Author: Brian Hall

A goal of many modern brewers, particularly those with a penchant for IPA, is to extract as much character from hops as possible, which has led to the development of a multitude of methods. Recent research indicating a likely point of diminishing returns when it comes to hopping rates has forced brewers to reconsider the idea that “more is more” and seek unique ways to maximize hop character without increasing hop usage.

In his book The New IPA: A Scientific Guide To Hop Aroma And Flavor, Scott Janish touches on various methods for getting the most out of hops, one of which involves using a product called Rapidase Revelation Aroma. Commonly used by wine makers as a means of intensifying aromatics, the manufacturer claims Rapidase Revelation Aroma “contains both α and β-glycosidase activities to breakdown glycosylated aroma precursors,” which some contend may also lead to better extraction of aromatic compounds when dry hopping.

I brew a lot of IPA and am very interested in ways to increase hop character that don’t require adding more actual hops to the beer. With enough syllables to sound scientific, and thirsting for a fresh batch of hoppy IPA, I picked up some Rapidase Revelation Aroma to test out for myself.

| PURPOSE |

To evaluate the differences between an IPA made with Rapidase Revelation Aroma and one made without the product.

| METHODS |

In preparation for this xBmt, I reached out to Scott Janish for advise on how best to use Rapidase Revelation Aroma and he suggested adding it at the same time as the dry hop charge toward the tail end of fermentation. With that in mind, I designed a simple West Coast IPA recipe.

Technological Difficulties

Recipe Details Batch Size Boil Time IBU SRM Est. OG Est. FG ABV 5.5 gal 60 min 70.7 IBUs 5.6 SRM 1.064 1.016 6.3 % Actuals 1.064 1.01 7.2 % Fermentables Name Amount % Pale Malt (2 Row) US 8.312 lbs 62.74 Oats, Malted 2.25 lbs 16.98 Metolius Munich Style Malt (Mecca Grade) 1.5 lbs 11.32 Vienna Malt 1.187 lbs 8.96 Hops Name Amount Time Use Form Alpha % Magnum 12 g 60 min Boil Pellet 12 Cascade 20 g 20 min Boil Pellet 6.8 El Dorado 20 g 20 min Boil Pellet 15 Medusa 20 g 20 min Boil Pellet 4.5 Cascade 29 g 5 min Boil Pellet 6.8 El Dorado 29 g 5 min Boil Pellet 15 Medusa 29 g 5 min Boil Pellet 4.5 Cascade 29 g 1 min Boil Pellet 9.3 Medusa 29 g 1 min Boil Pellet 4.5 El Dorado 20 g 1 min Boil Pellet 15 Medusa 67 g 6 days Dry Hop Pellet 4.8 Cascade 48 g 6 days Dry Hop Pellet 5.5 Citra 37 g 6 days Dry Hop Pellet 12 Notes Water Profile: Ca 117 | Mg 3 | Na 10 | SO4 84 | Cl 168 Download Download this recipe's BeerXML file

I started my brew day by collecting the water, adjusting it to my desired profile, then using a combination of propane and a heat stick to warm it up.

Next, I weighed out and milled the grain for this 24 gallon/90 liter batch that would actually be split 4 ways.

Once the water was properly heated, I incorporated the grist then checked to make sure it hit my target mash temperature.

While waiting on the mash, I prepared the kettle hop additions.

When the 60 minute mash rest was complete, I sparged to collect the expected pre-boil volume of sweet wort then brought it to a rolling boil.

Following the 60 minute boil, I quickly chilled the wort before taking a hydrometer measurement showing it was at the target OG.

Identical volumes of wort were racked to separate sanitized Brew Buckets that were placed next to each other in my chamber controlled to 66°F/19°C, at which point I pitched a single pouch of Imperial Yeast A31 Tartan into each batch.

After 4 days of fermentation, activity began dwindling, so I added the dry hops to both batches while just one beer received 0.5 grams/0.018 oz of Rapidase Revelation Aroma.

I left the beers alone for 6 more days before taking hydrometer measurements confirming they’d reached the same target 1.010 FG, after which they were pressure transferred to CO2 purged kegs.

The filled kegs were placed in my keezer, burst carbonated, and allowed to condition for a couple weeks before I began serving them to tasters.

| RESULTS |

A total of 21 people of varying levels of experience participated in this xBmt. Each participant was served 1 sample of the untreated beer and 2 samples of the beer treated with Rapidase Revelation Aroma in different colored opaque cups then asked to identify the unique sample. While 12 tasters (p<0.05) would have had to accurately identify the unique sample in order to reach statistical significance, only 7 (p=0.58) did, indicating participants in this xBmt were unable to reliably distinguish an IPA with Rapidase Revelation Aroma at the time of dry hopping from an untreated version of the same beer.

My Impressions: I attempted numerous semi-blind triangle tests and was unable to pick the unique sample with any consistency, the beers were identical to me in every way. The beer itself was a hit! I kept this one around a bit longer than usual, over 2 months, anthe hop aroma and flavor held up nicely the entire time.

| DISCUSSION |

Much of the discussion surrounding exogenous enzymes in brewing is focused on their ability to encourage attenuation, which is why brewers use them for styles like Brut IPA. The idea that enzymes could be used to increase dry hop character, specifically Rapidase Revelation Aroma as laid out in Scott Janish’s The New IPA, offers the exciting prospect of amplifying desirable hop aroma and flavor without adding more actual hop material. However, tasters in this xBmt were unable to distinguish a beer dosed with Rapidase Revelation Aroma at dry hopping from one made without it, suggesting it may not have had the intended impact.

One point of consideration when it comes to these findings is that I used slightly more Rapidase Revelation Aroma than Scott recommended, and it’s possible a smaller volume would have worked better. I also wonder about the role timing may play when it comes to using this product, perhaps adding it at yeast pitch would have led to a noticeable increase in hop character.

As a fairly common brewer of hoppy IPA, I was admittedly excited to learn that I might be able to get a more intense dry hop character by simply adding a small amount of Rapidase Revelation Aroma during fermentation. Unfortunately, my experience with these xBmt beers aligned with the blind taster results, they smelled and tasted exactly the same to me. While I’ve not plans to start regularly using enzymes for this purpose, should future findings support the use of Rapidase Revelation Aroma, I’ll certainly reconsider my stance.

If you have any thoughts about this xBmt, please do not hesitate to share in the comments section below!

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