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I bought some hops off eBay and the alpha acid listed was 10%, the reading I've done said cascade hops are in the 4-6% range. Could it be this high? I'm not sure if i should change my recipe I'll be doing in a few weeks.
I'm basically doing the northern brewer dead ringer with these cascade hops instead of centennial hops.
Update contacted the seller, said they tested it multiple times. Its the highest he's seen for his cascade crop.
Since you are already substituting cascade hops instead of centennial hops, you are not going to hit some pre-destined goal. So you might as well go with personal preference. If, when you drink an APA or IPA, you don't like a lingering bitter, then cut back proportionally on the bittering addition (usually the 60 minute addition). If you like the hop bitterness at the end, then go ahead and add the full amount. You will want to leave the later additions as per the recipe since the alpha is much less important for flavor and aroma.
The AA content of hops is seasonal, and depends a lot on the weather. What you see listed in books is "typical", but that doesn't mean it can't be higher or lower than that. You should always adjust any recipe to the AA of the hops you;re using. Don't match weights of hops, match IBU contributions.
