Dry Hopping

[justbrewit]

i've never dry hopped before but i'm about to. what i'd like to know is this;

is dry hopping done in the primary or secondary fermintation?? its really going to be a pain to get the hops(pellets) into and out of the secondary(carboy) in the muslin bag. i'd just dump the hops in, but i'm not going to filter the beer before i bottle. would it be ok to dry hop in the primary?? thanks in advance!!

 

[Walker]

I think you can throw them directly into the secondary. A couple things to note:

(1) hop bags aren't much good when you use pellets. A lot of hop particles will pass right through the bag, defeating the purpose of using the bag in the first place.

(2) you are going to rack back to a bottling bucket before bottling, right? If so, then just avoid the hop particles when you rack and you have (in essence) filtered the beer.

-walker

 

[justbrewit]

i'm still not all that excited about just putting my hops straight into the beer in the secondary. is there any reason why i can't dry hop in the primary??

what about racking off into another plastic fermenting bucket for my secondary??

i've never had a problem with the hops coming through the muslin bag.

 

[Walker]

ah.. muslin bag? I misread your post. I only have nylon bags and the hop pellets come through those pretty easily.

I am really a greenhorn with dry-hopping. I've only done it once, so I don't have any real experience to share.

I would think that dry-hopping in the primary could be done, but you probably want to wait for the krauesen to fall back in before you do it, which might give youonly 1 or 2 weeks dry-hopping time before you have to start worrying about canibalistic yeast producing off flavors.

Plus, you might lose some of the aroma after you rack to the secondary and let it sit for a few more weeks with no dry-hopping.

Just thinking out-loud...

Also, I am not sure I understand your concern with dry hopping in the secondary if you are willing to do it in the primary???

-walker

 

[justbrewit]

your thoughts are more than welcome orfy!! thanks bud

 

[Walker]

*looks around to see if orfy is here*

 

[justbrewit]

oops, my bad!!! too much quervo and schwaben brau!!!!! LOL thanks walker

 

[Walker]

no problem.... after all, I think we are all just one single consciousness simultaneously examining itself from all possible angles.

-walker

 

[justbrewit]

ok, thats a bit too deep for my drunk!!! LMAO!!!!

 

[Walker]

yeah.. i get weird when I'm sober....

-walker

disclaimer: I stole that line from some show on TV... can't remember which one it was.

 

[justbrewit]

well have a home brew and join my frame of mind!!!!

 

[Walker]

alas... I am working right now and can't tip one with you.

even worse, I have to call headquarters in California for a meeting tonight at 8pm eastern time, so no beer for me until after 9pm.

-walker

 

[justbrewit]

well then, i'll have a shot and a beer for ya!! i don't have any homebrew yet, but i should have some by the middle of january!

 

[Walker]

January!? What are you waiting for?! A simple ale can be ready for consumption in a month's time! You could be enjoying homebrew on Thanksgiving (and what better thing to give thanks for!)

-walker

 

[justbrewit]

sorry, i meant december! i haven't even gotten my stuff yet!! i should have it by the end of this week and if i do, i'm brewing saturday! the beer i'm brewing needs to age 6 weeks!!

 

[Walker]

best of luck being patient for 6 weeks on your first batch.

I'm trying to hold off on my stout until my birthday in December. It went into bottles this weekend (4 weeks after brewing it), and now I just have to sit here for another 5 or 6 weeks before I crack one open.

-walker

 

[justbrewit]

this isn't my first batch! more like my 6th. i took a break from brewing for 8 years but i'm back. i've learned alot of patients since my last batch!! i'm a father now and a fisherman!! i've got loads of patients!!!! LOL

 

[El Pistolero]

i've learned alot of patients since my last batch!! i'm a father now and a fisherman!! i've got loads of patients!!!! LOL

How's the fishing in Germany?

 

[justbrewit]

it SUCKS!!!!! it costs too much, all the bodies of water are privately owned, i can't wait to get back to the sates!!! but enough about that. any other opinions about dry hopping???

 

[david_42]

Dry hop in the secondary. As mentioned, you lose some of the aroma oils if you put them in the primary. Pellets & no bags for carboys, the grit will settle out. Stick to the low AA aroma types.

 

[user 574]

I've dry hopped numerous times in the secondary with pellets. It looks like a crazy mess at 1st, then it settles to the bottom amongst the trub. When you rack to your bottle bucket or keg I get almost zero pellet crap coming along for the ride; no more than the trub there already. None of it is suspended after 2 weeks. Just go for it and dump em right in there.