General Description

A local South African hop, Southern Dawn is a dual purpose hop at heart, though maintly used for neutral bittering editions in hop forward beers due to its high Alpha Acid range and flavours consisting of clean, neutral, slight fruit and spice aromatics. This hop is best used for bittering additions in fruity, hop intensive beers.

Characteristics

Alpha Acids: 10 – 15%

Beta Acids: 5 – 6% 

Primary usage: Dual Purpose (Aromatic and Bittering)

Aromatic character: clean, neutral, slight fruit, spice.

Complimentary beer styles

This hop strain is best used in beer styles such as:

Saison

Pale Ale

IPA (Indian Pale Ale)

Due to its high Alpha Acids and clean, mostly neutral aromatic notes.

Substitutes

Polaris

Galena

Nugget

Keep in mind that alpha acid differences in substitutes may need to be accounted for when weighing out your quantities.

Storage

Colder is better when storing hops as the rate of loss halves for every 15°C lowered in temperature. Optimal storage conditions for hops are between -21°C - 0°C in a sealed, airtight environment.

Shelf life

If stored in ideal conditions your hops will only experience a rate of deterioration of about 10% for every 6 months stored. An unopened packet of hop pellets can effectively last up to 4 years in ideal conditions, though keep in mind that the rate of deterioration increases at higher temperatures and unsealed environments.