Help me save this extract beer!

[fogkin]

I dont usually use extract kits, but my buddy gave me a 5 gal Brewer's Best NEIPA kit that he had for who knows how long. Not thinking I whipped up a starter of Wyeast London Ale III and brewed it the next day following the instructions because why not give it a try?

First thought while brewing was the hops in the kit. Not typical for what I use for a NE IPA but whatever. 1 oz cascade for 60 minute boil and 1 oz cashmere for 10 minutes. Then 2 oz cashmere and 2 oz chinool for a 20 minute whirlpool at around 160°. Afterwards I randomly thought, how old were those hops I just used? Oh well it'll be fine right? Took my OG reading of 1.054 and pitched the starter.

Followed the hop schedule and added the 1 oz Chinook and 2 oz Centennial hops that were included 4 days after brewing. Kegged it 5 days after that. Smelled ok going into the keg, but the still sample I took to get my FG (1.008) was lackluster. Maybe carbonation will help bring out the hops, right?

Fast forward a week later now that it is carbonated. It came out very thin and with a weak aroma and flavor profile. Reminds me of the time my mom made sun tea but accidentally used teabags from the last batch.

Going to try and save it with adding some Citra, Mosiac, and Galaxy to the keg in a stainless hop filter. Just not sure how much to add. Was going to do an oz of each. Or should I add more?

Just looking for thoughts or recommendations to make this somewhat drinkable. Thanks for any advice given!

 

[bailey mountain brewer]

Underhopped ipa... that never happens hahaa.. yeah I've done it a few times and did exactly what your thinking of to remedy it. I dry hop my neipa at 2oz per gallon and you currently have 3oz of dry hops in what I assume is 5 ish gallons in your keg, maybe a little less. So I'd add 2oz of citra 2oz of mosaic and if you feel confident that the galaxy you have is good 1oz of that. Now, you must also have a big enough cylinder for that amount of hops, they'll swell a bunch once in the beer. Also, be sure to purge with co2 while adding and also do a few purge cycles once you get your lid back on, oxidation sucks.

 

[fogkin]

Underhopped ipa... that never happens hahaa.. yeah I've done it a few times and did exactly what your thinking of to remedy it. I dry hop my neipa at 2oz per gallon and you currently have 3oz of dry hops in what I assume is 5 ish gallons in your keg, maybe a little less. So I'd add 2oz of citra 2oz of mosaic and if you feel confident that the galaxy you have is good 1oz of that. Now, you must also have a big enough cylinder for that amount of hops, they'll swell a bunch once in the beer. Also, be sure to purge with co2 while adding and also do a few purge cycles once you get your lid back on, oxidation sucks.

Didn't think about hop expansion. I just picked up 2 oz of Citra and Mosiac and 1 oz of galaxy. The cylinder I have is listed at 2.8in x7.1in. Not sure if it'll be big enough for 5 oz of hops. Never paid how much pellets actually expand.

And it was a little over 5 gallons after pitching my starter jn the primary.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Didn't think about hop expansion. I just picked up 2 oz of Citra and Mosiac and 1 oz of galaxy. The cylinder I have is listed at 2.8in x7.1in. Not sure if it'll be big enough for 5 oz of hops. Never paid how much pellets actually expand.

And it was a little over 5 gallons after pitching my starter jn the primary.

They do expand, and it could be so much so that the inner pellets don’t really get wet, so don’t over pack the strainer. Another option, could be to add hop extract via a syringe into one of the posts after depressurizing the keg, and put your new hops in the freeze for a future brew day.

 

[bailey mountain brewer]

Yeah I don't know the exact amount that they will swell but I would say if your less then half of the volume of the tube it should be OK.

 

[fogkin]

Ok, I just ordered a slightly larger filter off of Amazon that'll be here tomorrow just to be safe. Maybe I'll throw 2 oz in the small tube and the rest in the bigger one so all the hops get more contact with the beer.

Really appreciate the info. Just hope it'll be ready by Sunday for this birthday party.

 

[IslandLizard]

Ok, I just ordered a slightly larger filter off of Amazon that'll be here tomorrow just to be safe. Maybe I'll throw 2 oz in the small tube and the rest in the bigger one so all the hops get more contact with the beer.

Really appreciate the info. Just hope it'll be ready by Sunday for this birthday party.

Use both cylinders, and divide the hops according to the tubes' respective volumes.

Dry hopping only takes 3 days. If you can, agitate that keg a few times a day, such as rocking back and forth, swirling, rolling, etc. to help with faster extraction and dispersion of the hop oils.

You can burst carbonate the keg, so it will be fully carbonated within 15 minutes. It will be a bit foamy in the beginning, but will get better with time, even after 12-24 hours. And make sure that keg is kept cold of course.

 

[fogkin]

Use both cylinders, and divide the hops according to the tubes' respective volumes.

Dry hopping only takes 3 days. If you can, agitate that keg a few times a day, such as rocking back and forth, swirling, rolling, etc. to help with faster extraction and dispersion of the hop oils.

You can burst carbonate the keg, so it will be fully carbonated within 15 minutes. It will be a bit foamy in the beginning, but will get better with time, even after 12-24 hours. And make sure that keg is kept cold of course.

It's been on 10 PSI of CO2 for a week now. Not completely carbonated but it has some. I'll definitely give the keg some shakes to help spread the hop goodness around.

 

[mac_1103]

Good luck getting some additional hop flavor and aroma into your brew. But I have a feeling it's still going to be thin.

 

[IslandLizard]

Yeah I don't know the exact amount that they will swell but I would say if your less then half of the volume of the tube it should be OK.

Hop pellets more than double in volume when fully "hydrated" (soaked thru), so keep that in mind, to not overfill the cylinders.
Also, the beer still needs to be able to flow through the mush in the cylinders to extract and disperse the hop oils. Some agitation will help with speed that up. At least the hops are contained, so no chewy bits in the glass.

Over time there may be some fine hop dust settling out. So the first few ounces of the day may contain a shot of green dust. It's bitter and rough on the tongue, so you may want to discard that before pouring a whole one. Or let those who claim to be brave, and can handle anything, draw straws. It can be a true reward...

 

[InspectorJon]

I put some sugar in a mostly fermented beer once…lots of foam…