Whole Hops vs. Pellets

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kjung

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I'm sure this has benn covered before, but ...
I know that whole hops are best for dry hopping, but that is about it when it comes to my knowledge for their use.
I have used mostly hops pellets in every batch, using plugs once. I want to try using whole hops, and need to know the difference when adding them to the boil. DO you just toss them in, like you do pellets, or do you have to crush them to bring out the oils ?
 
If the recipe calls for pellets, do you use the same amount of whole, or is there an adjustment needed ?
 
I use a bag on all my hops, but I especially like them when using whole hops so I can squeeze the wort out of them as I'm chilling. 1 oz of whole leaf seems to hold about a pint wort if left untouched. It's not so much the wort I'm worried about but the hop flavor and aroma that is likely very concentrated in that wort.
 
I use a bag on all my hops, but I especially like them when using whole hops so I can squeeze the wort out of them as I'm chilling. 1 oz of whole leaf seems to hold about a pint wort if left untouched. It's not so much the wort I'm worried about but the hop flavor and aroma that is likely very concentrated in that wort.

Do you use insulated rubber gloves or do you wait until there cool enough to grab?I never realized how much Wort Im losing until you just mentioned it, With a lot of my brews I have 5 or 6 hop bags in there, im losing a ton of wort.
 
I recirculate my CFC's output back into the kettle until I get the whole wort down near 130F. That's when I'll dip my rubberized gloved hands into my sanitizing bucket and reach in to squeeze out all the hop bags that I had hanging. I've done it bare handed at that temp before but would recommend against it.
 
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