Is there a way to un-hop a beer during fermentation?

Tasted a sample of a hefe while measuring an SG and found it quite more hoppy than intended. Will that mellow with age or is there anything I can do to un-hop?

im new myself, still on my first brew... but for what its worth, what if when u transferred it to your secondary fermenter you strained it to get all hop residue out... and let it ferment in there for a couple weeks.... this is a total guess and dont take my word lol

From experience, that will mellow, the longer it sits the more the hop aroma and taste will dissipate. I don't know of any other way to "un hop" once fermentation has already began. If its still too hoppy after primary fermentation You definitely could transfer to a secondary vessel once fermentation is completed, I would think leaving it in a secondary for another month or two would drastically help

Age will help, but you will be surprised how fermentation and carbonation will change it. Just remember what it tastes like and compare it to the taste on bottling day and after aging. It will give you a basis for your process. I assume you are keeping notes and recipes. Excel or LibreOffice Calc work great for notes if you do not want to purchase a commercial program. In fact, I saw a spreadsheet on the site earlier today that was very well done - right here.

RDWHAHB,

Cody

YeastHerder said:

Tasted a sample of a hefe while measuring an SG and found it quite more hoppy than intended. Will that mellow with age or is there anything I can do to un-hop?

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Yeah, but you will probably need a mass spectrometer and a particle accelerator.

As others have said, hop aroma and flavor do fade with age. Unfortunately, hefs are usually considered best young. Who knows, in a few weeks it may be just right. Best of luck.

My IPAs change a ton with hop aroma and flavor after a month or so in the keg. Age should help. However if you are talking the bitterness is too "hoppy", then you may be out of luck

The only way to "un-hop" a beer is to dilute it.

Build a hopless wort with DME, let it cool. Play with your recipe in a software to and adjust the top up water to determine how much lost bitterness to expect.

I would let it age.

However if you're really desperate, perhaps you can pitch more hefeweizen yeast. Or possibly bring the temperature of the beer up in order to bring out more banana flavors to make the hoppiness less noticeable.

I would rule with aging though.

Normally I'd agree with the age thing, but not for a hefe. Gotta have the hefe fresh.

I'm with Gila - dilute it.

yeah, i'd go with age it out a bit. bottle it for ~3 weeks and try one a week after that and find the peak.

Yeah, but you will probably need a mass spectrometer and a particle accelerator.

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A flux capasitor installed in your vehicle will also do it.

They can probably help you build one in the DIY section. You have to supply the Libyan plutonium, though.

TopherM said:

A flux capasitor installed in your vehicle will also do it.

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Comes standard on a Nissan Leaf.

Did you alter a recipe or change the amount of hops? If not I would imagine what you have tasted so far is not what it will be like when finished.

I have had some that did not taste very good at bottling and very good when done. I also had one that I didn't like much at 2 weeks of bottle conditioning but became one of my best after 3 weeks in the bottles.

So, no way to un-hop beer, in the "antidote" sense. Dilution instead.

For the record, I've had multiple too-hoppy-tasting freakouts after sampling Belgian & German wheat beers in the primary. In all cases, the beers turned out fine. It's true: alcohol and carbonation, plus a small amount of aging (I'm talking a couple weeks in bottles), does wonders. WONDERS, I tell you.

GilaMinumBeer said:

Comes standard on a Nissan Leaf.

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roflcopters AND lollerskates.

Hello, You could brew another one right now without hops, ferment it 1 week, then mix 1/2 of each batch into 2 secondary's, wa-la less hoppy beer, and twice as much to drink, its a win win situation! lol

well it was just a thought !

WiliECoyote

WileECoyote said:

Hello, You could brew another one right now without hops, ferment it 1 week, then mix 1/2 of each batch into 2 secondary's, wa-la less hoppy beer, and twice as much to drink, its a win win situation! lol

well it was just a thought !

WiliECoyote

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Just send a box of Acme instant beer.

Hi, I am YeastHerders brother.

Our first hef was a bit dark, we felt we burnt the LME.
In an effort to tame the color down the idea was to boil the hops with less LME (25%) then add the LME balance nearer the end of the boil. After it was all done I plugged it into the program and yelped at the IBU of 25.

Now what?

Here is the result (opps)

KettleCorn said:

Hi, I am YeastHerders brother.

Our first hef was a bit dark, we felt we burnt the LME.
In an effort to tame the color down the idea was to boil the hops with less LME (25%) then add the LME balance nearer the end of the boil. After it was all done I plugged it into the program and yelped at the IBU of 25.

Now what?

Here is the result (opps)

Click to expand...

WileECoyote said:

Hello, You could brew another one right now without hops, ferment it 1 week, then mix 1/2 of each batch into 2 secondary's, wa-la less hoppy beer, and twice as much to drink, its a win win situation! lol

well it was just a thought !

WiliECoyote

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With the updated info from Beersmith, WiliECoyote's ideas seems like a possible path. Otherwise, you just bottle, age a little and see what it taste like.

The only other thought I have is to finish it, filter it, and call it a Bastard Kolsch

I fear we are bottling suckiness... Maybe we cut our losses and....

YES.... I'll say it.... DUMP IT!.... yup, i said it....

And brew up a partial mesh and make a good Hef instead of bottling an IPA/Hef
Maybe we bottle a few... So, that we can feel that much better about how the next one tastes

I'll be the first to say it - DON"T DUMP THE BEER, MAN!

Seriously, I would not dump it. I would bottle it and see what happens. Look at the guidelines for Kolsch in Beersmith - You are really close to those. A good week long cold crash would partially clear it if you can't filter.

That being said - It is your beer and your money - Do want every you want

CGish said:

I'll be the first to say it - DON"T DUMP THE BEER, MAN!

Seriously, I would not dump it. I would bottle it and see what happens. Look at the guidelines for Kolsch in Beersmith - You are really close to those. A good week long cold crash would partially clear it if you can't filter.

That being said - It is your beer and your money - Do want every you want

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I agree! 25 IBU 's is a little high for a Hef... but that does not justify dumping it. I say put a little orange zest in the primary when it finishes fermenting (since it is too late to add it in the boil!) and call it a "German Witbier". Just because it is not exactly what you expected does not mean it will be bad beer.

25 IBUs really isn't much- yes, it's more than the style guidelines normally have, but the bitterness will mellow a LOT with some time and aging. Trust me! Don't dump or dilute! Bottle it, let it sit for 4 weeks, then chill it. It will be pretty darn good. Hallertauer hops are noble hops- clean and without harshness- and 1.5 ounces isn't much for bittering. It will taste quite a bit difference once aged a bit, and carbonated as the carbonation provides a tart "bite" to the beer that counteracts some other flavors.

DeLorean DMC-12, check. Flux capacitor, check. Couldn't get my hands on the plutonium, so I'm waiting for a thunderstorm. :rockin:

To kill some time, I took another sample and I'm happy to report that it is mellowing out. Still a hoppiness that is outside the style range, but it will be drinkable. Thanks!

DONT DUMP IT, Instructions are as follows, 1 bottle it up, 2 send it to me, 3 Ill mix it (1 bottle yours & 1 bottle mine) with a batch ill brew (without hops), 4 you can count your losses and 5 I get more beer.
Just kidding (kinda) lol

Really, I would just age it a bit and drink it, and its a great learning experience!

Cheers
WiliECoyote

We bottled it up last weekend.

Actaully we tasted it just prior to bottling and it was a "noob scare".
We are the noobs and the taste early on was scary.

The combined scare of Brewsmith IBU25 and the early taste was bittery yuckl...
But as time passed on and on bottling day we had a taste it is was actually pretty tasty.... Admittedly, it is above it style, but not too outta whack.

But thanks for the offer WileE
beep beep zippp banggg.

Cheers.

KettleCorn said:

We bottled it up last weekend.

Actaully we tasted it just prior to bottling and it was a "noob scare".
We are the noobs and the taste early on was scary.

The combined scare of Brewsmith IBU25 and the early taste was bittery yuckl...
But as time passed on and on bottling day we had a taste it is was actually pretty tasty.... Admittedly, it is above it style, but not too outta whack.

But thanks for the offer WileE
beep beep zippp banggg.

Cheers.

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Glad to hear its working out, just remember time is your best friend when it comes to making good beer.

Congrats on your brewing!

your comment is classic, made me chuckle out loud.
WiliECoyote

I'll book mark and post a follow up after we try one.


Cheers

Ok. I'll never threaten to DIUMP THE BEER agian. I think this is our best Hef yet!! Ok that is not saying too much becuase it is our 2nd. Our first got burnt, and we thought we over hopped the second but it is GREAT!!!!


We have a 3rd in the carboy - a partial mash with ~5bls of grain and the rest as late addition extract... But hat is 30 days away from the taste test.
Never Dump the Beer!!!!
Thanks for the words of encouragement to hang tough......

Yum!
Cheers to all.
:cross: