Hopping Mad

[StevieDS]

When I brewed my first BIAB recently, I was a bit unsure how long to leave the hop bag in the wort after the boil as I was just cooling naturally, ie. leave it overnight.

I tried to get some guidance on this but the only answers I could get at the time were along the lines of "depends how hoppy you like your beer" which wasn't a great help because I was just looking for a rough guide. I didn't know if it should be 5 mins or all night.

Anyway I left it in for about 4 hours and it smells very very hoppy and I'm guessing that was too long.

Just wondering how long others leave it when cooling naturally?

Cheers

 

[Stihler]

To impart hop aroma people will often add hops to the kettle at flame out or dry hop.

You've kind of done a bit of a hybrid of the two methods. Your beer should turn out fine with a really nice hop aroma.

Please let us know how the beer turns out.

- Scott

 

[StevieDS]

Yeah i added the hops at the appropriate times during the boil according to the recipe but the final hop addition was at 0 mins which confused me a bit. I added them to the bag as I switched off the heat and left it in during the cooling period. Is this the correct way to do it?
Also as I was cooling naturally, more confusion arose as it took all night to cool this way rather than about half an hour with a chiller, so I didn't know how long to leave the bag in.

 

[jonnymorris]

Hops added at flameout are generally left to steep for 10-30 mins. John Plamer warns that 0mins hop additions may cause the beer to 'take on a grassy taste due to tannins and other compounds which are usually neutralized by the boil' though I've no experience of this personally. If yours turns out a bit grassy, you'll know to leave them for a shorter time next time or maybe try dry hopping as suggested above.

 

[StevieDS]

Ha 10-30 mins! Maybe 4 hours was a bit long then, ah well live and learn.

How do you dry hop then?

 

[jonnymorris]

Stick some hops in a muslin bag and weigh it down with some sanitised cutlery/marbles etc. Put this into your brew late in the fermentation cycle when when the yeast is clearing up after itself. Probably best to rack to a clean FV so you don't disturb the trub in the primary. Leave for anything up to two weeks and then fish out prior to bottling.

 

[Asalpaws]

Just seen a brewing TV episode about IPAs, as Johnnymorris says, leaving them in to long can impart a vegetable quality. BTV guys reccomend not leaving the flame out hops for longer than 80 mins, still it will be interesting to see how this works out, what style of beer was it?

 

[StevieDS]

Its an english pale ale recipe from homebrew company. I had a little taste for the first time last night, its been bottled for a week, and it was extremely hoppy as you'd expect, but not so much it was undrinkable. Tho dont think i could drink too many.

I know its early days but it had very complex flavours, a floral sweetness at first then a nice biscuity flavour followed by a strong hop bitterness. I didnt detect any of the vegetable or grassy flavours thankfully.

Might not be a total disaster after all.

 

[Asalpaws]

Sounds like a great beer! The floral hop smells tend to dissipate with time, if you don't like it you could just wait.

 

[StevieDS]

Yeah i'll prob leave it to condition for a couple of months.
Thanks for the reassurances anyway, thought i'd ruined my first ag!

:thumb:

 

[StevieDS]

Just an update on this, had another taste tonite, its been in the bottle for near 3 weeks and it has turned out really lovely. As I was advised the strong floral aroma has faded a good bit but is still just strong enough to be pleasant. Also its not too bitter at all, has a lovely balance of sweetness and hoppy bitterness. Already a much better brew than the 2 kits I've done previously.

 

[lukehgriffiths]

I had this with my first AG stuck in a citra dry hop as well as flame out and it seemed really strong so I fished the second lot out I also boiled the nugget bittering hops for the full 90. Just smelling the stuff left a metallic trang at the back of your throat but 9 weeks later it tasted fine.