French press - hop tea replacing dry hops

[rhys333]

Hi everyone,

I brewed an APA this weekend and I'm looking to experiment a bit with the dry hop addition. Specifically, I’m considering making a hop tea using a French press - either with a hot or cold steep - and adding it either post-high krausen or directly into the keg.

I’ve come across some older threads (dating back to around 2008) where brewers reported good results with this method, but I’d love to hear from anyone who’s tried it more recently. Has this technique held up over time? Any tips on temperature, contact time, or timing of the addition?

I'll include my recipe below so you can get a sense of the hop profile I’m working with. Appreciate any insight or experiences you can share - especially if you've compared this with standard dry hopping. Cheers!

Mackinac Pale Ale 5.5 Gal. 1.050. ~35 IBU
85% Pale ale malt
7% Munich
5% Rolled oats
3% Victory
1 oz Mackinac @ 10
3 oz Mackinac @ WP (175F 30 mins)
Post boil hops: Mackinac "hop tea" steeped with ~1pt (1L) water using a french press. Options: 30 minutes @ 150F? 24 hours @ fridge temp? Other...?

 

[matt_m]

I remember reading about this too. Recently found the french press I bought for it...unused. Gave it to goodwill...

 

[PCABrewing]

Post boil hops: Mackinac "hop tea" steeped with ~1pt (1L) water using a french press. Options: 30 minutes @ 150F? 24 hours @ fridge temp? Other...?

There's likely a sweet spot for aroma and maybe a different one for flavor.
Maybe review the results and guidance around using a hop rocket.
I am interested in what you find.

 

[Whisky River]

I remember David Heath was a big proponent of using what he called “hop tea”. He seemed very pleased with his results but from what I remember reading on this site many people had real bitterness problems. Best I could figure is the temperature you steep them at seemed to make a big difference in the final results but let us know what you find.

 

[Broothru]

I used to do this in lieu whirlpool/hop stand additions: 170C for :15 minutes in the French press, then strain and pour into the chilling wort. It works for small addition replacement for hop amounts less than 1 or 2 ounces.

The benefit for me was less vegetative matter in the fermenter. Now I mostly do a “whirlpool & ‘kettle stand” where I stir for about :20 minutes post boil, then allow the wort to stand for an hour or two before pumping from the kettle to the fermenter. I get very clear wort transfer, and close to a gallon of thick trub sludge left over in the kettle.

Last batch had 5 ounces of hops in the post boil hop stand with virtually none of the vegetation transferred over into the fermenter. Less hassle, more hops, trub-free wort. Couldn’t do that with a French press. But otherwise the French press method works OK.

 

[rhys333]

Thanks everyone for the input so for.

 

[rhys333]

The benefit for me was less vegetative matter in the fermenter. Now I mostly do a “whirlpool & ‘kettle stand” where I stir for about :20 minutes post boil, then allow the wort to stand for an hour or two before pumping from the kettle to the fermenter. I get very clear wort transfer, and close to a gallon of thick trub sludge left over in the kettle.

This is basically what I did on the above-mentioned brew, but there was so much trub in the bottom that it clogged the spigot. I couldn't bare to lose what looked like a half gallon of precious wort, so I ladled it into the sterilized strainer I always place over the fermentor during transfer and collected the remainder.