cweston
Well-Known Member
Whole hops especially absorb a lot of wort--what, if anything, do you do about it?
If you bag them (I have some very coarse mesh bags that work well for whole hops), you can fish them out of the cooled wort with a sanitized spoon and press them against the inside of the kettle to squeeze that wort out. Or you can do about the same thing in a large strainer.
Its a little tougher with loose hops: I've thought about pouring through a colander and then pressing them with the outside of a metal bowl or something (the same size as the colander.)
I've also thought about putting on rubber gloves, sanitizing my (gloved) hands, and just squeezing the juice out.
I'm guessing that, in a hoppy beer, I'd lose at least a quart, maybe two, to hops absorption, if I did nothing to strain that liquid out.
If you bag them (I have some very coarse mesh bags that work well for whole hops), you can fish them out of the cooled wort with a sanitized spoon and press them against the inside of the kettle to squeeze that wort out. Or you can do about the same thing in a large strainer.
Its a little tougher with loose hops: I've thought about pouring through a colander and then pressing them with the outside of a metal bowl or something (the same size as the colander.)
I've also thought about putting on rubber gloves, sanitizing my (gloved) hands, and just squeezing the juice out.
I'm guessing that, in a hoppy beer, I'd lose at least a quart, maybe two, to hops absorption, if I did nothing to strain that liquid out.