Hops Utilization

[gregcummines]

Hi everyone,
I have quite a bit of homebrewing experience; probably around 300 under my belt now in the last 12 years or so. I have always put hops in a bag or stainless steel mesh filter for all of the stages in brewing in order to avoid any clogging, however I am questioning whether I will get a *significant* (> 5% or noticeable to me) hop utilization increase if the hops are free to circulate and agitate.

I would like to reference this article that says probably not: http://brulosophy.com/2016/03/21/kettle-hops-loose-vs-bagged-exbeeriment-results/

The reason I am asking is that based on the hops I use in some of the IPAs I brew, I would think there should be more hop bitterness, flavor, and aroma.

I bag my hops in fine mesh strainer bags usually in the boil, and I have been doing the same in the fermenter.

Here is what I would like to do, but if I don't see significant benefit, then the risk and/or payoff is just going to be opposite what I would want:
1. Use hops in the boil kettle without any filtering device and whirlpool at the end to bring all the particulate to the middle so that I can drain off the side. I have a 20 gallon SS Brew Tech boil kettle. I used about 17 oz of hops in the last 15 gallon NEIPA batch I boiled. Will this be too much to successfully whirlpool. I don't want to clog my chiller.
2. Use hops in the SS Brew Tech 1/2 Barrel Unitank free floating. Is this wise? I have this one: https://www.ssbrewtech.com/products...O5SWa0e1hJIjhTEmTzYRnOv-ardqNWcwaApP6EALw_wcB
I would think that I would get significant utilization if they are free floating. Can I drain this off at the bottom valve without clogging?

Please let me know if you have experience here. Thanks!
Greg

 

[day_trippr]

I use a 6" x 20" 400 micron ss spider in a 20g bk and I'm pretty sure the mass of hop pellets from a typical 10 gallon batch of neipa (10 ounces in the kettle) would seriously swamp out my side pickup leaving me to resort to a cane. That would piss me off.

As well, the greater portion of hop pellets in the fermentor sink in a handful of days, and could easily clog up a dump port unless it's a big'un. If you cold-crash the whole mass to the bottom you'd likely end up pissed off as well

Cheers!

 

[IslandLizard]

I have a plate chiller and need to contain the hops. Therefore I use 2 or 3 large (9x20") fine mesh hop bags with a handful of glass marbles added to keep them submerged. I always "massage" the hop bags with a wooden paddle and drain them every 5 minutes or so during the boil and whirlpool to refresh the wort inside. I squeeze them out with sanitized silicone gloves toward the end of chilling cycle, before transferring the wort to the fermenter. I do lots of NEIPAs and IPAs, and get good hop extraction while bitterness seems good, as expected.

I dry hop with hop pellets, always added loose to the fermenter. I drilled a 1" access hole in the bucket lid through which I add them while CO2 is streaming in through the airlock stem. After adding dry hops I stir the batch, then again once or twice a day, using the back end of my long plastic brew spoon. It has a small rectangular paddle on it. Always with CO2 flowing. I may flush that headspace afterward with CO2, for good measure.

After a cold crash period all trub including hop matter sinks to the bottom. I then rack "clear" beer from the top.

If I were you, cold crash, and transfer the "clear" beer until the racking arm gets near the trub. I doubt you'll be able to dump the hoppy trub unless you have a fairly wide port there.

 

[thehaze]

I have tried a hop spider in the kettle and bags for the dry hop, but never really had expected results.

I use a Grainfather, so a smaller equipment, but I always use pellets and it great amounts in both the kettle and fermenters. Never had an issue.

In the kettle, I usually add around 7-10 oz hops and with a whirlpool, I can get a compact layer at the bottom, and I can transfer relatively clear beer to fermenter. I never got more than 1 incg of trub in the fermenter. I dry hop loose and if you cold crash, you can easily get clear beer in the bottles/keg.