Do you dry hop in the primary or the secondary?

[wailingguitar]

I wonder if this increased the risk of something getting a foothold in the beer or if the yeast take over too quickly for that to be a concern? I kind of thought it was done later int he process due to the high quantity of yeast coupled with the alcohol minimizing the possibility of infection.

EDIT: This is in response to dry hopping at the same time as pitching.

Pitch enough yeast and it shouldn't be an problem... did it for a couple years at the commercial level with zero issues

 

[RandalG]

I've only done secondary and keg so far as I don't dry hop much. I think I'll need to try primary though as it is easier. The time I dry hopped in the keg I left it in until the keg was done. There was a sweet spot a few weeks in but I was getting vegetable flavors towards the end so I don't think I'll try that again.

 

[Nicegirl]

I brew only one beer that calls for dry hopping, a pale ale. The schedule for this beer calls to be dry hopped for 14 days which I normally do in secondary after a one week primary fermentation.
Rack into secondary and drop my hops into the carboy before adding the beer. Let it sit in a cool dark place for 2 weeks, filter and carbonate.

 

[SouthtownsBrewing2011]

What do you do? Is it better to keep the beer in the primary when dry hopping and skip the secondary all together? Or rack to the secondary? Would leaving it in the primary affect the clarity or increase your chances of contaminating your beer?

Cheers


-Nate

I dry hop in the secondary
1. I then can brew again my primary is empty.
2. When I dry hop I boil 1 cup of water and throw my hoop in and then let them cool to 80 before I pour them into the secondary. I have had something start to grow in my secondary when I just throw them in as pellets.
3. Your beers is clearer and the secondary hop is more potent.

Life begins at 60 that is 1.060
Scott

 

[kal]

When I dry hop I boil 1 cup of water and throw my hoop in and then let them cool to 80 before I pour them into the secondary. I have had something start to grow in my secondary when I just throw them in as pellets.

It's not the pellet hops that caused the issue, it's something else. (Nothing grows on hop pellets). If it was the pellet's you'd be one of the first people in the world this happened to and should buy a lottery ticket.

Kal

 

[andrewhicks237]

I always dry hop in primary. Probably sound redundant at this point but whats the use in risking oxidation by using secondary? Used leaves last time and no problem. Once its converted the alcohol will kill anything and there really isn't any issue with contamination.

On Tap: Blvd Wort Giveaway Belgian Pale Ale
Primary: Nada!
Secondary: Nada!

I need to get to brewing!

 

[Raptors06]

I had always done dry hop in secondary (out of the 2 batches requiring it) but will be trying out primary soon on my Mosaic IPA. Thanks for the timely question!

 

[breidenb]

I do both. In the primary toward the end of fermentation and transfer to the secondary if I'm double dry hopping.

 

[beertroll]

I cold crash the primary, then rack onto the dry hops in the secondary. It frees up the 6 gallon fermenter (I have a 5 gallon carboy I use as the secondary), and gives me a slightly clearer beer. Though I'm considering dry hopping in the keg instead.

 

[JFK]

To get the intended result of a dry hop it should be done after primary fermentation is done and usually the step before bottling. If you dry hop in your primary then transfer to your secondary to condition it you are going to lose some of the intended aroma you were looking for. Brewing is a personal experience and to give everything a try is always a good idea. if you want to get creative and see the difference between dry hopping in primary and secondary make a batch siphon off half of it into secondary and condition and dry hop at end of conditioning and put the other portion of dry hops into the one still in primary. I will bet you that you will find quite a difference in between these 2 products. Which you like will be entirely up to you. you may find some styles you will like one more than the other and vice versa. From a traditional standpoint the dry hopping happens in secondary toward the end of conditioning or in the keg/vat. Personally depending on the style I do prefer to dry hop right into the keg as was the way it was done with the original IPA's. Hope this is helpful and have fun with it!

 

[Ixtlanas]

'Normal DH'
1. About 7 days in the first fermenter
2. 7 to 10 days in the second fermenter. Dry Hop Here.
3. One day cold crash
4. Bottling

'Turbo charged' DH
1. About 7 days in the first fermenter. On day 1, 1/3 of the amount of DH (lets say 8/10 grams per 20 Liters) in alcohol (pellets). Alcohol has a strong extraction power (A.A. too, so you need to include this in IBU calculations)
2. 7 to 10 days in the second fermenter. Dry Hop here. Alcohol down the fermenter (for example 30 millilters in 20 liters = +0,15 ABV)
3. One day cold crash
4. Bottling

 

[Damoxemus]

I do all three (adding another option!), depending on what's going on.

I normally dryhop in the fermenter, about 5 days before packaging. I don't rack to secondary just to dryhop, but sometimes I have some yeast in the fermenter that I want to reuse so I will rack into the carboy on the dryhops so I can rinse and save the yeast.

Sometimes, I just dryhop in the keg. That works well too, as long as I use a fine mesh bag so I don't clog up my diptube.

I like to re-use my yeast as well so thought about doing racking my current batch for dryhopping. But if I were to use a hop bag (sanitized, of course) in the primary would that interfere with me re-using my yeast again?

 

[BeerKillLogic]

Anyone notice a higher levels oxidation when dry hopping in primary? Each individual pellet that breaks the surface of the beer is also bringing oxygen with it. Using a secondary seems to be a gentler way of introducing hops to the beer to me. But I'm just assuming.

 

[RonPopeil]

i never use a secondary. two weeks in primary then 7 days on moderate pressure and we drink.

 

[BrewHaas]

a buddy and i fermented a split batch with him dry hopping in the secondary and me dry hopping in the primary. His beer had way more hop aroma. I don't know if the yeast is swallowing up the hops or what as I ferment in a Sanke and can't see in.

 

[daksin]

Been loving the short dry hop in primary- anything that gets my beer drinking faster is great by me!

 

[landocal9]

I've always done either in secondary or in the Keg and had good results. I have heard though that dry hopping when yeast are most active (in primary) will give you an entirely different flavor so I'm going to try it sometime. Maybe split the batch and do both like others have suggested.

 

[mforsman]

Dry hop in primary and then use secondary to settle all of the gunk out.

 

[HopZombie99]

I have never, ever done a secondary and I only brew IPAs. All my dry hopping is done in primary and I have not been displeased with the results so far. I use koppafloc in the boil and isinglass in the fermenter.

 

[sybesbrew]

On my last few dry hopped beers, I've been cold crashing the primary and dry hopping in the primary after. The idea is that this drops the yeast out of the beer and allows for maximum hop aroma extraction from the hops once they are added.

 

[Damoxemus]

For you primary dry hoppers: do you re-pitch in the same yeast cake and if so is there anything you do to prevent the hops from accumulating in the yeast eg using a hop sock?

 

[chezhed]

Question on dry hopping in the keg for first time doing this:
How long before you begin drinking?

I cold crashed a primary and siphoned into a cold keg on the bag of leaf hops and force carbed it with 30 lb charge and it is now in kegerator waiting....when do I get to try the results realistically? Normally I could begin consumption in about 5 days with the force carb.

 

[Stauffbier]

For you primary dry hoppers: do you re-pitch in the same yeast cake and if so is there anything you do to prevent the hops from accumulating in the yeast eg using a hop sock?

I don't pitch on cakes or even wash yeast anymore for that matter, but when I have used a hop sack I still get a good amount of hop debris in the trub. Not a huge amount, but enough that would make it hard to wash the yeast.

Question on dry hopping in the keg for first time doing this:
How long before you begin drinking?

I cold crashed a primary and siphoned into a cold keg on the bag of leaf hops and force carbed it with 30 lb charge and it is now in kegerator waiting....when do I get to try the results realistically? Normally I could begin consumption in about 5 days with the force carb.

I'd say you could drink it at 5 days like normal, but you might notice an improvement in aroma/flavor after a little more time. My keg hops seemed to be at their best after about 2 weeks.

 

[shoreman]

Used to dry hop in keg but now at primary a few days before transfer - it's been working out great

 

[dershbrew]

I am fermenting my first apa currently and am considering dry hopping in the keg. Should I use the keg essentially as a secondary (basement temp and I manually release gas daily) or should I throw the keg in my fridge while dry hopping?

 

[Stauffbier]

I am fermenting my first apa currently and am considering dry hopping in the keg. Should I use the keg essentially as a secondary (basement temp and I manually release gas daily) or should I throw the keg in my fridge while dry hopping?

Leave it at basement temp for a week or so.

 

[jgarretson]

I heard an interview from a brewer in Oregon who dry hops "warm" to ensure he doesn't get any grassy notes. If you're brewing an IPA and fermenting in the low 60's to keep the esters out, any ideas what warm is for dry hopping? 70 degrees maybe?

 

[Dolomieu]

I heard an interview from a brewer in Oregon who dry hops "warm" to ensure he doesn't get any grassy notes. If you're brewing an IPA and fermenting in the low 60's to keep the esters out, any ideas what warm is for dry hopping? 70 degrees maybe?

That's interesting. I have dry hopped cold in my keezer and never got any grassy notes. Would you happen to have a link to that interview? I would be interested in listening to it.

 

[Stauffbier]

I don't get grassy or vegetal notes from either hot or cold dry hopping, but I have noticed I get better aroma and flavor if it's on the warm end. It also gets me the flavor and aroma I'm looking for much quicker if it's warmer. When I say warmer I mean about 68-70F, since I usually ferment around 62-66F. I've tried dry hopping in the keg at serving temp, but for me it takes too long and doesn't give the same punch!

 

[pumpkinman2012]

I dry hop in the secondary while clearing, 7-10 days depending on the brew, both the IPA and the APA's took 7 days real well, a real nice aroma that grabs you as soon as you put the glass to your mouth!