Nitrogen-charged beers contain "finishing additives" (surfactants) that prevent the head from collapsing. The bubbles in carbonated water take a considerable time to dissipate because the equilibrium of carbon dioxide + water = carbonic acid. And the temperature dependence on solubility of CO2 (and the temp dependence of disrupting that eualibrium as the beer slowly warms if served cold).

Nitrogen charged beers would be flat in a few seconds without the nitrogen finishing additives if served warm. The temp dependence of the nitrogen solubility is much less than carbon dioxide because there is no chemical equilibrium and the overall solubility is much less with nitrogen than carbon dioxide.

Dispassionate, objective and well informed explanation; it reminds me once on board, in the officers' mess when our doctor provided a detailed and precise anatomic description of females breasts. Enthusiasm vanished and subject moved instantly to something else!

We use to call that something like "puncturing the balloon".

 

Nitrogen-charged beers contain "finishing additives" (surfactants) that prevent the head from collapsing. The bubbles in carbonated water take a considerable time to dissipate because the equilibrium of carbon dioxide + water = carbonic acid. And the temperature dependence on solubility of CO2 (and the temp dependence of disrupting that eualibrium as the beer slowly warms if served cold).
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I was just about to say that.........
Max.

 

I'm a fan of Sierra Nevada products and especially their Hop Hunter IPA. They use aromatic hop oil instead of straight hopping. So it has a ton of hop flavor without as much bitter hop acids as you would have otherwise. Really nice.

 

I'm a fan of Sierra Nevada products and especially their Hop Hunter IPA. They use aromatic hop oil instead of straight hopping. So it has a ton of hop flavor without as much bitter hop acids as you would have otherwise. Really nice.

Actually there are different stages of Hopping, all with different effects, hops during the wort boil, extracts the bitter flavour that IPA is known for, then there is Hops introduced at the last 5 to 10 minutes which are flavour hops, the third is Hops introduced during fermentation as these are Aroma hops.
I assume you know why IPA was heavily hopped?
Max.

 

...and why it's called IPA

 

What's the point of gassing beer with nitrogen instead of CO2? ... is it about lessening the possibility of bacterial growth ?

 

I assume you know why IPA was heavily hopped?
Max.

Yup, I've even used hops acids as a preservative in a product for the brewing industry. They loved not having other preservatives present and felt more comfortable with something they understand.

The uniqueness of Hop Hunter is that they add hop aroma as an essential oil, totally separate from any normal hopping process.

 

What's the point of gassing beer with nitrogen instead of CO2? ... is it about lessening the possibility of bacterial growth ?

It just releases gasses slower and creates the 'creamy' head due to smaller bubbles, which it tends to retain longer than a CO2 fermented brew.
Max.

 

So what is aromatic hop oil derived from?

I'm a fan of Sierra Nevada products and especially their Hop Hunter IPA. They use aromatic hop oil instead of straight hopping. So it has a ton of hop flavor without as much bitter hop acids as you would have otherwise. Really nice.

So if it does not have the IPA hop degree of bitterness, why call it IPA?
If you just need hop flavour, why not use aroma hops?
Max.

 

In honor of this discussion, and for research purposes only, I am going to drink these two different IPAs, perform a comparative analysis, and then come back here with a full report.

​

 

Nitrogen-charged beers contain "finishing additives" (surfactants)...

And they are heavily laced with dihydrogen monoxide as well, which is known to kill hundreds of children every year.

 

And they are heavily laced with dihydrogen monoxide as well, which is known to kill hundreds of children every year.

I never said you shouldn't drink it or that you wouldn't like Guinness - it's just brown soapy water. It's not bad for you and it may even help with your constipation.

 

In honor of this discussion, and for research purposes only, I am going to drink these two different IPAs, perform a comparative analysis, and then come back here with a full report.

The sacrifices some make for the advancement of science!
Max.

 

The sacrifices some make for the advancement of science!
Max.

I hear you loud and clear ...

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On a trivia note.
Around the same time IPA beer came into being and the reason for it to be heavily hopped in order to survive the journey from England to India in order to slake the thirsts of those serving the British Raj,
Another word was introduced into the English language, POSH.
Those that accompanied said beer on the trip to India also suffered the heat during the trip across the Indian Ocean in ships that were not equipped at that time with either Air Cond. or Refrigeration.
If one was making the round trip and had some kind of title or the advantage of money they could purchase a cabin on the shady side of the ship, if so, the ticket clerk would stamp their ticket POSH, which stood for a cabin Port Out, Starboard Home.
Max.
,

 

In honor of this discussion, and for research purposes only, I am going to drink these two different IPAs, perform a comparative analysis, and then come back here with a full report

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The Goose is a good one and almost a local brew here.​

 

Tried "Gentleman Jack", "Jack Danial" I don't flip my coins for that one or "Crown Royal" but, my comparison, I"m impressed with "GJ" over "JD"

kv

 

Just tried this beer... it's called "Tenebrosa" which more or less translates to "Spooky". It's got a dash of enebro (juniper berries) that give it a discreet, but interesting gin-like taste.

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Just tried this beer... it's called "Tenebrosa" which more or less translates to "Spooky". It's got a dash of enebro (juniper berries) that give it a discreet, but interesting gin-like taste.

That's something I would at least try - it sounds good. What did you think?

 

That's something I would at least try - it sounds good. What did you think?

It was good... but definitely one of those "just one for tonight" sort of beers... then I'd go back to more conventional stuff...