Cold Crashing and Dry Hopping

[PlinyTheMiddleAged]

I have read here on these forums that cold crashing can pull those delicious hop oils out of the fermented beer; therefore, one should not dry hop prior to cold crashing. So my question is...

If I cold crash, when and at what temperature do I dry hop? If I cold crash, do I hold the beer in the upper 30s F for 3-4 days and then dry hop for the prescribed time at the same temperature? Or, after the cold crash, do I let the temperature rise back into the lower 60s F prior to dry hopping?

By the way, I do both my cold crash and dry hopping in the primary.

Thanks in advance for your help.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[NervousDad]

dry hop at fermentation temperature for ~4 days and then cold crash. You'll have plenty of hop aroma.

 

[Roadie]

I forgot whirlfloc on latest pale ale AND when I went to chill it I discovered my water line was frozen solid so I was also unable to chill and as a result have some cloudy beer. I plan on cold crashing and using gelatin in primary then allowing the beer to warm back up for the dry hop which I'll be doing in a spare keg. This will introduce a little hop haze but not so worried about that. Will then rack to a serving keg using co2 and put into keezer.


Almost Famous Brewing Company

 

[PlinyTheMiddleAged]

Ok. NervousDad tells me to dry hop first and then cold crash. Roadie says he's going to cold crash first, raise up the temps, and then dry hop. Thanks to both for your input!

Anyone else want to join in and break the tie? Or does either way work equally well?

Thanks!


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[de3isit]

The article Mitch Steele had in Zymurgy suggested dry hopping then cold crashing. I think he would know. Don't you?

 

[PlinyTheMiddleAged]

Thanks d3isit! I would guess that Mitch knows a little bit about hoppy beverages - I blame him for my current addiction.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[LovesIPA]

Dry hop, then cold crash. Cold crashing really does a great job getting all that hop debris to settle to the bottom.

It doesn't make sense that cold crashing will pull hop oils out of the beer. If that were true it would happen in the keg, but it clearly doesn't.

 

[thisisbeer]

I think the idea is the things in the cloudy beer absorb hop oils and they drop out together. I guess anyway. I have heard pro brewers say you should cold crash before you dry hop. Having said that I normally cold crash afterwards.

 

[Manzier]

Dry hop then cold crash. It pulls out some of the hop nasties and produces a more rounded hop flavor. Well in my opinion.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[ArcLight]

The article Mitch Steele had in Zymurgy suggested dry hopping then cold crashing. I think he would know. Don't you?

For those of us who don't have the magazine, can you summarize his reasoning? Pros and Cons of dry hopping before vs after cold crashing.

 

[jgourd]

I normally dry hop for one week (7 days). To account for a cold crash, I dry hop for about 5 days and cold crash for 3 days. Then I keg and add some gelatin to the keg. I end up with hoppy, clear beers.

 

[NervousDad]

Just to add to my original post. There is an interview on the brewing network with the head brewer of Lagunitas were he speaks about his dry hop routine. You really can't jam anymore aroma into a beer then they do. His process is as follows:

Dry hop at fermentation temperature just about when primary fermentation is done, but still making CO2. The small amount of Co2/yeast will protect/eat-up any of the oxygen that is added with the hops.
Leave the hops at that temp for 4 days. (Russian river recommends 50f)
Cold crash and leave for 3 more days at cold crash temp (~34).
Rack to brite tanks/keg/gelatin.

I just kegged a session pale ale that has amazing aroma and this is the method that I always use.

 

[Roadie]

Just to add to my original post. There is an interview on the brewing network with the head brewer of Lagunitas were he speaks about his dry hop routine. You really can't jam anymore aroma into a beer then they do. His process is as follows:

Dry hop at fermentation temperature just about when primary fermentation is done, but still making CO2. The small amount of Co2/yeast will protect/eat-up any of the oxygen that is added with the hops.
Leave the hops at that temp for 4 days. (Russian river recommends 50f)
Cold crash and leave for 3 more days at cold crash temp (~34).
Rack to brite tanks/keg/gelatin.

I just kegged a session pale ale that has amazing aroma and this is the method that I always use.

Good info. IMO yeast grabs onto hop oils so I would be hesitant to dry hop when any fermentation is going on.

Where did you get the info that Vinnie recommends starting dry hop at 50F? I was fairly certain he starts dry hopping his IPAs at 60F and allows the temp to free rise (maybe hitting 66F) but possibly he's changed his procedure.

To the OP there is more than 1 way to do things. I felt given the circumstances of my latest pale ale batch my order makes sense to me.

I don't think there is any argument in saying dry hopping at warmer temps gives you more aroma than dry hopping at colder temps. Also people like clear, or semi-clear, beer. In many ways brewing, and in this case dry hopping, is a balancing act.

 

[PlinyTheMiddleAged]

Thanks all for your responses. I'm finally getting decent results out of my IPAs - adding salts, keeping mash pH in check, and rapid chilling of wort post boil. I just want to make sure I'm getting the most out of my dry hop additions.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[nimboden]

In the brewery I work at, we drop temp from fermentation temp to 58, let sit for a day, drop yeast, add hops for 4-6 days, cold crash to 34, drop hop trub and transfer. Seems to work well for us.