Dryhopping

OK, so I think I'm done dryhopping unless you guys change my mind.

My first dryhop was off of a dead guy clone. The result was a soapy tasting brew that I couldn't stand. It never got served, although I was pretty sure the soap taste was from poor sanitation.

My second dryhop was on my amarillo cream ale. Just kegged it on Saturday and decided to give it a progress check today. Again, that same soapy flavor! Different hops, different sources, different cleaning products. I was so sure that it was the same flavor that I decided to give that wretched keg of dead guy a taste to see if it matched. Stunningly, the soapy flavor seemed to be gone in the dead guy! It was warm, so I couldn't accurately judge if I liked the results or not.

When I drink dryhopped proAles, I like them. So I was sure that I'd thrill myself by dryhopping, but all my beers just end up with a soapy taste that (hopefully) goes away eventually.

Your thoughts?

What hopps are you using?

I have dryhopped with Saaz and it turned out good.

I dry hopped with Chinook and I'm loving the aroma after only a week in the bottle. Over all the flavors a little harsh yet, but I don't detect any soap. Mine was dry hopped for 9 days in the secondary. Could dry hop time be an issue?
Craig

You could also just be tasting green beer no? Another thing to do is to test if you actually like the taste of aroma hops. Take a nice aged beer you know you like and just steep some hops in like a tea.

I try to leave all my beer sit after bottling or kegging for at least 1 month.

I've dryhopped several beers, and I really, really like them. I used cascade for a couple, and amarillo for one. I've never had a soapy taste at all- I don't know what's going on. Could it be a yeast issue? I've heard that soapy flavors can be caused by stressed yeast and, of course, soap in the glass or equipment.

if dry hopping try step hopping

I dryhopped a Mac & Jack's clone with cascade, and when bottling, the smell and aftertaste from what I suspect was the dryhopping was incredible. I immediately dropped some cascade into my IPA that was in the secondary.

The DFH 60 clone (Yooper + Brew365 influenced) in my fermenter right now smells and tastes AMAZING after three days. I can't wait to dry hop it. I'll be sure to drink a hydrometer sample before dry hopping in order to make a comparison.

Hopefully I don't get any of that soapy off-flavor you speak of...I'll report back in a few weeks!

I've had grassy flavors after leaving wet hops in for over a month, but never soapy. I've stopped leaving hops in for more than two weeks. If I want more nose, I replace them with a fresh bag.

Any grains in common?

I usually use cascade or amarillo when dry hopping and never had a soapy flavor. Sorry to say Cheese but it looks like you're alone on this one. Try aging it a while, maybe it'll ease a bit...

I'm a self descriped hop head and tend to build beers way out of style guidlines but I dry hop a lot of my beers and love them all. I hope you figure out your problem cause I would be bummed if I couldn't dry hop.

That should fade. Dry-hopping rules.

I would also be curious as to what you dry-hopped with. Different varieites will give different results.

It is like a food recipe....you have to match your dry hops to your main course. You don't want to dry hop an amarillo based beer with a different hop than amarillo (or something close). It is the equivalent of putting ketchup on your fried rice when it should have had soy sauce, IMHO.

Dude said:

That should fade. Dry-hopping rules.

I would also be curious as to what you dry-hopped with. Different varieites will give different results.

It is like a food recipe....you have to match your dry hops to your main course. You don't want to dry hop an amarillo based beer with a different hop than amarillo (or something close). It is the equivalent of putting ketchup on your fried rice when it should have had soy sauce, IMHO.

Click to expand...

My amarillo cream is pure amarillo.

I've just started to be able to drink the Dead Fly I made months ago. There are little specks of (what I hope are) hop debris, and the off flavor is going away. I had a lunch sample today (about 2 oz) and it tasted bad so I dumped about 1 liter out of the keg and it started testing better and looking clearer.

I just now completed bottling on my first dry hopped brew, very very nice stuff.
I just happened to have a little extra that I didn't have bottles for and I am sucking that down as I type. Great hop nose and flavor with tettnang whole hops in the primary for just 5 days! No soapy flavor at all, and I am a newb with under 10 brews under my belt, so there must be something going wrong on the dry hopping there Cheese my boy.

One time I added too many fuggles in the boil and the beer came out a little soapy. I don't like fuggles anymore.