Problem - Not Sure What to Do (Brew in Progress)

[ahsndpro]

I know this isn't a big deal, but my hop bag opened and now my hops are loose in the brewpot. Should I try to devise some way of straining them out or should I just leave them be and let them fall to the bottom during fermentation/secondary. The brew is an IPA if that matters.

Thanks in advance!

 

[the_bird]

I wouldn't worry about them too much. If you have a collander or strainer, you could pour your (COOLED) wort through that into the fermenter (sanitize it first). But, I've fermented with lots of hop gunk before, it hasn't been a problem.

 

[BierMuncher]

Is this an extract?

Are they pellets or whole leaf?

You want to try and keep them from getting into the primary. I would:

1) Get a big SS strainer if you have one and simply scoop them out best you can, from the wort, once the boil is complete?

2) Use that same strainer or the finest mesh strainer you have, suspend that over the primary bucket and pour the wort through the strainer.

You will find that the strainer clogs pretty frequently and your strainer will fill with wort (hops are nasty cloggers).

Take a spoon and stir the stuff in the strainer till it empties into your bucket. Repeat the process until you've transferred all the wort into the primary bucket.

Don't worry. We've all done it. Let the natural settlement in the primary take care of the rest.

 

[Brewtopia]

Not a problem at all. Either strain as bird says into your fermenter through a sanitized strainer (this will help with aeration as well) or simply siphon into your fermentor leaving the hops behind. I never use a hop bag, I like to let the hops swim free. You get better utilization that way. If they end up in your primary that's cool too. You can leave them behind when siphoning into the secondary.

 

[ahsndpro]

Thanks!

I figured I could just try to leave as much behind as possible when I transfer the wort to the fermenter and leave the rest behind when I rack to secondary. I think I'll do that. The thought of trying to find/sanitize a strainer right now seems like a pain in the ass.

 

[Bugeaterbrewing]

In the 100+ brews I've done, I have never used a hop bag or used a strainer to dip them out. I let them move around freely in the boil (free range hops?). You get slightly better utilization that way.

I cool the wort in the boil kettle using an immersion chiller. Once cool I use an autosiphon with a stainless steel scrubbie stuck over the bottom end to siphon out the wort. The scrubbie provides enough surface area that the hops don't clog the flow. Also this allows the hops to work as a filter to keep the hot and cold break out of your fermenter. Of course for this to work you do need to have at least half your hops as whole hops or plugs, not the pellets.

Wayne
Bugeater Brewing Company

 

[TheJadedDog]

I use a strainer and find it works pretty well on hop pellets, other than that it clogs really easily. I'm anal about sanitation so I usually rinse the strainer with my sanitizing solution to unclog it, usually takes several rounds to get all the wort in the fermenter.

 

[dibby33]

I have never used a hop bag. just pour it through a strainer.

"she'll be right"

 

[ahsndpro]

So I ended up letting the wort cool and then I just poured it into the fermentor until I got to the end. Then I lined a small strainer I have (sanitized of course) with a grain bag and poured the chunky wort through it and squeezed it with my spoon. It worked really well.

Thanks for all the input. I don't think I'll be using a hop bag again.

 

[pirate252]

Be careful if you use a 5 gal carboy for you primary like I do though, the hops can get stuck in your blow off tube/airlock and clog it, then you can guess what happens next.