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dry hopping

Simie

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Dec 28, 2009
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Montague, MI
Love your program! Have had great success from day one using beersmith for our first (and consequent) all grain brewing. Just a great program. One question, when dry hopping do you add the dry hops right after you rack to the primary or do you wait the four days and then dry hop. If so, then wouldn't you need additional time in primary for the dry hop to sit? Thanks

Simie
 
Dry hopping is done in the secondary. The primary fermentation will drive off the essential oils with the CO2 action. Transfer it to a secondary and let it set a week (to finish fermentation) and then add hops for about 4 days or so. If you leave pelleted hops in the secondary too long it might taste vegetative. I sometimes don't dry hope I use hop vodka that I made up in my spare time and keep in the kegarator. A shot of that in a "so so" beer will kick up some hop power!

Edit I have made a web page on my way of making hop vodka. http://www.stempski.com/hop_vodka
 
If you leave pelleted hops in the secondary too long it might taste vegetative.

+1 on the caution of toooo much time in secondary. Although I use a conical (and thus no secondary) I have found that it only takes two days MAX to get all the oils into the brew. So I add my dry hops at two days before kegging, with great results.
I have also experimented with John Palmer's theory that the beta acids and oils in higher alpha hops (ie; bittering hops) are more stable as a dry hop than if you use traditionally "low alpha - high Beta" varieties. I have noticed that in some of my brews (usually big IPA's) that the flavor/nose falls off rather quickly. That is .... I detect a week or two into the keg and there is a pronounced diminishing in the flavor/nose.

John's theory is .... that the beta's associated with the higher Alpha hop (I used 4oz CTZ pellets)  "hold on" . And so far, I agree. Although it's too early to confirm just how long.

It doesn't look like this one will last long enough anyway, but food for thought worth sharing!
 
I often dry hop in the primary with pellets, but not until day 4 or 5 when the gravity is within about 4 points of FG.  Got this tip from local brewer in Portland.  You can then dry hop again in the secondary, usually with whole leave hops.

Double it up hop heads!

cheers
 
sickbrew said:
I often dry hop in the primary with pellets, but not until day 4 or 5 when the gravity is within about 4 points of FG.  Got this tip from local brewer in Portland.  You can then dry hop again in the secondary, usually with whole leave hops.
+1

I've read that adding hops to the primary before hitting your f.g. will allow the remaining yeast to use up any oxygen in the hops you are adding, thus limiting oxidation.
 
When I dry hop, its always in the primary but only after the primary fermentation is complete.  Day 4-6 or 7.  Then I'll let the hops sit in the primary for a few days before I rack to secondary.  This is purely out of convenience, not because I think this method has any positive influence on the beer.  I've found that when I dry hop in the secondary it is just too difficult to keep a lot of the hop particulate out of the keg.  Also, the glass secondary is a lot harder to clean than the plastic primary so it just makes the process that much easier doing it in the primary.  I've not hear anywhere that doing it this way, as opposed to dry hopping in the secondary is at all detrimental to the quality of the beer so, for me, it just makes it easier to do this way. 
 
In addition to WR's convenience and cleaning reasons, I've read it's best to wait 5+ days in primary before dry hopping b/c the active CO2 release takes the hop aroma out with it.  But it sure makes sense to further muddy up the primary rather than the secondary. 
 
@88Q  So, a hop like centennial should have a longer lasting aroma in the keg, correct?  What about aging?  If you age for 4 weeks after dry hopping, does the aroma dissipate?
There seems to be mass confusion around hop aroma. If you use a hopback, does the aroma not end up bubbling off in the primary?

I can second the short dry hopping time assertion, I recently dry hopped a light pale ale with 2 oz of Saaz pellets, for a week, and got a distinctive veggy flavor. Now, I do think it will mellow with aging, but it wasn't what I was going for.  Personally, I hate pellet hops, for the mess, but occasionally have to use them.
 
Centennial being 10AA more or less, Palmer's theory says so.

As far as the bubble off in the primary when using a hopback, Yeah  .... I would THINK that it would. That's precisely why all my dry hopping is done in the secondary (in my case with a conical <thus no secondary> 99-100% into the fermentation). But I have never used one.

Although I have been thinking about a hopback of sorts between the keg and faucet at delivery time (for special occasions!)  :D

(Gawd....I must have an insatiable hop-itite!)
 
I've been doing late hop additions, hopjacking and dry hopping in the secondary, but
nothing has worked quite like dry hopping in the keg.  I do all the other additions still but it makes a huge difference.  You need a sure screen ($8 on Northern Brewer) but it's well worth it.  I'd like to try a hop tea using my french press as well.  The BYO Hop Lovers Guide suggests that one.
 
When i dry hop, I only use fresh and usually for 4 days. i have the best luck putting it in the secondary and droppeing the temps to around 62.
Haven't been disappointed yet!
 
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