Black IPA: Long Primary Question

[jskinner10]

So I just brewed the Northern Brewer Black IPA kit on Wednesday. Everything has gone smoothly thus far. However I will be going out of town next week and probably won't be back for 5 weeks or so. I am a little concerned about losing some of the hop character in those 5 weeks. I do plan to follow the recipe and dry hop with an ounce of Cascade a week before bottling. Should I really be concerned about losing hop aroma and flavor in those 5 weeks?

 

[SilverZero]

So I just brewed the Northern Brewer Black IPA kit on Wednesday. Everything has gone smoothly thus far. However I will be going out of town next week and probably won't be back for 5 weeks or so. I am a little concerned about losing some of the hop character in those 5 weeks. I do plan to follow the recipe and dry hop with an ounce of Cascade a week before bottling. Should I really be concerned about losing hop aroma and flavor in those 5 weeks?

Dry hopping when you get back will be fine. If you can be sure to keep the brew cool and dark while you're gone, those 5 weeks will be great for it. The dry hops will restore anything that might be lost, I'd wager.

 

[jskinner10]

Sounds good. I can have someone stick it in my root cellar once it's done fermenting. It should be down into the 50's or 60's in there by the time the yeast have finished their job.

 

[kyleobie]

I'd agree. What kind of hops did you use in the boil?

 

[Dogphish]

if i you are worried about hop aroma, you should go to the local homebrew store and get another 2 ounces of hops to dry hop with. one ounce isn't very much in my opinion.

 

[Seven]

I brewed this kit once before and felt it had the best flavor at about 6-weeks old. So your travel timing sounds like you will return just in time for maximum deliciousness.

 

[jskinner10]

Yeah Dogphish, I was actually thinking about upping the amount of dry hops. We'll see what it's smelling like when I get back.