Dry Hopping in a Keg

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jmadway

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I'm getting ready to transfer a 5-gallon IPA out of primary and into two 3-gallon corny kegs. After doing some reading on dry hopping, I am planning on using pellet hops in a stainless tea ball dropped right into my serving keg and keeping it in there as long as is necessary, perhaps even after I tap the keg.

My questions are these:
- Can I simultaneously chill the beer, force carbonate it, and dry hop?
- Does it work to dry hop at, say, 36 degrees or should it only be done at much warmer temps?
- Does carbonation affect dry hopping?
- Should I dry hop in the keg for some amount of time prior to refrigerating and force carbonating?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Jesse
 
If you dry hop at room temp then you want to do this for 1-2 weeks max depending on the amount of hops used and the desired effect. If you are going more than 1 oz for dry hopping you might not want to use the ss tea ball because the hops will swell up tight in this small space.

I use sanitized panty hose to hold my dry hops in a keg weighing down this with a few glass beads from Dollar Tree. At the other end I tie dental floss (unflavored) so it can stick out of the keg top and still seal. If this is added to the keg while cold conditioning you can leave the hop bag in for a very long time to sustain the flavor you desire.
 
- Can I simultaneously chill the beer, force carbonate it, and dry hop?
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Yes, but not well. The problem is that chemical reactions proceed much MUCH more slowly at lower temperatures, and getting hop oils - which are what cause hop aroma - into solution is a chemical reaction. Chilled beer will take forever to dryhop.

Does it work to dry hop at, say, 36 degrees or should it only be done at much warmer temps?
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Like I say above - yes, but it will take months.

Does carbonation affect dry hopping?
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Carbonation in a GLASS affects the perception of hop aroma, because it carries the aroma out of solution to your nose. So, once served, highly carbonated beer will seem hoppier than its still counterpart. Simply putting the beer under positive CO2 pressure will not greatly affect the dryhopping process.

Should I dry hop in the keg for some amount of time prior to refrigerating and force carbonating?
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You can. I usually dry hop with one or two ounces for a week or so, but I do that in the fermenter. The issue with dryhopping in the keg is that it introduces a lot of particulate matter into the package that can either show up in your glass when you pour, or else clog your lines. You can use a hop bag as a physical barrier, but that probably won't do a perfect job and, in any event, can still get sucked into your dip tube and block the flow of beer.
 
pericles said:
You can. I usually dry hop with one or two ounces for a week or so, but I do that in the fermenter. The issue with dryhopping in the keg is that it introduces a lot of particulate matter into the package that can either show up in your glass when you pour, or else clog your lines. You can use a hop bag as a physical barrier, but that probably won't do a perfect job and, in any event, can still get sucked into your dip tube and block the flow of beer.
Click to expand...

I exclusively dry hop in the keg, and never have clogged lines or plugged dip tubes. Simple zip-tie the bag up high enough on the dip tube so the hop sack (mesh bag for me) doesn't reach the bottom. This lets the hops permeate the beer in the keg, then drip out once beer level is below the hop bag. It takes my kegs a matter of 1-2 days to display more hop aroma, and a week to level out. After several weeks the beer is significantly better and smoother overall. Kyle
 
I have been dry hopping in kegs exclusively for several years. I have used bags, balls, nylons and have settled on what I think is the cheapest, easiest and most elegant approach which is the Surescreen: Search results for: 'surescreen' : Northern Brewer
Simply, it is a stainless steel mesh tube that fits over the pickup tube of the Corney Keg. It has the advantage over other techniques (balls, Bags, or Nylons) that it allows for 100% contact with the hops. Other techniques contain the hops and thus reduce the potential for flavor transfer. The Surescreen allows for an almost unlimited quantity of dry hops as well. I have used over a pound in a DIPA.

As far as carbonation, it is possible to both force and do Cask Conditioning. I prefer the natural carbonation because the beer is both carbonating and Dry Hopping simultaneously. Additionally, the yeast activity of natural carbonation has the additional benefit of scrubbing out the Oxygen contained within the Dry Hop addition. I have found that my Cask Conditioned beers that treated in the manner have a much longer shelf life and better long term hop flavor.
 
Just finished drinking my first dry-hopped brew, and I didn't get the hop aroma I was looking for. I dry hopped in my keg and I believe the tea ball I used was much too small so the hop pellets were crammed in there too tight.

This time, I'm planning on dry hopping in the primary instead of the keg (no good reason for this; just want to try something different). I found a gigantic tea ball that I'm going to use.

image-3695945899.jpg

My question is this: the mesh in this tea ball is not as fine as the one I used in my last beer. It may very well be fine enough, but if it is not, will any hop particles that escape simply settle out to the bottom of the fermenter? Is this anything that I should be concerned about?
 
jmadway said:
Just finished drinking my first dry-hopped brew, and I didn't get the hop aroma I was looking for. I dry hopped in my keg and I believe the tea ball I used was much too small so the hop pellets were crammed in there too tight.

This time, I'm planning on dry hopping in the primary instead of the keg (no good reason for this; just want to try something different). I found a gigantic tea ball that I'm going to use.

View attachment 40613

My question is this: the mesh in this tea ball is not as fine as the one I used in my last beer. It may very well be fine enough, but if it is not, will any hop particles that escape simply settle out to the bottom of the fermenter? Is this anything that I should be concerned about?
Click to expand...


A couple of things,
Read this from Vinnie of Russian River: http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k98/dstar26t/makingbetterhoppybeer.jpg

You said "I believe the tea ball I used was much too small so the hop pellets were crammed in there too tight." That is why the Surescreen (at $8) works so well. The whole hops are free in the entire keg, all five gallons have 100% contact, unrestricted by bags, balls and unlimited on how much hops you can add. Want to dry hop with four ounces?, no problem. Want to dry hop with a pound of hops?, still no problem.

My August, 2011 IPA that pulled down a 1st in a competition against 66 other IPAs', had 5-1/2 ounces of dry hop. Try to put that in any tea ball. The judges said I won because my beer had the best hop aroma and flavor and I get that by using a bunch of hops in the dry-hop addition, in the keg, with a Surescreen.

Putting the hops in primary will be counter productive. The yeast in suspension will attach to the hops and settle the flavor to the bottom. Better to rack to secondary, when the beer is clear and give the hops a chance to get into suspension without getting absorbed by the yeast.
 
Calpyro,

Does leaving the hops in the beer the entire time lead to the feared "grassy" taste? Thank you!!!
 
J8D said:
Calpyro,

Does leaving the hops in the beer the entire time lead to the feared "grassy" taste? Thank you!!!
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Yes, after a couple of weeks it does impart a grassy taste.

However, I chill my dry-hopping keg and transfer the beer to another CO2 purged and sanitized keg for dispensing.

In the final keg, I finalize the carbonation level and serve.
 
calpyro said:
Yes, after a couple of weeks it does impart a grassy taste.

However, I chill my dry-hopping keg and transfer the beer to another CO2 purged and sanitized keg for dispensing.

In the final keg, I finalize the carbonation level and serve.
Click to expand...

Oh that makes sense. I may have to try this then. I have always (with one exception) done the hops inside a bag in the keg for 7 - 10 days then I remove it and serve. I never really get the aroma I am striving for. Although I must say that I typically only add 1 ounce or so. Perhaps I need to not only do the free range hop method you describe, but also increase the amount. Thanks again!!! :)
 
I pulled a pint if the Yooper 60 minute clone last night. This is the first time I have dry hopped in the serving keg. After a week, the aroma was explosive but you can really taste the hop oils. It's not great. It's like the oils have not blended into the beer. I tried stirring the keg with indifferent results. I'm gonna wait a few more days and try again. Has anyone experienced this? I am using 4 3" tea balls 3/4 filled with raw Simcoe and Amarillo hops.
 
This is my experience with dry hopping in a keg: I rack the batch into a keg, prime it and dry hop it simultaneously, put it away in the basement for 2-3 weeks and then chill it in the kegerator and then crack it open.

It works perfectly as long as I use whole hops instead of pellets. I put the hops in a strainer bag and they float on the top distributing the hop aroma very evenly throughout the lifespan of the keg. You want to use less hops, about 1 oz. in a keg equals the hop aroma of 2 oz. in a secondary.

Pellet hops in the keg don't work for me veary well so far. First of all, the bag falls to the bottom of the keg and gives out too much aroma and taste. Also, because they are essentially "chopped" to tiny peaces, they leach some "green leaf" taste, not consistent with hop aroma. I can also see a green haze in the beer with pellet hops. I may try to use a finer bag, maybe a nylon stocking and I may try hanging it somehow so it doesn't sink to the bottom. But for now I find using whole hops to be much better and easier solution.
 
Scooby_Brew said:
This is my experience with dry hopping in a keg: I rack the batch into a keg, prime it and dry hop it simultaneously, put it away in the basement for 2-3 weeks and then chill it in the kegerator and then crack it open.
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What do you mean by prime the beer before you keg, that sounds wrong to me.
 
I tout one of the biggest advantages of kegging was that you didn't have to prime, your just force carbonate, so you do not get the sediment that comes along with it.
 
To me the biggest advantage of kegging is not having to bottle. I prime in a keg, so I can put the beer away in the basement for a few weeks/ months, just like bottles, they don't go bad. When priming a keg you want to use only about half of sugar you would use for bottles, so there is a very small amount of sediment. And you can remove it easily by just pouring out the first pint. My kegerator is small, so this works for me better.
As far as dry hopping in a keg, I tried just about every possible way, and IMHO the only way to do it is with whole hops, pellets simply don't work in a keg. Even with the finest bag the pellets are "leaking" into the beer, make it cloudy and ruining the taste of beer. Whole hops in the keg work just fine - they provide a constant taste and aroma throughout the lifespan of the keg, but they don't make the beer overly cloudy and "grassy" in taste like pellets do.
 
Couldn't you just purge the void space with co2 from your kegging rig and be done with it? I am very new, so I apologize if this is a stupid question. This is the first thread I have posted on.
 
fadedgiant04 said:
Couldn't you just purge the void space with co2 from your kegging rig and be done with it? I am very new, so I apologize if this is a stupid question. This is the first thread I have posted on.
Click to expand...

I thought this too....? What is the purpose of priming the keg?
 
loudgonzo said:
I thought this too....? What is the purpose of priming the keg?
Click to expand...
The yeast activity of natural carbonation has the benefit of scrubbing out the Oxygen contained within the Dry Hop addition. I have found that my Cask Conditioned beers that treated in the manner have a much longer shelf life and better long term hop flavor.
 
After removing hop bag (used pellets) should I force into another keg or should it be fine in the keg I dry hopped with a bag in to serve up?
 
I have dry hopped in the keg using pellets in a paint strainer bag and left it in for the entire life of the keg. After its refrigerated (essentially cold crashed), the first few pints are usually cloudy with lots of hop particles in the beer and the beer has an overly strong hop aroma and taste. Over time, the hoppiness tends to mellow and fade. I've only taken the hop bag out of the keg once and that was because I thought I was sensing a "grassy" flavor. However, in hindsight, I think I was just being paranoid after reading too many threads about grassy flavors. I have also added dry hops mid way through a keg when it didn't have or started to lose the hoppy flavor I was looking for. Just opened the keg, dropped the hops in a paint strainer bag and sealed it back up (purged it of course). No problems. What surpirese me the most is how the beer continues to change over time both in terms of hoppiness and other aspects. I guess it just keeps evolving.
 
I always get massive hop aroma on my dry hopped beers. Use atleast 1/2 oz per gallon, per Vinnie from RRB. And always cold crash yeast in primary and then rack to secondary before adding hop pellets. Dry hop for 3-10 days then cold crash again and rack clean beer to bottle or keg. Seems to work well for me. Also helps to use single malt bills, just 2 row, to better highlight hop flavor and aroma.
 
calpyro said:
I have been dry hopping in kegs exclusively for several years. I have used bags, balls, nylons and have settled on what I think is the cheapest, easiest and most elegant approach which is the Surescreen:


just making sure i understand this....this is the same screen I use at the bottom of my mashtun. I just put it over the tube that goes to the bottom of the keg (like a sleeve) and then put whatever amount of hops I want in the bottom of the keg (no containment at all) and rack the beer on top? If this is correct, what do you do for the space between the screen and keg at the top?
also, I just read that pellet hops tend to clog the screen. I plan on using 3 oz in a 3 gallon keg and I don't have easy access to whole leaf hops.
Click to expand...
 
sputnam said:
calpyro said:
I have been dry hopping in kegs exclusively for several years. I have used bags, balls, nylons and have settled on what I think is the cheapest, easiest and most elegant approach which is the Surescreen:


just making sure i understand this....this is the same screen I use at the bottom of my mashtun. I just put it over the tube that goes to the bottom of the keg (like a sleeve) and then put whatever amount of hops I want in the bottom of the keg (no containment at all) and rack the beer on top? If this is correct, what do you do for the space between the screen and keg at the top?
also, I just read that pellet hops tend to clog the screen. I plan on using 3 oz in a 3 gallon keg and I don't have easy access to whole leaf hops.
Click to expand...

The Surescreen is tubular, stainless steel screen which is crimped at one end. It is designed to slide over the pickup tube of a Corney Keg. It allows you to add whole hops unrestrained to the keg for dryhopping. It works very good.
It is designed for whole hops: http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/mash-boil-screen

Since writing the post about the Surescreen, I have found and purchased another product that I use as well. It is called the Clear Beer Drought System. It replaces the downtube with a stainless steel float which draws beer from the top of the keg. It works well for pellet hops. It also works for the final keg to draw beer from the top of the keg where it clarifies first.
http://www.clearbeerdraughtsystem.com/

Another important tip that I can pass along is to add 1/3 cup of priming sugar (boiled in water) to the keg at the time of dry-hopping. All hops contain some amount of oxygen which will stale your beer prematurely. By adding sugar, you re-activate the yeast to absorb any oxygen in the hops. This was a key factor in improving my hoppy beers. The shelf life of my beers went from 1-2 months to 9+ months.
I learned at Hop Union's Hop School, at dry-hopping with some active fermentation creates favorable flavor compounds that cannot be created without the action of active yeast.
Adding sugar with the dry-hop makes good flavor and keeps your beer fresher longer.
Hope it helps.
Click to expand...
 
I generally dry hop in the keg, carbonate it and let it sit about a week before chilling, gives the desired effect, for Lagers, I usually let them sit at 50degrees for 2 weeks before chilling to 36.
 
Another important tip that I can pass along is to add 1/3 cup of priming sugar (boiled in water) to the keg at the time of dry-hopping. All hops contain some amount of oxygen which will stale your beer prematurely. By adding sugar, you re-activate the yeast to absorb any oxygen in the hops. This was a key factor in improving my hoppy beers. The shelf life of my beers went from 1-2 months to 9+ months.
I learned at Hop Union's Hop School, at dry-hopping with some active fermentation creates favorable flavor compounds that cannot be created without the action of active yeast.
Adding sugar with the dry-hop makes good flavor and keeps your beer fresher longer.
Hope it helps.[/QUOTE]

I'm about to DH with 3 oz whole leaf summit in a 3 gallon keg with a screen over the dip tube. I plan on lightly chopping the hops in a food processor and tossing them in. In order to remove the oxygen the hops contain, I will also be adding 1 oz priming sugar. I plan on letting this sit for 72 hours at room temp before putting it in the keezer. That should be long enough for the yeast to eat 1 oz of sugar right?
 

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