# No chillers, how do YOU hop tea?



## hathro (21/11/14)

Hi folks,

I'm a no chiller and I cube hop but I'm looking for a bit more flavour to balance out the bitterness. The method of making "hop tea" that make sense to me is to take 2-3L of wort from the cube, bring it to the boil and add the <10 min hop additions. Then add this to the wort in the fermenter, bring it to temp and pitch the yeast. I'm thinking this could balance my beers.

How do you hop tea?


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## rbtmc (21/11/14)

Personally if I'm brewing a hoppy ale, I do a single cube hop addition (nothing in the boil) and dry-hop. 
I can make a seriously hop-flavour-heavy beer without much bitterness this way if I want...

I haven't found hop tea's necessary, although I'm curious.


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## Rodolphe01 (21/11/14)

I aim for about 22 litres, fill the cube like usual with about 20 litres then use soft dink botttles/jug/whatever to collect the rest from the kettle (or urn in my case) and freeze it. I do a stove top boil and add it to the fermenter. I have added it at start of ferment, toward end of ferment and have added it direct to the keg to naturally carb which worked out nicely.


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## Yob (21/11/14)

I don't.. Are you all cube hops or doing a kettle bittering?


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## MaltyHops (21/11/14)

hathro said:


> How do you hop tea?


I start by putting 20L cube of wort in ferment fridge and cool down to ~12C - this so that when I pour off ~1.5L of wort to boil, cool down to around 80C and add back to cooled wort, it should all end up around 17C for pitching yeast.

So I pour ~1.5L of wort from the cube into a saucepan to boil up. Then before getting to boil, pour into an erlenmeyer flask which is them put on electric stove - set to low-ish carefully when it looks like it's starting to boil. Then I add hop pellets a few at a time to avoid it going volcanic - it'll froth up anyway.

When all hops have been added, turn heat off, put flask into a saucepan with tap water as per pix below to cool off a bit and for the hops to settle to bottom. The hop tea can then be poured into fermenter without too much hops getting in. Then the rest of the wort in the cube is shaken up to aerate a bit and poured into fermenter. Seems to work alright - but a bigger flask might be better.




_[zoom]_


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## JDW81 (21/11/14)

hathro said:


> Hi folks,
> 
> I'm a no chiller and I cube hop but I'm looking for a bit more flavour to balance out the bitterness. The method of making "hop tea" that make sense to me is to take 2-3L of wort from the cube, bring it to the boil and add the <10 min hop additions. Then add this to the wort in the fermenter, bring it to temp and pitch the yeast. I'm thinking this could balance my beers.
> 
> How do you hop tea?


Also called a mini boil, and something I do very regularly.

It is as you describe, you draw off a few litres of cubed wort, bring to the boil and add your hops for the designated time. Put your pot in an ice bath to quickly cool then pitch into your wort.

I pitch hops and all into the fermenter, you just need to make sure you rack off the trub into a bottling bucket and bulk prime to keep the hop particulate out of the bottles (well as much as possible anyway).

JD


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## Oakers (21/11/14)

I don't bother and can make genuinely hoppy balanced beers. Like many others I use a single bittering charge and the rest cube hopped. For cube hopping where i want lots of hop flavour i let the wort cool to about 85C in the urn, then into the cube.


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## hathro (22/11/14)

Yob said:


> I don't.. Are you all cube hops or doing a kettle bittering?


Kettle bittering and 20 minute hops go into the kettle. Anything under 20 minutes goes into the cube.

I'll try of reducing the amount of bittering hops rather than adjust the times. I also think I'm going to give this mini boil thing a go just to see if I notice any difference.


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## Markbeer (23/11/14)

I love my mini boils. i use 20% of the batch size. 

Also means you can split batches and hop differently.

I reg go 150g of high aa hops into 16l. All in under 5 min adfitions. Super flavour and aroma.


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## leighaus (23/11/14)

having just moved from kit/extract to BIAB, i didnt do any late hops and followed the recipe for my first. Ill be doing my second BIAB AG shortly and was thinking of just doing a late dry hop in a sock to the fermenter. Always got good aroma to balance bitters from K&E in the past.. 

Might have to try the mini boil soon however!


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## Tahoose (23/11/14)

No hops in the kettle, cube hops calculated as 20min additions.

Then a dry hop after 4-5 days


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## hathro (23/11/14)

Tahoose said:


> No hops in the kettle, cube hops calculated as 20min additions.
> 
> Then a dry hop after 4-5 days


No hops in the kettle sounds good to me. Less work.

So what you are saying is you cube hop, enter it in your brewing software as a 20 minute addition and calculate your IBU's from there? Won't you be using a lot more hops instead of having a bittering addition earlier in the boil?


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## Yob (24/11/14)

hathro said:


> No hops in the kettle sounds good to me. Less work.
> 
> So what you are saying is you cube hop, enter it in your brewing software as a 20 minute addition and calculate your IBU's from there? Won't you be using a lot more hops instead of having a bittering addition earlier in the boil?


OK here's what I do..

Aim for a total of 1/4 (APA) to 1/3 (AIPA) IBU in the kettle, usually 30g to 40g of something like German Magnum (75lt batch) and then all cube hops, my losses to the kettle are miniscule, 200ml - 500ml 

for an APA the cube hops might equal ~100g for an AIPA ~150g.. pretty much the same as any kettle additions _BUT_... I get 3 differently cubed beers from the same wort.

No dry hops in FV unless I feel like it... Keg hop _IF_ required..

My latest keg is a Simcoe Centennial IPA and Ive not even keg hopped it and Im probably half way through it, simply delightful as is.

No mess, no fuss, no mini boil.. Dead simple with stunning results.

In fact, it may well be the keg I take to the swap.

I dont use software these days but when I started with the technique it was added as 20 mins as above.


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## hathro (24/11/14)

Yob, it sounds like you've got it sorted. What you've posted makes a lot of sense and the less stuffing around the better. Will give it a go.


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## stux (5/1/15)

This is how I add hop tea.

Put the hops in the coffee press. Add boiling water, stir for a minute, then press and add to your fermenter. Then add more boiling water, let steep for 5 minutes, then press and add to fermenter.

Better than dry-hopping IMO


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## Siborg (5/1/15)

I used to (and currently) wait until about half way through fermentation, then my 10 minute addition would be added to a coffee plunger with 500mL of boiling water and let it steep for 10 minutes, plunge then pour (hot) into the fermenter. Add another 500mL of boiling water to the plunger and sit for 1 min, plunge, then pour. 

I say "used to" because I've seriously been considering cube hopping after tasting some other brewers efforts at the last swap. So you add absolutely no hops during the boil and just add your hops to the cube, which works out to be *roughly* equivalent to a 20 min addition? From previous posts, I'm assuming this is tried and tested from various brewers experiences.


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## beercus (5/1/15)

I have been running the 'yob' method for the last few brews and am very happy with the magnum bittering and then what ever else I put in the cube (calculated as a 20min addition in beersmith). My last brew was split into 4 cubes each with a different 'C' hop in the cube to work out what I like. 

Beercus


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## Siborg (5/1/15)

beercus said:


> I have been running the 'yob' method for the last few brews and am very happy with the magnum bittering and then what ever else I put in the cube (calculated as a 20min addition in beersmith). My last brew was split into 4 cubes each with a different 'C' hop in the cube to work out what I like.
> 
> Beercus


What's your favourite 'C' hop? Or haven't you had a chance to taste yet? Also, just thought of something: do you shake your wort in the cube before pitching/pouring?


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## sponge (5/1/15)

Similar to yob, I will either add ~30% IBUs at FWH, then the rest at cube, otherwise I just throw everything into the cube depending upon what I'm brewing.

Cube and dry hopping gives plenty of hoppy goodness IMO.


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## sponge (5/1/15)

Siborg said:


> What's your favourite 'C' hop? Or haven't you had a chance to taste yet? Also, just thought of something: do you shake your wort in the cube before pitching/pouring?


You can shake the cube to help with aeration, otherwise there's no need to if it's to just mix up everything that's in the cube.

After having brewed SMASH beers with cascade, centennial, columbus and chinook, my favourite 'C' hop is Citra h34r:


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## zooesk (5/1/15)

How long do you guys leave the wort in the cube before it goes into the FV


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## wombil (5/1/15)

I no chill,so it's sealed up overnight or until it drops to 20 deg or so.
Then yeast added.
I also ferment in the cube.


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## beercus (5/1/15)

I agree the citra was great.... Although I am enjoying the centennial ATM.


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## panzerd18 (26/3/15)

My last hop tea I poured everything into the fermenter including the green plant matter. 

Does anyone think this will cause any concern?


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## Markbeer (26/3/15)

panzerd18 said:


> My last hop tea I poured everything into the fermenter including the green plant matter.
> 
> Does anyone think this will cause any concern?


This depends on the variety. What hop/s?


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## panzerd18 (27/3/15)

Markbeer said:


> This depends on the variety. What hop/s?


East Kent Goldings.


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## sponge (27/3/15)

Won't matter, might just take longer to drop out and have a few floaties for the first pour (if kegging).


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## Markbeer (27/3/15)

I have found hallertau and saaz hop matter to be grassy. Fruity american are ok.

EKG i think will be ok.

Like sponge says will drop out.


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## QldKev (27/3/15)

Markbeer said:


> I have found hallertau and saaz hop matter to be grassy. Fruity american are ok.
> 
> EKG i think will be ok.
> 
> Like sponge says will drop out.


They are the two I'm worried about for grassy-ness, that saaz can be really bad.


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## motman (28/3/15)

Wouldn't doing a hop tea eliminate the massive advantage of no chill by adding another step and item to clean? I am thinking of going 50% no chill and hope tea ain't necessary to make a good beer!


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## mofox1 (28/3/15)

motman said:


> Wouldn't doing a hop tea eliminate the massive advantage of no chill by adding another step and item to clean? I am thinking of going 50% no chill and hope tea ain't necessary to make a good beer!


It's only an extra saucepan to clean. Without trying to preach it too much, the main benefits in no-chilling are:

not having to worry about pitching temps,
not needing an available fermenter,
having yeast ready.

The mini boil isn't mandatory, although you do end up using more hops in the cube than if you were chilling. It **is** useful if you haven't decided which hops to use for flavouring/aroma (ie - no cube hops), or if you later decide you want that extra burst of hoppiness.

If you don't mind diluting the wort, you can do the the mini boil using tap water (some will shout "philistine!" at this point and argue that I'm missing important interactions between the wort & hops, but I'm neither informed or experienced enough to have noticed it on those occasions).

If you cool the cubes to around 12-15* prior (ala outside during winter), then you can get away without even chilling the hop tea/mini boil. Tip the cube into the fermenter (aerate) and then pour the mini-boil directly into it. You can go from a one or two minute boil/steep of the hops to "chilled" to pitching temp in an instant.

Otherwise, if you want to pitch on brew day, and/or if you're a whole lot more organised and decisive than I am - go for chilling. It'll still be beer.


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## hathro (1/4/15)

I ended up doing a mini-boil for a pale ale and didn't really notice much difference between that and the cube hopped version. I actually preferred the cube hopped one - had better bittering.

The mini-boil wasn't any more fuss, just one pot on a stove.

Mini boil - 60 minute and 20 minute additions in the kettle. Mini boil for sub 20 minute additions, then dry hop.
Cube hop - 60 minute and 20 minute additions in the kettle. Sub 20 minute additions in the cube, then dry hop.


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## motman (1/4/15)

Hathro and mofox, good info, cheers!


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## Fylp (2/4/15)

I do about the same as hathro. I only cube hop if I'll get it in the fermenter the next day. Otherwise I add my under 20min additions at the whirlpool stage. I read an article somewhere about an American micro who added 90% of hops to the whirlpool, so I gave it a go. Wish I had the link.


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## Fylp (2/4/15)

Found it. I applied the ideas around temp range and adding the hoppy flavours. I had success with this when I did a double brew day and could only get one in the fermentation fridge. It spent about 10 days in the cube and was good. I did dry hop, but no more than usual. 

https://byo.com/hops/item/2808-hop-stands


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## hotmelt (2/4/15)

What about using a small jerry can, 2-5L, adding the late hops and topping up with hot wort.Leave it to do it's thing then chill in the sink/fridge.
Meanwhile no chill the rest of the wort and when ready to ferment pour mini jerry into cube or fermenter.


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## Markbeer (8/4/15)

Honestly when doing a miniboil since you are cooling it so quickly you can use HEAPS of hops.

I have used 200g in under 5 mins in a 20l batch.

Super aroma and flavour.

In a barleywine it may be 300g in under 10 minutes.

But never do i dry hop.


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