NB American Amber Ale Kit Question

[lancers7x]

Hey all, new to the hobby and the forum.

I will be brewing for the first time ever tonight using the Northern Brewer American Amber Ale kit and have a question after reading over the instructions. The instructions state that 2 oz of the Cascade hops get added directly to the wort and boiled for 60 minutes and the remaining 1oz added 1 minute before the boil is complete. What the instructions do not clarify is what happens to the hops after that.

Do the hops remain in the wort during primary fermentation or are they to be filtered out when transferring the wort to the primary carboy? Am I correct to assume that if they do remain in the wort during the primary that they will be left behind after siphoning the beer to the secondary?

I thank you in advance for any help anyone could provide.

 

[MyOldKentuckyHomebrew]

You are correct. The hops will mostly dissolve and break up. It will kind of look like wet moss. They will settle to the bottom of the primary along with the yeast and bits of malt. When you siphon from the primary to the secondary you'll leave behind most of the sediment, you can help but bring over a little bit. That will settle in the secondary and when you go to the bottling bucket the little sediment that is left will get distributed throughout all the bottles and will not be noticeable. You can strain the hops when you pour the wort into the primary. Just make sure whatever you're straining through, cheesecloth, mesh bag, etc... has been sanitized. Dipping the bag in boiling water works. Hope this helps. Just remember cleanliness, patience and keep your temperatures consistent..

 

[MalFet]

Some people leave them, some people filter them out. I don't think it makes a huge difference either way, especially for your first brew.

I typically let everything run into the fermentor, but leave as much of the sludge behind as I can. Either way, don't worry too much about it.

 

[WazzuBrew]

I use whole leaf hops and I leave them in throughout the cooling of the wort and strain them out as the wort is poured into the fermenter. At the end of the day, it's your choice and dont worry about stuff too much. As long as your temps are "in the ballpark" and you follow the basic rules of brewing you will be just fine. Also, I wouldn't even bother with secondary fermentation unless you are kegging. I don't know why so many people do it. Maybe it's because it is what everyone else does, or they heard that was what your supposed to do. There are appropriate times to do it, but you can get amazing beer by bottling after one week in primary. I suggest reading The Joy of Home Brewing. It puts Lots of concerns to rest. Cheers and happy brewing!!