distinct character and flavour.

While some beer purists may argue that a beer must contain hops to be defined as beer, the use of other ingredients for making beer dates back far before the Germany Purity Law of 1516. In addition to gruit, everything from herbs and spices to an entire chicken has been used in making beer.

Beers without hops may not be considered beers

Historically, hops were introduced to the brewing process to ward off bacterial infections and prevent spoilage during long voyages at sea. This discovery led to the creation of India Pale Ale, a style of beer known for its longevity. Before the use of hops, ancient beers such as gruit were made with other herbs, flowers, and spices like coriander and yarrow.

Today, it is challenging to find hop-free beers in mainstream stores due to limited demand. However, some modern brewers in the U.S. and Europe are revisiting ancient brewing methods, creating beers with complex and intriguing flavor profiles without hops. These beers offer unique alternatives for those who prefer less bitterness or are allergic to hops. While technically still considered beer, the absence of hops in these brews challenges the conventional definition of what constitutes beer.

Beers without hops may be hard to find

One option is to brew malt beer at home without hops. This can be done by replacing the hops with ingredients such as green malted corn, bay leaves, coriander, citrus, and black tea. Another option is to use a modified yeast that tastes hoppier than hops but uses minimal environmental resources. This yeast is being used by Berkley Brewing Science to create a hop-like flavour without the hops.

Some commercial beers that are low in hops include stouts, porters, and pilsners. Prima Pils, for example, is a malt-heavy pilsner with floral overtones of herbs and grass that tastes nothing like stereotypical hops. Another option is to look for ancient "beer" styles that did not use hops, such as gruit. Gruit is a special mix of herbs used to make beer in ancient times and is considered a retro-styled brewing ingredient. Gentse Gruut, for example, is a hop-less beer named for its hometown, Grote Huidevettershoek in Ghent. It comes in blonde, white, amber, brown, and inferno varieties and took over two years of research to perfect the recipe.

In addition to these options, some people also suggest trying sour beers, which typically have very low to no IBUs, or beers made with other bittering agents such as heather, horehound, or yarrow. However, it is important to note that hops have preservative properties that help to prevent spoilage, so beers without hops may have a shorter shelf life.

Beers without hops may be unsafe to drink

Before the use of hops in brewing became common, beer was sometimes flavoured using gruit, a mix of herbs. Gruit beer is still brewed today, but it is difficult to find in grocery stores and most breweries. Some modern brewers in mainland USA and Europe are revisiting these ancient brewing methods, creating beers with complex, intriguing flavour profiles. However, hopless beers are hard to come by, and some beer enthusiasts consider them to be inferior to hopped beers.

Hops were originally used to ward off bacterial infections in beer, preventing it from turning sour or becoming infected and making drinkers sick. Beers without hops may therefore have a shorter shelf life and be more likely to cause illness. Hops also balance out the sweetness of malt, so hopless beers may be unpleasantly sweet for some drinkers.

In conclusion, while it is possible to brew beer without hops, doing so may sacrifice flavour, freshness, and safety. For these reasons, beers without hops may be unsafe to drink.

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