fermentation and gravity questions

[schattz]

so I brewed a clone of stone ipa View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1436885254.078768.jpg

using that recipe in the picture all grain so my first question is. is there a way to estimate your gravity without the original gravity? my hydrometer was broken and j forgot to get a new one on brew day.

Two I do not have enough room in my secondary fermenter to dry hop as long as everything is sanitized is there any other issue I could run into if I racked it again into a bigger fermenter? I don't think there would be but just double checking.

 

[m00ps]

Sorry, there's no way to estimate the gravity without an OG. Its like trying to measure how far you've run without knowing the starting point.

For the secondary, SKIP IT. trust me. I would never, ever secondary an IPA or other hop driven beer. All it will do is expose it to more oxygen which will strip that precious hop aroma. Dump the pellets into the primary. Racking it into a bigger fermentor would be even worse since the increased headspace would expose it to more oxygen. Definitely dont do it

 

[schattz]

well I have a little too much wort I already racked it into a secondary and my car boy is so full I don't think I'm going to have enough room to dry hop it

 

[kh54s10]

If you don't have room in the fermenter to dry hop, racking to a bigger fermenter is your only choice. Rack carefully to minimize introduction of oxygen and select a container that will leave you with as little headspace as possible. After you reach FG, transfer and dry hop, 5-7 days later package and condition. As soon as you get the proper carbonation start drinking them. IPAs will lose the hop flavor and aroma more quickly than maltier brews.

If you rack carefully and do oxygenate the beer there is no reason you cannot use a secondary. I prefer to use a fermenter large enough for dry hopping and skip the secondary, mostly to save on the extra work of sanitizing, transferring, and cleaning the extra equipment used. Using a secondary MAY give you a clearer beer.

The best you can do for your OG, is to use the recipe estimate. I could be close or way off depending on how closely your processes matched what the recipe expected.

 

[kh54s10]

well I have a little too much wort I already racked it into a secondary and my car boy is so full I don't think I'm going to have enough room to dry hop it

Again, If you don't have the room to dry hop, and you are going to, you have no choice but to rack to a larger vessel. The more you move the beer the more risk of oxidizing it.

Actually you could sacrifice some beer to make room in the fermenter for the dry hops.....

 

[NTexBrewer]

For OG just assume what the recipes OG is.

Next time save a wort sample and seal it in a ziplock back and refrigerate it to keep it from spoiling. That gives you a couple days to get a new hydrometer and figure your OG.

 

[schattz]

ntc that is a really good idea lol and that was kinda my original idea siphon about a gallon out of the secondary then dry hop or I was also considering another idea. this will be the first time I am going to keg a beer and I have read some people dry hop in their kegs. have any of you tried this method ?

 

[BrewerBrad82]

Schattz - How many all-grain batches have you done? If you have done many and you always come out with a similar efficiency you can reasonably approximate your OG of this clone.

 

[BrewerBrad82]

Also, I would personally just remove enough beer from the primary to get the total amount of dry hops in.

But... If you have a kegging system you may have some options, but personally I do not like to dry hop in kegs - too many clogged dip tubes and poppet valves.

If you must siphon the beer into a larger container in order to dry hop the whole batch, you can always use your CO2 cylinder and regulator to purge any oxygen out of the secondary vessel. Remove the gas disconnect from the end of the gas supply hose and fill the vessel with CO2. This should keep any possible oxidation to a minimum.

 

[schattz]

ok I'm thinking then the best option would be siphon some out dry hop and then I'll experiment with the 1 gallon just dry hop the **** out of it I guess haha

 

[PoppinCaps]

In the future if you want to ease the process by hopping in the keg, make a hop sack out of high mesh stainless (I use about 120 mesh). Make a cylinder using rivets, and pinch the ends like a push pop, then tie it to dental floss and hang it in the keg with the floss through the lid so you can pull it out. Works well for me.