Motueka™ Amplifire™ Oil

A hop with a distinctive fresh crushed citrus 'mojito' lime character.

Aroma Profile

Beer Styles

West Coast IPAs; New England/hazy/juicy IPAs; NZIPAs; APAs; pale ales; lagers; pilsners; English, Belgian, and European ales.

Ancestry

Switch Variety

Sensory Notes Sensory notes were determined by averaging the % of assessors who reported the presence of each aroma category in dry hop cones on a Check All That Apply (CATA) ballot. Actual product may vary.

Pairing and Swapping

Pairs Well With

Try Instead Of

Disease Resistance

New Zealand has focused on breeding pest/disease resistant hop varieties since the 1940s. The country also boasts a low pest/disease environment for hop growing e.g. no Downy mildew and no Powdery mildew. As a result, chemical spray usage is significantly reduced - for instance, and unlike other countries, we do not use fungicides. This aligns with New Zealand’s goal of being an environmentally responsible country that produces premium natural products.

Want to take your beer's flavour and aroma to the next level? Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is your secret weapon. It's a brewer's shortcut to maximum impact and minimal waste.

This popular farm–fresh liquid hop flavour and aroma product is designed to enhance the taste of beer. It can also boost yields, is exceptionally cost-effective and offers great value for money.

It's easy to use and integrate into the brewing process and its very low carbon footprint is setting a new benchmark in the industry.

Amplifire product range

HOP FLAVOUR AND AROMA MADE EASY

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is a hop variety specific flavour and aroma product, with no bitterness present. It adds beautiful top notes and complexity into brews. It is a highly flowable liquid – at cool, room and warm temperatures – that is beer and water soluble.

MADE FROM FARM FRESH
'WET' NEW ZEALAND HOPS, NOT REPURPOSED HOP PELLETS.

Our growers select only the finest farm fresh hops for our Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil.

We extract the oil from those hops — using our patent-pending process — on the same day as they are harvested. The hops are not kilned and are instead processed 'wet' to preserve volatile aromatics.

As generational farmers we strive to deliver the best products possible from our crops and we believe that Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil epitomises this strong commitment, noting that the vast majority of hop aroma extracts on the market are repurposed from unsold (often old) hop pellets with less of the volatile aromatic compounds.

PROCESS FOR MAKING AMPLIFIRE™ FRESH HOP OIL

Process takes less than 24 hours

Amplifire process
Fresh hops in hand

PROCESS FOR MAKING OTHER HOP AROMA PRODUCTS

Process can take years

Other process

WHY DO WE USE FARM FRESH 'WET' HOPS?
IT'S ALL ABOUT EXPRESSION IN BEER.

For those of you who have visited a hop farm kilning operation – hops need to be dried before being pelleted – you will know that the kiln sheds are vibrant with hop aroma.

Those aromatics are essentially being lost into the atmosphere through the kilning (drying) process. By using 'wet' hops for our Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil those aromatics are being preserved.

Brewers might liken Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil to brewing with the soul of the hop.

Unlike the grassy or vegetal notes sometimes associated with seasonal fresh hop beer, Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is extracted directly from the lupulin glands of farm–fresh hop cones, contains no vegetative matter and delivers a clean, "true-to-variety" expression of hop flavour and aroma.

Here is a snapshot of key aroma differences in beer expression between Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil (using 'wet' hops) and hop pellets (using 'dry' hops):

FEATURE AMPLIFIRE™ FRESH HOP OIL HOP PELLETS
Overall aromatic profile Bright, vibrant, fresh zest Mellowed, sometimes earthier or spicier
Volatile aroma compounds More volatile aroma compounds present, especially thiols and monoterpenes, providing lively and expressive hop character Less volatile aroma compounds present due to the hops being dried and further processed
Expression in beer Brighter, cleaner and more vivid aromatics. Think juicy citrus, tropical fruit, pine or floral depending on the hop variety Can introduce some grassy or green notes and also contribute to astringency

In essence, Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil brings unmatched 'true-to-variety' flavour and aromatic outcomes to beer.

'TRUE-TO-VARIETY'
EXPRESSION

T90 hop pellets bring 'true-to-variety' expression in beer:

VARIETY AROMA PROFILE
CIP014Passionfruit, intense tropical, pineapple, stone fruit, pink grapefruit
CIP076Citrus, orange blossom, ripe peach, creamy vanilla, tropical
Green Bullet™Resinous, subtle floral, crisp lemon, dark and dried fruit, slightly peppery spiciness
Motueka™Fresh lime, lemon zest, mojito, orange spice, juicy, tropical
Nelson Sauvin™Gooseberry, lychee, passionfruit, sauvignon blanc, tropical, spicy
NZ Cascade™Lime, grapefruit, peach, pineapple, passionfruit, hint of pine
Pacific Sunrise™Orange, lemon, mango, melon, red berry, ripe and jammy apricot, subtle flower and pine
Pacifica™Orange, tangerine, clementine, apricot, blackberry cannabis, floral, spice
Rakau™Apricot, peach, mandarin, tangerine, pink grapefruit, pineapple, floral
Riwaka™Passionfruit, pink grapefruit, pineapple, lime, orange, citrus, blackberry candy
Southern Cross™Lemon, lime, hint of pine, clean spiciness

Grown and Made in New Zealand

The New Zealand government has certified the New Zealand grown and made provenance of Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil by giving it the FernMark seal of approval.

Unlike other processors who use New Zealand hop materials that have been sent half-way around the world to them, Clayton Hops has a strong commitment to both growing and processing locally as this results in better quality product and is environmentally responsible.

Doing everything in-house also means a secure and stable product supply.

HIGHLY VERSATILE

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is suited to all types of beer styles and is not limited to beer:

  • Lagers and lighter beer styles
  • Pilsners
  • Pale ales
  • IPAs
  • Hazy IPAs
  • Pacific ales
  • Summer ales
  • Low and non–alcoholic beer
  • Hop waters
  • Seltzers
  • RTDs

WHERE TO USE

Looking for flexibility in your process? Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is your go–to. Use it anywhere from whirlpool to fermenter to brite tank, to deliver intense hop character with greater precision, efficiency and less waste.

Whether you're layering flavours or fine–tuning aroma, Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is designed to maximise impact at nearly every stage of the brew.

WHERE TO USE

Where to Use - Motueka™ Amplifire™ Oil

Kettle

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is not intended to be used in the kettle.

Whirlpool

Ready to rethink your whirlpool hop additions? With Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil, brewers can replace up to 100% of hop pellets in the whirlpool, unlocking bold flavour and aroma with unmatched efficiency. We recommend a starting rate of 25–50% hop pellet replacement and adjusting according to desired flavour outcome in final beer.

For maximum flavour impact, we recommend, if possible, chilling the whirlpool wort to <85°C prior to any oil addition (or hop pellet addition).

Dry Hop, Active and Post Fermentation, Brite Tank

Take total control of your hop expression. Add Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil during active fermentation to enhance biotransformation or post-fermentation for a clean, explosive burst of aroma that leaps from the glass.

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil can be used alongside hop pellets during dry hopping without sacrificing beer body and mouthfeel. We recommend a starting rate of 25–50% hop pellet replacement and adjusting according to desired flavour outcome in final beer.

Carbonation

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil should be dosed prior to carbonation to avoid any potential impact on head retention.

HIGHLY EFFICIENT
FLAVOUR TRANSFER

Hop oil is what brewers strive to impart into their beer when using hop pellets. The efficiency of dry hopping with hop pellets has been tested to be only around 30–40% of potential flavour absorption, with the remainder going to waste.

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is rich in highly desirable volatile aroma compounds – including those that are lost during drying and pelletising – with a far higher (circa. 100%) transfer rate into finished beer. It delivers ‘true-to-variety’ flavour and aroma that bursts from the glass.

Dose Rate – Outstanding Concentration

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is up to ten times more concentrated than other hop oil products. We recommend a 50:1 pellet-to-oil replacement ratio – just 100mL of oil delivers the same punch as 5kg of T90 pellets.

T90 Hop Pellet Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil
1lb (454g)~9.1mL (~0.3oz)
1kg (2.2lb)20mL (~0.68oz)
2kg (4.4lb)40mL (~1.35oz)
3kg (6.6lb)60mL (~2.03oz)
4kg (8.8lb)80mL (~2.7oz)
5kg (11lb)100mL (~3.38oz)

Suggested Starting Trial Dose (mL/hL)

Base Style Dry Hopping Range Trial Dose
Lager & light beer styles0.5 – 5g/L1 – 10mL/hL
Pilsners2 – 10g/L4 – 20mL/hL
Pale ales4 – 10g/L8 – 20mL/hL
IPAs8 – 15g/L15 – 30mL/hL
Hazy IPAs10 – 25g/L20 – 50mL/hL
Pacific ales4 – 10g/L8 – 20mL/hL
Summer ales4 – 10g/L8 – 20mL/hL
Hop water0.5 – 5g/L1 – 10mL/hL
Seltzers0.5 – 5g/L1 – 10mL/hL
RTDs1 – 5g/L2 – 10mL/hL

Dose Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil into 2–3L of beverage to disperse before dosing into the tank. Alternatively, disperse in warm water first. Oil can also be dosed inline to the bright tank.

EXCEPTIONAL PRICING AND VALUE FOR MONEY

Not only is Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil more concentrated per mL than many (if not all) other hop aroma extract products, its price on a per mL basis is exceptional.

Please do the comparisons yourself as they are highly favourable – even against those products that claim to be the most cost effective on the market.

Compared to hop pellets, Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is far more cost effective in terms of how far it goes. However, hop pellets will always be an integral part in beer production for the different attributes they bring, including structure and background flavour to beer.

CARBON FOOTPRINT – THE NEW MARKET BENCHMARK

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil has an exceptionally low carbon footprint (independently verified by BX of London). A key reason for this – and unlike the vast majority of other hop extract products on the market – being that the oil is extracted from 'wet' hop cones, instead of hop pellets that have been kiln dried and subject to further processing during pelletisation. It also helps that the hops are grown in New Zealand and the product is also made in New Zealand.

Putting this into context, when producing 100L of pale ale using 10mL of Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil, the oil itself has a carbon footprint (farm to packaged product) of 0.35 kg CO₂e. These levels are around 6–10 times lower than for industry standard T90 hop pellets. To our knowledge these results make Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil in the top tier of the world's most climate–friendly hop products.

BX is a leading independent environmental farm management platform and is working with Clayton Hops to ensure hops are grown and processed with sustainability at the core.

Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil

0.35
kg CO₂e per 100L of beer

ADVANTAGES

Great and consistent flavour and aroma enhancer Adds beautiful unique top notes and complexity into brews. Brighter, cleaner (no vegetal matter) and more consistent
No bitterness No bitterness imparted
100% efficiency High flavour and aroma transfer into finished beverage
Increase beer yield and revenue Substitute some hop pellets for oil at whirlpool and/or dry hopping to increase beer yields and revenue (For every kg of T90s, you could be losing 8-10L of beer)
Super easy to use and incorporate Highly flowable liquid (at cool, room and warm temperatures) that is beer and water soluble. No need to warm. Reduces the need to lug around hop pellets. Use it anywhere from whirlpool to fermenter to brite tank. No workflow modifications required and integrates well with hop pellets
Exceptional pricing and value for money Far more concentrated than many (if not all) other products and exceptionally priced
'True-to-variety' 'True-to-variety' flavour and aroma profile that bursts from the glass
Pure New Zealand product Both grown and made by us in New Zealand and carrying the FernMark seal of provenance from the New Zealand government
Secure and stable product supply We do not rely on third party hop supply nor third party processing, so we do it all in-house
Elite low carbon footprint products Top-tier climate-friendly product due to the raw ingredient – farm fresh 'wet' hop cones instead of hop pellets. And made locally in New Zealand – no shipping of hop material around the world for third party processing
Extended beer shelf life Anecdotal evidence of increased beer shelf life due to reduced oxidation and plant material for instance, ease of dosing can reduce oxidation potential in comparison to dry hopping and plant material can possess compounds that may oxidise over time
Highly versatile Works with all kinds of beer styles (including non-alcoholic), as well as hop waters, seltzers and RTDs
Easy to trial Easy to perform benchtop sensory trials (refer to the benchtop trial section below)
Less brewing waste and mess 100% absorbed into beer. Less waste water if substitute some hop pellets for oil and faster filtration. Does not stick to equipment
No undesirable plant compounds No plant material present. Oil extracted from the lupulin glands of the farm fresh hop cones
No hop creep Free of hop-creep inducing monosaccharides and enzymes
Light stable Does not cause light-struck off-flavours
Easy to transport and store Can be transported and stored at ambient (although note recommended storage below)
Shipping and storage efficiencies Occupies considerably less space than the equivalent amount of hop pellets, which reduces shipping and storage footprint and costs
Reduced packaging waste Bottles (or other receptacles) instead of the cardboard cartons and foil bags associated with hop pellet packaging

AMPLIFIRE™ OIL COMPARED WITH OTHER PRODUCTS

DOWNLOAD COMPARISON TABLE
Feature Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil Amplifire™ Concentrated Lupulin Pellets T90 Hop Pellets
Form Flowable liquid Pellet. More lupulin (acids and oils) than T90s Pellet. Less lupulin (acids and oils) than Amplifire™ Pellets
Plant material None Yes. Less plant material and higher levels of acids and oil compared to T90s Yes. More plant material and lower levels of acids and oil compared to Amplifire™ Pellets
Process Made through a patent-pending extraction process where the oil is extracted directly from the lupulin glands of ‘wet’ farm-fresh hop cones Made through a patent-pending process by cryogenically separating the lupulin from the dried leaf and stem material of hop cones and concentrating and compressing the lupulin Made by milling whole dried hop cones (leaf, steam, lupulin) and compressing them
Raw material Fresh, undried whole hop cones Kiln-dried whole hop cones Kiln-dried whole hop cones
Name origin Amplifire™ is Clayton Hops’ advanced hop products range, aimed at boosting flavour and aroma and reducing beer loss Amplifire™ is Clayton Hops’ advanced hop products range, aimed at boosting flavour and aroma and reducing beer loss T90 is from the principle that 90% of the original hop material is retained after pelletising
Processing time from harvest Less than 24 hours Weeks Target of less than one week
Preservation of hop volatiles Very high (no kilning of raw material) Medium to low (kilning loss) Medium to low (kilning loss)
Bitterness contribution None Yes (variety dependent) Yes (variety dependent)
Flavour/aroma impact High. Delivers cleaner, more vivid aromatics More intense and reduced vegetal flavours compared to T90s Moderate and increased vegetal flavours compared to Amplifire™ Pellets
Use rate (dry hop T90 replacement) ~50:1 (by weight). For instance, 100mL of Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is equivalent to circa. 5kgs T90s ~2:1 (by weight). For instance, use 500-600g of Amplifire™ Pellets instead of 1kg of T90s Baseline
Beer loss in whirlpool and dry hop Minimal Low to moderate Moderate
Solubility Fully water and beer soluble Requires mixing/rousing Requires mixing/rousing
Ease of use Simple liquid dosing. Highly flowable product at cool, room and warm temperatures Similar handling as T90s Standard handling
Recommended storage Cold storage (ambient is permitted) Cold storage (ambient is not permitted) Cold storage (ambient is not permitted)
Shelf life 2 years commercially sealed 3 years 3 years
Carbon footprint Very low – no kilning of raw material and made in New Zealand Low – New Zealand made and ultra-concentrated, reducing total inputs and shipping needs Moderate – New Zealand made but less concentrated so more volume and packaging per batch compared to the other two products, but a foundational brewing input
Light stable Yes No No
Hop creep potential None Low High
‘True-to-type’ variety expression Yes Yes Yes
Recommended applications Dry hop, brite tank (can also use in whirlpool) Kettle, whirlpool, dry hop Kettle, whirlpool, dry hop

AMPLIFIRE™ OIL PRODUCT OVERVIEW

DOWNLOAD PRODUCT OVERVIEW