Secondary & Dry Hopping Best Practices

[RandallFlag]

Greetings.

I have read countless threads on this site and a lot of folks advocate for skipping the secondary and just leaving it in the primary for a longer time and call it a day. Totally get that and respect it but this time I'm not sure I can get away with that given the need to dry hop and all the trub already in the carboy. Full disclosure: I have been wrong before.

However, I decided to get the NB Plinian Legacy and I want to make this as close to the real deal as possible....so, it calls for a 2 to 4 week secondary. And then a dry hop schedule.

In reading Vinnie's article on brewing Pliny he says to make sure you purge the secondary with CO2. I totally get that but I am but a lowly homebrew and not a kegger (at this time).

So, my questions:

When you rack to a secondary do you want to leave as little headspace as possible?

I fermented in a 6.5 gal carboy and I have about 3" of trub on the bottom. My best guess is that I have a little less than 5 gals of beer at this stage.

Should I step down and use my 5 gal carboy for the secondary?

It seems, well, kinda unsanitary to just dump hops in a beer at this stage.

Do you run the risk of infection with dry hopping?

Thank you in advance for your input. You guys and gals have helped me make some really nice brews in just a few, short months.

 

[Singletrack]

Opinions vary, and I am on the fence but lean toward racking into a secondary to dry hop. Definitely minimize head space. Little risk of infection from dry hopping. The "bugs" don't like hops.

 

[McKnuckle]

You do want to leave minimal headspace. Stepping down in volume to reduce headspace is standard practice for winemakers, who secondary to a fault. So that's a good call.

Properly stored hops are not an infection risk; in fact hops have natural anti-bacterial qualities and were historically used partly for that purpose.

Ever since brewers began considering secondary use as unnecessary, it's become popular to advocate strongly against the practice. This extreme philosophy needn't be so, and should not scare folks who follow good procedures. Dry hop away!

 

[RandallFlag]

Opinions vary, and I am on the fence but lean toward racking into a secondary to dry hop. Definitely minimize head space.

Well, that makes me feel like I'm starting to "get it." Thx.

Little risk of infection from dry hopping. The "bugs" don't like hops.

Did not know that but it's refreshing to hear since the Pliny clone calls for a whole lot more hops before bottling.

 

[RandallFlag]

You do want to leave minimal headspace. Stepping down in volume to reduce headspace is standard practice for winemakers, who secondary to a fault. So that's a good call.

Sweeeet!!!!

Properly stored hops are not an infection risk; in fact hops have natural anti-bacterial qualities and were historically used partly for that purpose.

Very cool. I love learning about the history of beer. Thx.