-TH-
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This may be a really dumb question but I noticed almost everyone uses secondary for dry hop, even the primary-only folks (of which I am a recent joinee) and I haven't figured out why. Can anyone enlighten me?
Do you dry hop in the primary or secondary and why
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Zymurgrafi
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I will dry hop in the primary fermentor or sometimes in the keg. If it is in the fermentor I wait until about day 10 or so, could be a bit earlier, which gives it another week or so to sit in there.
The important thing is you want to wait until the most vigorous part of fermentation is over. If you add them when the airlock is still bubbling rapidly the escaping CO2 will scrub the volatile hop aromas.
The important thing is you want to wait until the most vigorous part of fermentation is over. If you add them when the airlock is still bubbling rapidly the escaping CO2 will scrub the volatile hop aromas.
brewt00l
Well-Known Member
Secondary...partially because I want an open ended ability to let the beer sit until I am (or better stated, the beer is) ready to move to bottling & partially because it opens up a primary. I do like the simplicity of having the beer off the thick and generally easily disturbed primary cake when I am adding hops, fruit, oak, ect. Racking onto and off those items is easier to prevent problems IMHO than plopping that stuff into the beer.
ifishsum
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That's pretty much me too. I guess I could get or make another primary but I don't really have room for more equipment.
Tonedef131
Well-Known Member
I do it in the primary because I have done it both ways and have not noticed any flavor or aroma differences. So doing it in the primary simply saves me a whole step and I have less risk of contamination and less oxygen exposure.
So just open it up and drop in hops? Is floating pellets a problem?
I use a muslin bag with SS washers attached to the draw string. It keeps the hops in the beer . You could dry hop commando but you'll have to fight against clogs and whatnot.
I dry hop in my kegs using a hop spider.
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I dry hop in primary...no need to move the beer and risk oxidation or infection. I drop them in on day 10, sit for three days, cold crash and keg.
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For West Coast IPAs, I dry hop 3-4 days into primary when gravity is near complete to avoid oxidation as much as I could. If there's a second charge, it'll go in the keg.
For NEIPAs, first charge goes in 24 hours into primary. Second charge will go in the keg.
I used to do everything in secondary, but the beer didn't have a shelf life, especially with the NEIPAs. I can't say I do secondary for anything anymore except the beers that need extended lagering. One less step. Ultimately to avoid oxidation.
For NEIPAs, first charge goes in 24 hours into primary. Second charge will go in the keg.
I used to do everything in secondary, but the beer didn't have a shelf life, especially with the NEIPAs. I can't say I do secondary for anything anymore except the beers that need extended lagering. One less step. Ultimately to avoid oxidation.
Shouldn’t be an issue. The hop pellets will dissolve and settle to the bottom.
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
Deleted. I can not get myself involved in another secondary discussion.
BrewnWKopperKat
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Over time, one learns to check the packaged on dates for malt extract, the started on dates for the thread, ...
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
Haha this is the second time this has happened to me semi recently too. Check the thread born on date has now been added to my SOP
Beenym88
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I don’t think to many home brewers actually rack to a secondary anymore so I take it as after fermentation has ended. This is one of those questions where answers vary like crazy certain hops can cause hop burn if left on to to long and hops to early can cause hop creep leading to higher abv. However most NEIPAs call for hops while fermentation is still happening. What I now do for a neipa is a small dose of dry hop at the very end of fermentation than another 2-3 days later. For everything else I give the beer a week than dry hop it. I try not to let the hops be for more than 5 days.
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
You’d be surprised how many still do and argue to they are blue in the face that secondaries positively benefit or have no effect on their beer. 4 page active thread going right now of a back and forth. I had to ignore and in watch it because it was bringing the worst out of me. You can only bring a horse to water...
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Beenym88
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Yea I mean not even every beer in a brewery gets moved to a brite anymore since everyone has unitanks. I get it if your leaving it in crazy long but mine never goes more than two weeks and that’s another thing I don’t understand why people do leave their beer in the fermenter so long but that’s a whole other argument.
