Lots of Hop Debris in Keg

[andy6026]

So normally I like to secondary and cold crash before kegging - it gets me very clear beer.

Unfortunately this time around I didn't have time. I racked a beer - a really great IPA with lots and lots of dry hops, directly from the fermenter into my keg. I ended up with LOTS of hop debris floating in the first 3-4 pints i pulled.

I have guests coming over Saturday night (it was kegged on Monday). As much as I have no problem with floaters, it''s defintely a tirn-off to people not accustomed to homebrew.

What are my options? If leave it to sit and then pull a few pints shortly before they arrive, will that be successful? Should I off-gas and turn down the pressure to do so? Should I even rack it to another keg...? Short of adding gelatine, which i hear works after a week or so, what's my best option to quickly clear this beer?

Thanks!

 

[andy6026]

... and out of curiosity, why does hop debris not appear to settle in the keg like it does in a cold crashed secondary? Is the carbonation pressure the culprit in keeping a lot of it in suspension?

 

[LLBeanJ]

The debris will settle with time. The reason it seems like it's not is because what does settle is being drawn up through the dip tube every time you pull a pint. This will subside and the beer will clear. Whether it does so by Saturday, I can't say. I've actually stopped using pellet hops in the keg and just dry hop with leaf hops for this very reason. You get much cleaner beer. I know pellets are supposed to pack a bigger punch, but I like the way my brew looks and tastes when I use leaf hops post ferm. Just need to be sure to bag them so they don't clog up the dip tube and poppet, which would apply with pellets, as well.

 

[andy6026]

The debris will settle with time. The reason it seems like it's not is because what does settle is being drawn up through the dip tube every time you pull a pint. This will subside and the beer will clear. Whether it does so by Saturday, I can't say. I've actually stopped using pellet hops in the keg and just dry hop with leaf hops for this very reason. You get much cleaner beer. I know pellets are supposed to pack a bigger punch, but I like the way my brew looks and tastes when I use leaf hops post ferm. Just need to be sure to bag them so they don't clog up the dip tube and poppet, which would apply with pellets, as well.

Thanks very much for the reply. I pulled another glass tonight and its improved, but still has enough debris to alarm a guest. I plan to drink as many glasses as I can tonight to mitigate any problems for Saturday.

Funny, I started out with a preference for leaf hops, but have since usually found pellets more convenient, with tgis batch being the exception.

I'm about to pour a second glass - it's still young, but good. Cheers!