dry hopping

[nobyipa]

to get excellent results from dry hopping [you can if you wish to use a hop sack]
1st let your brew in primary to complete fermentation

when you have a hydrometer 2 readings the same over 2 days is suffice

tip if you have a camera take a shot you then can magnify the image to get a good reading

if you do not have a tap , open your fermenter carefully not to disturb the co2 layer too much and drop spin the hydrometer in your brew what i did prior to getting a reflectometer

star san your lid area open up slightly pop in your sanitised hydrometer
you do not really want to be hovering over a open fermenter dropping crud dirt of your jumper hair etc getting into your fermenter

if you do have a tap take a sample and fill your trial jar






when you have that same reading

re rack to your secondary onto your intended dry hop variety


hops in beer syphoned onto it


remember to keep as covered as possible lid ajar whilst syphoning



Now when you have your secondary fermenter full of beer dry hops
lid it up put in your blow off tube bubbler or whatever you use leave the lid a jar what ever is you method


cool your fermentation fridge dry hop at 15C for 5 to 9 days


step over now bottling day
using leaf hops is fine
now using pellet hops can be a problem getting the beer out
so i have wrapped stainless steel mesh round my hop trap this way i can dry hop with massive amounts of hops
this is boiled and sanitised every use

i wait until at least 70 80% of the dry hops have fallen through the beer dropped



you do not need to syphon and really should not by mouth if you have a large enough syringe my one is 100ml ample big enough to get the syphon going
[youtube:2ntnxll6]VXqlWSYyJJA[/youtube:2ntnxll6]


then once your bottling bucket is full bottle away



or if your pressure barrelling kegging do that

:drink: :electric: :

 

[GavH]

i wait until at least 70 80% of the dry hops have fallen through the beer dropped

How long does this take normally? I've only dry hopped once, @30g of Saaz for a week and didn't really notice any particular hop aroma in the finished product. I'm wanting to dry hop a Coopers APA next week (which will be after fermentation is complete) with perhaps 20-30g of Cascade and Galaxy and leave for a fortnight. I've read many a post suggesting that dry hopping for over a week can leave a grassy off taste.

 

[Rolfster]

Gav have a look at this...

viewtopic.php?f=36&t=33990

 

[GavH]

Thanks Rolfster, it was that thread that lead me to your useful How To. Still in search of a definitive answer as to how long is too long for dry hopping. I've read that some people even dry hop in the keg after racking from Primary or Secondary, which suggests they are leaving their hops in for several months perhaps, further suggesting that there is no 'too long' point?

 

[Rolfster]

It seemed to indicate that 2 weeks at about 15 degrees. Seems like a good starting point!

I have just dry hopped an ipa, I hadn't read up on how long to leave it for so only left it a week, in the cellar at about 11 degrees. Will keep you posted!

 

[brewpirate]

Dry hopping is fun and can take a good beer and make it a great beer. Until recently I have only used hop pellets which can be difficult to strain keeping them in a 1 gallon paint strainer bag and weight it down with some stainless steel nuts that have been in starsan. Typically I try to use higher alpha acid hops that are aromatic at a minimum of 30g and best result is 60g works well at room temperature (24c or so) for a week or so. Hop aroma drops out quickly so make sure to drink it quickly to get the full effects of the drop hop. If you are using a lower AA variety you may get a grassy flavor due to all the vegetable mass so if you can high AA for about a week.

I have a massive double rye ipa that has a dry hop of 60g citra, 60g chinook and 60g of amarillo which is an awesome massively hoppy beer.

 

[cheshirehomebrew]

I have dry hopped all my beers as I tend to make IPA's (apart from the christmas stout)

have now chenged my methodology so instead of a week to 10 days dryhopping and risking a grassy note I hop for 5 days scoop out all the hops with a steralised spoon then dry hop again with a similar amount.
which reminds me I need change them tonight