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**BansheeRider** · 02-12-2013, 05:00 PM

I have an IPA that I have been making for 5 weeks now. I oaked and dry hopped in secondary. I transferred to bottling bucket just now. I have a ton of sediment in the bottling bucket. Should I rack two more times to clear? The sediment is unbelievable and I lost about 1 gallon due to dry hopping. Next time I will be using a hop bag. Suggestions please! I dont want this s**t in my bottles.

Oh...the beer tastes awesome!

Kahler · 02-12-2013, 05:06 PM

DO NOT keep racking. you will be exposing the beer to air- bad, and you will be more likely to get an infection- worse.

**tre9er** · 02-12-2013, 05:08 PM

Bottle off your racking cane instead of spigot, that way you can set the depth of the cane. I do this exclusively and it works fine. You will not lose siphon if you're using a good bottling wand.

**BansheeRider** · 02-12-2013, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kahler

DO NOT keep racking. you will be exposing the beer to air- bad, and you will be more likely to get an infection- worse.

Screw it I'll just bottle. Consider it lesson learned. I am a bit pissed off that I didn't get 5 gallons from this though. This is the Octane IPA from Midwest supplies, which is not cheap.

**BansheeRider** · 02-12-2013, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tre9er

Bottle off your racking cane instead of spigot, that way you can set the depth of the cane. I do this exclusively and it works fine. You will not lose siphon if you're using a good bottling wand.

I have an auto siphon. This is a good idea! Thanks!

**Homercidal** · 02-12-2013, 05:10 PM

If you've added the sugar solution to the bottling bucket then you will have to let it ferment out before trying again, which is a great opp. to rack and let it clear some more.

If not, then you can still rack to a fermenter for some more clearing. Either way, you will have racked a couple of times, which is not great for oxidation if you aren't really careful.

I think you will be ok even if you bottle now, just let it settle a bit for the big chunks to drop and then bottle. The bottle swill clear to a great extend and you'll have to be careful when pouring, but it's not that big a deal.

If I were you, I'd practice the art of siphoning. Or you can buy an Autosiphon and make things easier. They have a thing on the tip that helps keep debris out and starting the siphon is as easy as lifting the cane up and pressing it down. I've used one several times for dry hopped beers and never had a problem getting almost all of the beer out without getting a bunch of yeast and hops with it.

Or the hops bag is not a bad idea either.

Just RDWHAHB. You have made beer, and this small problem isn't going to turn it into a terrible beer. Just use it as a learning experience.

**Homercidal** · 02-12-2013, 05:11 PM

Oh , I forgot to mention that I usually add 1/2 gallon to my final volume when planning on dry hopping, especially with whole hops.

BryceL · 02-12-2013, 05:12 PM

I agree, you don't want to keep racking or you will definitely up your risk of oxidation or contamination. I'm not sure of your options at this point other than to bottle. It will settle in the bottle, you will just have to be careful when pouring. Next time you should cold crash after secondary if you can. Put the carboy in the fridge for 24-36 hours and all the yeast and hop debris will settle to the bottom and you can rack the clear beer off the top. I dry hop with pellets and no hop sack and after a cold crash, I rack nice clear beer off.

**BansheeRider** · 02-12-2013, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Homercidal

If you've added the sugar solution to the bottling bucket then you will have to let it ferment out before trying again, which is a great opp. to rack and let it clear some more.

If not, then you can still rack to a fermenter for some more clearing. Either way, you will have racked a couple of times, which is not great for oxidation if you aren't really careful.

I think you will be ok even if you bottle now, just let it settle a bit for the big chunks to drop and then bottle. The bottle swill clear to a great extend and you'll have to be careful when pouring, but it's not that big a deal.

If I were you, I'd practice the art of siphoning. Or you can buy an Autosiphon and make things easier. They have a thing on the tip that helps keep debris out and starting the siphon is as easy as lifting the cane up and pressing it down. I've used one several times for dry hopped beers and never had a problem getting almost all of the beer out without getting a bunch of yeast and hops with it.

Or the hops bag is not a bad idea either.

Just RDWHAHB. You have made beer, and this small problem isn't going to turn it into a terrible beer. Just use it as a learning experience.

Thanks! I do have an auto siphon. I thought the auto siphon would keep most of the debris out as opposed to a racking cane. I was wrong and next time I should use a hop bag I guess.

**olz431** · 02-12-2013, 05:14 PM

I just racked my iipa off of dry hops from the primary to avoid this. I also lost quite a bit, maybe 3/4 of a gallon to hops and 3/4 gallon from blowoff.