To hop bag or not to hop bag

[azazel1024]

So I'll lead with I pretty much only use pellet hops.

What does everyone do? Has anyone done it both ways and what differences have you found?

The only times I never used a hop bag was WAYYYYY back when I did a couple of brew kits a couple of years ago.

Pros, cons? I feel like a pro is, you probably lose a little less liquid in the end by squeezing the hop bag, rather than letting the pelletized hops settle in to the trub.

However, I feel like maybe you could get a bit better utilization and/or flavor/aroma by leaving the hops in to settle in to the trub.

Thoughts?

 

[TheGambler87]

I dont, but I rarely use more than 4oz of hops in a 5 gal batch, just not a hop-head I guess. I have used them before for leaf hops, but thats just because they clog up my siphon if I dont.

 

[signpost]

I've done both. When I do a recipe with a lot of hops, I use a bag. When it's just an ounce or so, I don't. That goes for both the boil and dry hopping.

My only real reason for using the bag is that I ended up with hop chunks in the bottles of one batch and never wanted that to happen again.

Other than that, I can't say I've noticed a difference.

 

[petey_c]

I have never used hop socks before, but I'm going to make a "Heady Topper" clone in a few weeks. 10ml Hop Shot @60, then a 4 oz steep for 15 at flame out, then a second steep of 3.5 oz at 180 °F for 15, a dry hop (2.75 oz) and a secondary (2.75 oz) 13 oz total! I may have to use hop socks.

 

[chisena]

I have never used hop socks before, but I'm going to make a "Heady Topper" clone in a few weeks. 10ml Hop Shot @60, then a 4 oz steep for 15 at flame out, then a second steep of 3.5 oz at 180 °F for 15, a dry hop (2.75 oz) and a secondary (2.75 oz) 13 oz total! I may have to use hop socks.

Curious how that HopShot works for you. Those really gunked up my system when I did a Pliny clone.

 

[gbx]

I will use a hop sock in the kettle if I'm using pellets or anything more than a couple ounces of whole flower hops. I've had a few clogs and they are a pain to deal with. If I'm dry hopping in a keg, I always use a sock. There is nothing worse than a hop chunk clogging open your tap and spilling beer everywhere.

 

[petey_c]

Curious how that HopShot works for you. Those really gunked up my system when I did a Pliny clone.

I'll report back when I'm done.

 

[zam216]

If you have a really good whirlpool method down you don't need the bag as it will collect a lot of it in the middle of the kettle. However I have not perfected the method so I use the hop bags. I do find they absorb a good bit of wort so they do need to be squeezed but im not sure if that releases harsh flavors into the wort. I only like to use flower hops for dry hopping as the chunks are usually big enough not to end up in the finished product and I usually do not bag those due to the size of the mouth of my glass carboy.

 

[petey_c]

I strain the wort before I top it off in the fermenter and squeeze the bag to get as much liquid as possible out. There's a lot of garbage that settles out as well because I use whirlfloc. There never really seemed to be too many hop particles even after I dry hopped. I only use carboys when I'm making wine.

 

[chisena]

Totally bag pellets in muslin sacks if you are using a lot in the boil 3+ ounces. It doesn't affect utilization. Just leave lotsa room in the sack for expansion and so the hops can move around in there.

 

[2ellas]

How do you guys keep the hop bag from touching the pan?

I take it the nylon paint bags are ok to boil?

I did the heady clone from NB a batch or two ago. The hop shot didn't cause any issues but I got a TON of sediment in the bottle. I used a bag to dry hop in my last ipa and the aroma was noticeably better after so it seems like the hops are being fully utilized. Then again, what the heck do I know?

 

[atom]

How do you guys keep the hop bag from touching the pan?

I take it the nylon paint bags are ok to boil?

I did the heady clone from NB a batch or two ago. The hop shot didn't cause any issues but I got a TON of sediment in the bottle. I used a bag to dry hop in my last ipa and the aroma was noticeably better after so it seems like the hops are being fully utilized. Then again, what the heck do I know?

search stainless hop spider....you should be able to make one for around $20. you need a few stainless carriage bolts/nuts, a ring clamp and a stainless garbage disposal flange. i use 5 gallon paint strainer bags to contain all my hops.

 

[bobbrews]

For heavily hopped IPAs, here is what I do to limit primary trub, pre-fermentation...

• Large addition of HopShot (or pellets) at full rolling boil. No other kettle hops.
• After the boil, quickly chill the wort down to 180F then stop chilling.
• Wrap a sanitized nylon paint strainer bag around the brim of the kettle.
• Add hopstand pellet hops and wait the allotted time for the hopstand, typically 20-40 min.
• Remove cover and quick chill to 60F.
• Hoist hop bag and let it drain; do not squeeze.

My dryhop is always loose pellets. Secure a nylon mesh paint strainer bag around the siphon when racking and there will be no issues with hop matter in the beer.

 

[BrotherBock]

I rarely use anything. Probably an unsubstantiated emotional response, but I just like the idea of uninterrupted contact with the wort.

I can either let the pellets settle when I chill and siphon off the top or (if using leaf) drain through my bazooka tube in the kettle and maybe give the wort soaked hops a little pressing with a paddle or whatever.

No hassle, no fuss, no bags.

 

[EthanH]

I use small grain bag that I attach to the side of the kettle with a binder clip. It hangs pretty loose in the kettle and tends to move around during the boil. Then I do 2 things to cut down on hop trub in the fermenter:

1. Boil screen in the kettle.

2. Let the wort sit in the kettle overnight (gasp!) to get down to pitching temp.

 

[grevengrevs]

I like using a hop spider if I'm using more than an ounce of hops. Less than that I throw them in a bag.

 

[gometz]

I used a bag for everything, but it's fairly coarse so I always end up with some debris anyways (at least I get the big stuff out). I've never done a whirlpool because in my brew pot I feel like I'd lose too much. It's a 16 gallon pot, so I have to tilt it to get the last ~1 gallon out.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

I use a wilserbrewer hop bag for boil and dry hopping since day one.I like not having the crud in wort/beer.I "feel" like Im getting more beer on racking day.Never had an issue

 

[roccobrews]

Whether its boil, hopstand or dry hopping, I just throw the pellets directly in. Eventually all just settles out, cold crash or not. Extra care transferring and you should be fine.

Whole leaf hops are a different beast. Due to greater absorption you will lose wort volume and they are generally messier in my experience. Use a bag, spider ect.

 

[pvpeacock]

I'm struggling with this dilemma ever since I bought a couple of conical fermenters. Before that, when I used plastic big mouth fermenters, I just dumped all the hops into the brew kettle at the appointed times and then dumped all of the trub and hops straight into the fermenters without straining anything out. See: http://brulosophy.com/2015/03/22/the-impact-of-kettle-trub-part-2-exbeeriment-results/

I did that a couple of times with my new conicals and the dump valves clogged up with the trub so I couldn't drain them or harvest any yeast. Worse yet, because I was not able to drain the trub out of the bottom dump valve, the trub and yeast levels were higher than the sample/racking valve, so I had to use a siphon to transfer my beer to a keg. Kind of defeats the purpose of a conical.

So I rigged up a hop spider for my brew kettle which worked great until I went to put my immersion chiller in the kettle. I ultimately lifted up the spider, put the chiller in and then put the spider back down in the middle of the chiller, but that makes it difficult to stir while I'm chilling. I also question whether I am getting full utilization during a hop stand if my hops are sitting in a bag surrounded by the chiller.

I've tried all different ways of straining the wort as it enters the conical, but all of the strainers I have used to date get clogged very easily. I actually used a BIAB bag inside my conical the last time. I lined the conical with the BIAB bag, transferred the wort, trub and all, into the fermenter and then tried to lift the bag. The trub and hops clogged up the entire bag, making it very difficult to lift -- it was like I was trying to lift 5 gallons of wort in a pillow case. Eventually, by rocking the bag back and forth inside the fermenter, all the liquid eventually drained out, but what a pain.

I wish I could find a better way of straining the wort after the boil and chill rather than use a spider or bag during the boil/chill.

By the way, I always use a paint strainer bag when dry hopping in the conical or in a keg. It works great.

 

[Brew_G]

How do you guys keep the hop bag from touching the pan?

I take it the nylon paint bags are ok to boil?

I did the heady clone from NB a batch or two ago. The hop shot didn't cause any issues but I got a TON of sediment in the bottle. I used a bag to dry hop in my last ipa and the aroma was noticeably better after so it seems like the hops are being fully utilized. Then again, what the heck do I know?

I don't worry about it. The vigorous boil moves the bag around enough that it's not in contact with the sides of the kettle very long...and even if it were, I can't imagine that the sides of the kettle get hot enough to scorch a bag.

 

[Snicklefritz]

What do pro breweries do? They don't use hop bags. Leaving the hops to settle out in the fermentor will have no effect on your finished product in my experience. I noticed a distinct difference in utilization after buying and using one of those SS hop baskets which are similar to the bags. I've since stopped using it and went back to just tossing everything in. I did an IPA with 8oz in the boil with no hop bag just the other day. A good whirlpool will help reduce the trub in the fermetor but I'm not so convinced that is even necessary.

 

[wysiwyg]

I started using a Wilser hopsock when I moved to BIAB mainly so I didn't clog my plate chiller. Like another poster, I attach the bag to the inside of the kettle with a bulldog clip. Even with a spoon-induced whirlpool I still have hot break going through the chiller, but it's much easier to flush out than hop material. Not to tangent this thread into a controversial topic, but I squeeze the hopsock before chilling.