Dry hopping

[Onetime]

Should i use a bag or just poor those bad boys in? Do i have to transfer to secondary if dry hopping?

Thanks


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[Munchkin]

IMO it would depend on whether or not your using pellet hops. If using whole hops you could rack the beer on top the already added hops in the secondary. If your using pellets just dump them into the primary. You can add whole hops directly to the primary but im my experience they tend to float on the surface without a stir or in some kind of weighted container. Hop bags are optional, I personally dont bother with them.

 

[PackerfaninSanDiego]

you can but if you put them into a hop sack, you won't have all the hop matter in your wort. And no, you do not have to transfer to a secondary for dry hopping. You can if you want to, but not neccessary

 

[RM-MN]

I've done both pellet and whole leaf hops in the primary. When I rack the beer to the bottling bucket I wrap a fine mesh bag (paint strainer bag) around the inlet end of the siphon and hold it in place with a rubber band wrapped around it. Make sure you sanitize it before you dunk it into the beer.

 

[duboman]

I've done both pellet and whole leaf hops in the primary. When I rack the beer to the bottling bucket I wrap a fine mesh bag (paint strainer bag) around the inlet end of the siphon and hold it in place with a rubber band wrapped around it. Make sure you sanitize it before you dunk it into the beer.

+1
but there really is no right or wrong way to do this, I just toss them in as well like RM does in primary. It really comes down to your preferences and whatever you find easier

 

[Puddlethumper]

You can always put a big marble (sanitized) in the sack with whole hops. It will pull the bag down to the bottom of the fermenter after a day or so. Might give a little better utilization of the hops. Pellet hops can do the same thing but you'll only need a little marble.

Secondary, primary, doesn't matter a lot really. I would dry hop in primary and let it ride for several days to a week or more. Then rack it off to a 5 gal. carboy and chill it down to 38-40 for a few days before packaging. Others cold crash in primary with good results. Your choice.

Cheers!

 

[Sbarnard80]

As others have said, can do leaf, but you'll want to bag or use a filter. I find that pellets compact enough at the bottom after 2 weeks that I can easily siphon off for bottling without leaving much behind. And whether you do secondary or not some of the pellet material may float, each time you check on it, just give a tiny jiggle and some will sink to the bottom and that will get rid of all the floaters.

 

[sleepymonkey]

I have a nylon hop bag and stainless steel hose barb that I'm not using (I've heard of marbles or whatever else people can sanitize and use for a weight- I'd be careful with hot-ass marbles if you boil them though) that I boil to sterilize, then I put the dry hops in and drop it in either the primary or secondary (whichever I'm using). I've heard that dry hopping in the secondary is a little more advantageous b/c of yeast in the beer in primary pulling hops to the bottom, but it has worked fine for me in both. If I have time (patience, really) I like to to it in the secondary anyway cause otherwise you're letting your beer sit on all that yeast all that much longer.

 

[sleepymonkey]

Oh yeah, I forgot to add that if you just toss the dry hops in (free-ballin!) it's much easier than using the bag I just mentioned, but keep in mind that if you are kegging you are gonna have a lot of hop particles in your beer and they will clog your liquid out tube. This can be resolved (topic on another post) but it's less frustrating to just use a hop bag if you're gonna keg it.