Hops in a bag ?

Bru · 07-15-2009, 11:16 AM

When adding hops to the boil - I understand that some of you just throw it into the pot without putting it into a bag - is this correct ?
Do you end up with alot more sediment in the fermenter ?

**Brewmasters Warehouse** · 07-15-2009, 01:15 PM

You can throw them in without using a bag. You will have a lot of sediment from the hops in the boil kettle. You can create a whirlpool in the boil kettle and let it settle and most of the sediment will settle into the middle of the boil kettle. When you siphon just siphone from the edge of your pot and you will leave most of the sedimentin the kettle.

Ed

EvilGnome6 · 07-15-2009, 01:33 PM

I never use a hop bag. Just do the whirlpool trick like Ed described. I also put a strainer over my fermentation bucket and drain my wort through it when I siphon. It filters out any remaining gunk and does a little aeration at the same time.

Bru · 07-15-2009, 01:35 PM

I didn't think of that - a bag over the end of the pipe would also work.

beerkrump · 07-15-2009, 01:39 PM

This is one of those "Whatever works for you" techniques. The extra sediment in the fermenter is not going to harm your beer. In a matter of days, it will be covered by a layer of yeast cells.

I use a plate chiller, so clean wort is a must for me.

Bolti · 07-15-2009, 02:11 PM

I like the hops in the fermenter. I am under the impression that they give the beer some extra tastie hop taste

rsmith179 · 07-15-2009, 02:17 PM

I would second the technique of whirlpooling your wort when cooling and then dumping it into the fermenter using a strainer. The strainer really helps keep most of the trub out of the primary and also gets the wort nice and aerated. Hops in the primary are not necessarily a bad thing, but one that I like to avoid so I don't have to worry about them when racking later down the road.

Yes, you can also use a hop sack at the bottom of your siphon, however, a word of advice: The bag gets clogged after a while. You'll notice that your flow rates slow down due to the trub stuck all around the bag. I don't use this anymore, but have in the past.

brokenanchor · 07-15-2009, 03:36 PM

I've tried the whirlpool method with limited success. Agreed with rsmith on the hop sack over your siphon as well. It would usually become horribly stuck with a gallon left or so to go, and I would end up sucking a lot of hop residue through. I've been using the hop bag for a couple brews and have been loving it. Saves about a half gallon of beer to trub a batch. A lot of people use them, try throwing something like this together

BADS197 · 07-15-2009, 03:36 PM

I'm using a false bottom on my brew kettle (that also has a spigot).

For the last year I've been brewing I never used anything and just tossed them in. I also didn't filter out anything going into the carboy.

I just used the false bottom for the first time last month and WOW, I didn't know that much stuff collected in the bottom. Granted it was my last extract batch but just the hops themselves with a little bit of coldbreak was a huge pile of crap on the bottom. It all stayed on the false bottom and I had nice clean wort to start with.

I've noticed a lot less junk in the bottom of the carboy now as well.

Arkador · 07-15-2009, 04:29 PM

i always pour my wort through a stainless filter into the carboy, and it catches all that gunk..

my last batch i actually bought a grain bag that doubles as a hop bag, i like it!