Dry Hoppping - to bag or not to bag

[AU_Bob]

Never dryhopped before, here's my question. I don't bottle my beers, just keg. I'm worried about the pellets making it into the keg and clogging up the tube. I planned on cold crashing after a week, sending the yeast (and pellets?) to the bottom of my secondary bucket. When I keg the beer it runs through the faucet at the bottom of the bucket, won't the pellets be more likely to go with the flow now that they are on the bottom? Bagging would take care of the issue, but that sounds dangerous introducing the bag so late in the process. Of course if I don't cold crash then the pellets float and avoid the faucet anyway. Rambling now, thoughts?

 

[breez7]

I dry hop quite a bit and rarely bag. The only time I have is when I am putting hops right into the keg. Sometimes I will get a little bit that make it into the keg but that usually is taken care of after the first pint or to is drawn from the keg. I would just throw them right in but just be carefull when you are racking not to suck everything up.

If you do use a bag, just boil it for 10 min before you use it.

 

[stevo155]

I dry hop by throwing the pellets right into the primary and leave them behind when racking to the keg.

 

[BoundForBeer]

I am new to dry hopping too but for my first time I just threw the pellets into secondary. Then when racking to keg I just used a strainer bag around my auto siphon to keep most all the sludge out. Seemed to work out pretty good.

 

[Stimulus]

If you're using a plastic bucket with a spigot though, bag it like you just took home a skank.

I've had those things clog up halfway through draining the beer out more than a few times. All that extra handling and PITA is no good.

I always boil the bag and toss in the hops and just chuck it in. Not that difficult of a step for the hassle it'll save.

As for dry hopping in the keg, I've done that a few times, but I usually do all the dry hopping in the fermentation tank in case the keg ends up lasting a long time.

 

[Cape Brewing]

It's a personal preference thing... i always dry hop in a bag. I don't beleive the bag cuts down on hop utilization and I don't feel like dealing with either a huge amount of hop sludge or hops floating along the top when I'm trying to rack off. Is "hop sludge" and floating hops a real problem? No... again... it is a personal preference deal.

 

[Weapon-X]

I've only done it once... I used a bag. I boiled it first and I put it in my primary. Only draw-back was trying to remove the swelled up hop bag from the narrow opening on the carboy.

 

[jmf143]

i am new to dry hopping too but for my first time i just threw the pellets into secondary. Then when racking to keg i just used a strainer bag around my auto siphon to keep most all the sludge out. Seemed to work out pretty good.

+1

 

[wolverinebrewer]

I always dry hop in primary (always buckets) and just throw pellets in. If I'm using whole hops, then I use a muslin bag so I can put in some large marbles and sink it. I tie the bag closed with monofilament and thread it up through the airlock hole and tie off to the bucket handle to keep it suspended off the trub. When shifting over to a bottle bucket, I put a 1 gal. paint strainer bag over the end of the outlet hose to catch every particle.

 

[AU_Bob]

So here's what I'm now thinking based on feedback. How about tossing the pellets into the primary after fermentation is completed. Then after 5 days or so carefully rack to secondary making sure I leave all of the crud in the primary. Then after 7 days cold crash for a couple of days, then keg as usual. Cool?

 

[Suex]

Put it in with the yeast, the longer the better...I always put my "dry"hops in with the yeast...(before but within about 10 minutes).... I find i get a more full flavor from them, that's just me mind you, so I guess it's up to trial and error.... If you pit it in with the yeast it will sink with the yeast.... If any yeast comes through, it will sink with the sediment in the bottles, so nothing really to worry about..... (if it's in the bottles, your going to get more flavor from them.... Not a bad thing...)

 

[TheBroonery]

In the past when I didn't use a bag the hops clogged the racking cane right before all of it had siphoned into the secondary. Right now i have 2 oz of hops in a bag inside a carboy that I'm dryhopping. I nearly broke my thumb trying to get that thing through the neck of the carboy!

 

[breez7]

If you put hops in with the yeast the CO2 will drive all those great aromas right out the top during fermentation, not to mention after about five days it starts to taste like grass and not hops. IMO

 

[AU_Bob]

How about in the primary after the fermentation is complete or is the best method to rack to the secondary, dry hop, cold crash and accept some will end up in the keg? That last bit over a couple of weeks, not all one step.