question about Dry Hopping

This may be a dumb question, but I have done some searching on here and can't seem to find the answer, so here goes....

Could someone give a high level explanation (I'm definitely a beginner) as to what the benefit of dry hopping is vs boiling the hops with the wort? Also, are there certain beers you should do this for and some you should not? I don't plan on trying this anytime soon, just curious what this does for you/when you are supposed to do it.

Any information is appreciated! Sorry for all the questions, but hopefully one day I will be able to answer all these newby questions like the ones I ask!

Dry hopping should give you more hop aroma. Boiling the hops gives you bitterness instead.

The answer is both simple and complex. The simple answer is that the hops will give your beer different flavors and aromas depending upon when you put them in. Earlier additions will result in more bitterness, but generally less hop flavor and aroma. Additions around the 20 minute mark or so (that is 20 minutes remaining in the boil...the standard way of expressing hops additions) will give you more hoppy flavor, but not as much aroma and much less bitterness, and later additions will give you more aroma but less flavor and very little in the way of bitterness.

Dry hopping doesn't really add much in the way of bitterness. In my opinion it can substantially add to perceived bitterness, but generally speaking when you add dry hops, you are going to get a much more hoppy aroma which can have a big impact on your beer.

I've got this chart, which I shamelessly stole from somewhere else and cannot properly give credit, which shows how the amount of time you boil the hops influences the hop profile of your beer:




There are some sort of exceptions to what I just said, as you can get interesting effects by using first wort hops, for example, and hopping in the mash, but the trends in the chart are pretty accurate.

Thanks for the quick replies....Interesting. I think I have seen that chart before as well (not sure where), but I never really understood why you would dry hop instead of just adding at the appropriate time of your boil.......So it really sounds like this will only impact aroma and should not really contribute to flavor very much...Good to know!

anteup02 said:

Thanks for the quick replies....Interesting. I think I have seen that chart before as well (not sure where), but I never really understood why you would dry hop instead of just adding at the appropriate time of your boil.......

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I've started dry hopping mainly because I'm experimenting and a lot of people seem to do it. My speculation as to why dry hop instead of just putting all the aroma hops in at once:

1. The beer is cool, not hot, so you'll get next to no additional bittering.
2. Leaving the hops in for a longer period gives a stronger aroma, but if you leave them in too long you get a grassy flavor. Dry hopping leaves the hops in for just the right amount of time.
3. Some chemical process during fermentation affects the aroma of the hops already present. Dry hopping allows you to get the aroma without whatever chemical process happens because fermentation is pretty much done.

Here is a good source for you to read up on some of the fundamentals:

http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter5-1.html

The chart above is garbage. Isomerization is a smooth curve like this:



And if the aroma/flavor curves were correct, there would be no point of doing flameout adds or dry hopping.

Dry hopping retains the lightest aroma oils. Ones that would boil off in seconds.

anteup02 said:

So it really sounds like this will only impact aroma and should not really contribute to flavor very much...Good to know!

Click to expand...

Aroma and flavour are closely connected and you can't totally isolate one from the other. For example, when you have a cold and blocked nose you can't taste food and drinks properly. Therefore, a stronger aroma in your beer will enhance the flavour.

I'm going to have to dispute this, as acids are but one part of hops. What does isomerization of acids have to do with the oils that carry flavor? I've had great results with late-hopped beers, and Mr. Malty agrees:

http://www.mrmalty.com/late_hopping.htm

david_42 said:

The chart above is garbage. Isomerization is a smooth curve like this:

And if the aroma/flavor curves were correct, there would be no point of doing flameout adds or dry hopping.

Dry hopping retains the lightest aroma oils. Ones that would boil off in seconds.

Click to expand...