When transferring any beer where I have a lot of trub, especially a lot of hop material, I frequently get a stuck siphon. Restarting a siphon or a siphon struggling to continue seems to introduce a lot of oxygen. I have noticed this oxidation in some of beers and it really kills the hop flavor. Anyone have any techniques to help me out?
Introducing O2 when transferring
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Yukmay
Active Member
What's your post chill technique?
I usually stir vigorously to get a whirlpool, wait 5 minutes, and then siphon from the side. It works pretty well to avoid trub material. Restarting a siphon at this point isn't so bad, as you'll be oxygenating anyways.
Subsequent transfers shouldn't have any issues until you hit the yeast cake.
Others have used large steel tea balls for hop additions with success.
I usually stir vigorously to get a whirlpool, wait 5 minutes, and then siphon from the side. It works pretty well to avoid trub material. Restarting a siphon at this point isn't so bad, as you'll be oxygenating anyways.
Subsequent transfers shouldn't have any issues until you hit the yeast cake.
Others have used large steel tea balls for hop additions with success.
Golddiggie
Well-Known Member
What are you using to siphon?? If just a racking cane, consider getting an auto-siphon. If you're also kegging you brew, consider getting a stainless racking cane, one of the carboy caps and push the brew with a few PSI (<5)...
I plan to do this with the next batch going to keg. I even have it setup so the I can get the brew into the keg via the liquid post.
I'm even going to do this to transfer a batch of mead onto some oak cubes. I plan to put the sanitized oak cubes into the destination carboy, inject some CO2, and then transfer with another SS cane setup. I've installed 5/16" barbs into the smaller 'post' on the carboy caps I have to make it easier to connect up the gas line.
I did a test run a week or two ago... So easy it's almost funny... I do want to see if gravity will take over once the siphon starts, or if I'll need to keep pushing with CO2...
I assumed you were talking about transfers after the brew was fermented... Right?
I plan to do this with the next batch going to keg. I even have it setup so the I can get the brew into the keg via the liquid post.
I'm even going to do this to transfer a batch of mead onto some oak cubes. I plan to put the sanitized oak cubes into the destination carboy, inject some CO2, and then transfer with another SS cane setup. I've installed 5/16" barbs into the smaller 'post' on the carboy caps I have to make it easier to connect up the gas line.
I did a test run a week or two ago... So easy it's almost funny... I do want to see if gravity will take over once the siphon starts, or if I'll need to keep pushing with CO2...
I assumed you were talking about transfers after the brew was fermented... Right?
I usually just pour the liquid post boil into the fermenter. I leave as much trub as i can. I have tried siphoning but i keep having to unclog the siphon repeatedly. I guess I can try to whirlpool more. When I use >10 oz of hops in a batch it just makes it tough to siphon no matter what I do.
bja
Well-Known Member
So you're talking about post boil? Introducing O2 at that point is a good thing. This isn't killing your hop flavor.
MazdaMatt
Well-Known Member
Think inside the box... get a larger siphon hose/cane.
+1. Also, rack as little as possible. Push beer with CO2 if possible as Golddiggie mentions.
Also, some replies seem to have been made in a fog of reading imcomprehension. The OP is transferring beer. Not wort.
Everyone always assumes that if you're, for example, pumping your autosiphion to restart it, that you are pushing oxygen into the beer. BUT no one takes into consideration the fact that just maybe those bubbles you are seeing may in fact NOT be oxygen, but CO2 in the solution.
If your autsiphon stops for some reason and if you aren't lifting it out of the fluid, then giving it a couple pumps to move the liquid is not going to be pumping air into it, and even if it did, a couple pumps to restart is not going to hurt it.
It really takes a lot of pumping or splashing to be an issue, often more than even what we create during our most frustrating mistakes.
Our beer is really much stronger than most folks will give it credit. It's very forgiving- it takes a lot to ruin it. No one is perfect, we're going to make mistakes, when we do stuff, we're going to occasionally have to re-start a siphon, sometimes several times. We're going to jostle our beer around.
I'm not saying we don't need to be careful. But we also don't need to go into panic mode every time something happens.
I had a pumpkin beer that I pretty much had to hand pump the entire carboy to get it into the bottling bucket. And guess what? Even a bottle I found 3 years later tasted fine. It wasn't liquid cardboard.
We really don't need to stress every move we make with out beer. It's not a weak, mewling baby, and it's not going to "die" if we look at it the wrong way.
If your autsiphon stops for some reason and if you aren't lifting it out of the fluid, then giving it a couple pumps to move the liquid is not going to be pumping air into it, and even if it did, a couple pumps to restart is not going to hurt it.
It really takes a lot of pumping or splashing to be an issue, often more than even what we create during our most frustrating mistakes.
Our beer is really much stronger than most folks will give it credit. It's very forgiving- it takes a lot to ruin it. No one is perfect, we're going to make mistakes, when we do stuff, we're going to occasionally have to re-start a siphon, sometimes several times. We're going to jostle our beer around.
I'm not saying we don't need to be careful. But we also don't need to go into panic mode every time something happens.
I had a pumpkin beer that I pretty much had to hand pump the entire carboy to get it into the bottling bucket. And guess what? Even a bottle I found 3 years later tasted fine. It wasn't liquid cardboard.
We really don't need to stress every move we make with out beer. It's not a weak, mewling baby, and it's not going to "die" if we look at it the wrong way.
Yukmay
Active Member
There's no fog in my comprehension!
The reason I ask about the wort transfer is because unless dry hopping there is no need for lots of trub/hop material to be making it into the fermenter. Sure it's not required to use hop bags, drain w/false bottom, or strain but if the trub is hindering later transfers it can be eliminated from the source; consider leaving it in the kettle!
The reason I ask about the wort transfer is because unless dry hopping there is no need for lots of trub/hop material to be making it into the fermenter. Sure it's not required to use hop bags, drain w/false bottom, or strain but if the trub is hindering later transfers it can be eliminated from the source; consider leaving it in the kettle!
OP said beer, not wort. O2 pickup on transfer into primary is seldom addressed as a problem. Plenty of us dry-hop in the fermenter, especially when out for killer hop aroma.
If that's disrespectful, I respectfully disrespect.
If that's disrespectful, I respectfully disrespect.
Yukmay
Active Member
Agreed, I dry hop all the time!
And we want to oxygenate wort from kettle to primary! I never said that was bad.
My argument is that if hops from the kettle are getting in the way of transferring the beer later there are ways to minimize their volume in the fermenter.
My advice is that minimizing trub/hops from kettle to fermenter will help with material clogging transfers of beer later.
Sorry if that's completely wrong.
Respectfully
And we want to oxygenate wort from kettle to primary! I never said that was bad.
My argument is that if hops from the kettle are getting in the way of transferring the beer later there are ways to minimize their volume in the fermenter.
My advice is that minimizing trub/hops from kettle to fermenter will help with material clogging transfers of beer later.
Sorry if that's completely wrong.
Respectfully
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