Increasing hops character after kegging

[Greg1820]

I meant to make a fairly mild IPA that would appeal to some of my house guests over the summer. I erred too far on the mild side and I want to (1) increase the bitterness and (2) improve the hops nose quality.

I have about 1/2 gallon of space in my keg so I was thinking of boiling an ounce of leaf hops (high Alpha) for 30 min to extract the bitterness in about a quart of water. At the last 5 min, I could add an ounce of aromatic hops. After pouring the liquid into the keg, I could toss in the aromatic hops for more "semi-dry hopping".

does this seem like a reasonable solution?
Suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[douglasbarbin]

I think that's about the best you will be able to do, given the circumstances.

 

[WarmGas]

You could also try dry hopping by either dumping some aromatic hop pellets straight into the keg or putting them in a tea infuser/ball that has been sterilized and hanging it in the middle of the keg using unflavored tooth floss.

You will obviously get more hop aroma this way but it won't make the beer more bitter.

 

[AK7007]

There are products that do what you want:

http://www.hopmybeer.com/

You dose the extract into the keg to reach your desired bitterness/aroma. They are usually sold out though. You can buy much larger amounts from Kalsac, but then you run into the problem of "this is way too much product, why did I drop $80?" - which could be alleviated if you belong to a homebrew club and share the cost.

http://www.kalsec.com/products/hop-extracts/craft-brew-solutions-1/

EDIT: Oh, I forgot - I've done hop infused vodka instead of dry hopping before, that was killer. I just steeped an ounce of the hops I was interested in in about a quart of vodka and dumped the whole thing in after a few days. Not 100% sure that it would help your situation, but useful information for the future.

 

[pvpeacock]

As for aroma and flavor (not bitterness), I make hop tea and pour it in the keg. I use 1 - 3 oz. of pellet hops, put them in a french coffee press with water around 150-160 degrees, let it sit for an hour, press it and pour it in. It has worked great for me.

 

[GHBWNY]

I'd dry hop pellets to get the aroma/flavor. I've actually done this in the bottle at bottling at bottling time with great success, except for the 'floaties' in the bottle. They'll eventually settle out in a keg. But as stated, bitterness comes from boiling the hops, so I'd give your idea a try.

 

[WarmGas]

As for aroma and flavor (not bitterness), I make hop tea and pour it in the keg. I use 1 - 3 oz. of pellet hops, put them in a french coffee press with water around 150-160 degrees, let it sit for an hour, press it and pour it in. It has worked great for me.

This sounds like a great idea. Have you noticed any difference using this method compared to traditional dry-hopping? I'm wondering if some of the aromas might be lost in the hot water.

Also, did you use a dedicated French Press for this to avoid any coffee flavors sneaking their way in?

Thanks.

 

[Greg1820]

Thanks for the helpful tips. I have started using hop pellets only recently and am concerned that adding them to the keg will result in a mushy residue at the bottom that will come out with the ale.

If I put the pellets in a bag or tea infuser, will the hop residue leak out into the liquid or will it stay in the bag/infuser?

Thanks

 

[pvpeacock]

WarmGas: Yes I use a dedicated French press. In my experience, I think the tea gives me more hop flavor and aroma than dry hopping does. I only use hop tea when a kegged beer has either lost its hoppiness or the dry hopping did not impart enough hop flavor/aroma in the first place. I have not yet tried hop tea instead of dry hopping.

Greg: Yes, some of the hops will leak through a bag and make the beer a bit cloudy. However, most will stay contained in the bag.

 

[WarmGas]

WarmGas: Yes I use a dedicated French press. In my experience, I think the tea gives me more hop flavor and aroma than dry hopping does. I only use hop tea when a kegged beer has either lost its hoppiness or the dry hopping did not impart enough hop flavor/aroma in the first place. I have not yet tried hop tea instead of dry hopping.

Thanks for the idea and info. I will give this a whirl.

Cheers.

 

[khillian]

Not to be negative, but I find when attempting to "fix" beers they never turn out good. Better to save the ingredients to re-brew the next batch of beer with lessons learned. Dry hopping might help but if its already cold and carbonated just drink it.

 

[jerbrew]

Use a "Randall" if you can. Essentially pour your beer through a filter cartridge full of hops. That should impress them cuz it looks cool. And you can play it off saying you brewed it mild so you can show them the true aroma of blank hop(s). Let them taste it before and after.
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