To Whirlpool or not to Whirlpool....

[alsch890]

Hi there,

After about 3 years of brewing I have never done a "whirpool". I use "whirlpool" hops a lot but all this means is I shut off the heat, switch on the immersion chiller and then bung the hop bag in and leave it in there whilst the wort cools and until I have drained it into the FV. I don't hold it at a particular temp for a "hop stand".

I have a Klarstein boiler and an immersion chiller coil so there is not a whole lot of room either within the coil or between coil and boiler to get a whirlpool going. I could remove the chiller for a few minutes to get it whirking with my spoon.

I couldn't get to sleep last night as the thought suddenly occurred to me that I am losing out on flavour or clarity or something! I think I have generally been a successful home brewer, I've only ever had one ruined batch due to infection and one batch where I think I abused the yeast but otherwise always fine. However since I shifted from my home-made bucket boiler to the klarstein and started using hop bags rather than dumping the pellets in I feel like my beers are getting more of that "homebrew" taste.

Any advice or comments on whether I should be whirlpooling, hop standing or anything else gratefully received.

Cheers!

 

[steveinUS]

My experiences with whirlpooling have been underwhelming. I typically do it after the wort is chilled, since I mostly use an immersion chiller and don't brew many beers that call for "whirlpool hops". So if I am diligent, create a very strong whirlpool by stirring the heck out of the wort for a good 3-4 minutes and let it settle for 20 minutes or more, yes the trub does settle out in the center of my kettle and the wort that goes into my fermenter is clearer. I just cannot speak to whether that has actually made a difference in any of my beers.

 

[Nicks90]

Unless I am reading the science totally wrong, isn't 'whirlpool' hops just adding the hops to hot wort to extract additional flavour, but not so hot as to extract extra bitterness?
However combine it with a whirlpool effect does mean the loose hops and trub collects in the middle and doesn't end up in your fv.

 

[Drunkula]

I was listening to the Brewstrong podcast last night and they were saying whirlpooling on a homebrew level isn't something worth doing.

 

[foxy]

I don't whirlpool, I don't impede the hops by using bags or hop spider, I have a 3 meter long helix coiled at the bottom of the kettle. This filters hop debris and break material out of the fermenter, I used the spider once recently and it definitely reduces the input of the hops.

 

[An Ankoù]

I tried whirlpooling a couple of times and found I was wasting too much beer. Tried it first with the barrier attachment that fits on the back of the tap that comes with the SS Brewtech kettle. Well it doesn't really stop the debris coming over and, in any case, I've changed the tap to a much lighter one. I even bought a stainless steel ring, a bit like a cake tin without the bottom. hoping to whirlpool all the rubbish into the ring and drain off through the tap. I think it would have worked if I had syphoned the beer out of the kettle rather than use the tap.
To cut a long story short, I couldn't find any advantage to whirlpooling, only a loss in beer volume. This means that I have to use at least some full leaf hops to provide something of a filter for the trub and debris from any pellet additions. I'd be very interested to hear from anyone who has managed to this technique to work without leaving three or so litres of beer behind.

 

[Duxuk]

I cool to 80C using an immersion chiller before adding my last hops. I give it a stir, not a whirlpool, during a 10 minute steep before continuing to cool. I use Whirlfloc in the last 15 minutes of the boil. I'm currently finding my brews are crystal clear even though the wort is really cloudy. If I dry hop my beers are not so clear.
Does dry hopping cause your brews to be slightly cloudy?

 

[Drunkula]

Does dry hopping cause your brews to be slightly cloudy?

Yip. Search for 'hop haze'. Pliny the Elder is dry hopped to buggery and they use gelatin for finings with no filtration and apparently it's super clear. Never had it but want to.

Opposite end of the scale I've managed to keep my wheat beers cloudy recently. Read about putting a tablespoon of flour in at the end of the boil so I mixed some into water - bosh. Job done. It's not much of a problem in the bottles as you can swirl it in, but on tap it can drop clear. I prefer the bottles as you get that really ice-creamy feel with a full glug of yeast.

 

[alsch890]

I don't whirlpool, I don't impede the hops by using bags or hop spider, I have a 3 meter long helix coiled at the bottom of the kettle. This filters hop debris and break material out of the fermenter, I used the spider once recently and it definitely reduces the input of the hops.

I fear you are right about that. I started using hop bags a few brews ago as I got fed up of the trub clogging up the bottom of my boiler and taking forever then to drain out. But I think there is definitely a higher impact to hop flavour and aroma for my brews than generally reported.

 

[alsch890]

I cool to 80C using an immersion chiller before adding my last hops. I give it a stir, not a whirlpool, during a 10 minute steep before continuing to cool. I use Whirlfloc in the last 15 minutes of the boil. I'm currently finding my brews are crystal clear even though the wort is really cloudy. If I dry hop my beers are not so clear.
Does dry hopping cause your brews to be slightly cloudy?

This is pretty much exactly what I did. Chilled to 80c then took the chiller out, dumped the "whirlpool" hops in a stirred it for a 10 min steep. then bunged the chiller back in and took it down to 20 or so. I added dry hops last night so now need to wait and see!

 

[alsch890]

thanks for all the answers and comments, interested to see how this brew comes out now!

 

[foxy]

I cool to 80C using an immersion chiller before adding my last hops. I give it a stir, not a whirlpool, during a 10 minute steep before continuing to cool. I use Whirlfloc in the last 15 minutes of the boil. I'm currently finding my brews are crystal clear even though the wort is really cloudy. If I dry hop my beers are not so clear.
Does dry hopping cause your brews to be slightly cloudy?

Cold crash around -1 C -2 C drops everything out including hops I also think the yeast type plays a part in any haze. I don't add finings to my beers they can strip out hop flavour and colour.

I fear you are right about that. I started using hop bags a few brews ago as I got fed up of the trub clogging up the bottom of my boiler and taking forever then to drain out. But I think there is definitely a higher impact to hop flavour and aroma for my brews than generally reported.

This is my coil it is actually 4 meters long, but it keeps the hops and break material in the kettle.
You need the longer length as its a bigger surface area.