Keg hopping woes

[Florian]

I have good results with both cascade and citra and both of them mixed, but I never keg hop longer than 48 hours. Same as I only dry hop for three days max.
That's where the dental floss comes in handy.

 

[Truman42]

So will the hop sock be floating on the surface of the keg or do they sink to the bottom?

 

[paulmclaren11]

I have been researching this too and about to try this weekend for an APA I have ready to be kegged - plan to dry hop 20g of Centennial in some steralised swiss voile.

I understand the hop sock will float but once a bit of pressure is applied to the keg the hops will be submerged? I have had conflicting advice about leaving it in the journey of the keg or just for the first few days.

Going to just taste test along the way and if needed fish the hop sock out.

Fingers crossed!

 

[Nick JD]

Hop socks float with pellets. I'd say flowers too.

I've removed one with long BBQ tongs before. Fun times!

The goodness still gets into the beer - doesn't need to sink.

People often talk of g/L with dry hopping ... I've found g/L/day is the measurement that's important. Eg. 5g/L/0.5 days of a grassy hop works. 1g/L/5 days doesn't. Time, is a forgotten factor in many a dry hopper's regime.

 

[tallie]

People often talk of g/L with dry hopping ... I've found g/L/day is the measurement that's important. Eg. 5g/L/0.5 days of a grassy hop works. 1g/L/5 days doesn't. Time, is a forgotten factor in many a dry hopper's regime.

Temperature is also a factor, and as I've just found out, the base beer might be as well. I dry hopped a 4.2% APA for 14 days at 4°C with 1.5g/L each of Cascade & Simcoe, and it was fantastic! Similar results for the last couple of American Wheats - about 2g/L total at at 4°C for 1-2 weeks. However, I've just done a 4.8% American Brown ale with 1g/L each Cascade & Simcoe for 10 days at 4°C, and while it smells and tastes good up front, the flavour quickly gives way to grass

 

[paulmclaren11]

I plan to carb the keg over a week as usual, then open her up and just chuck in the hop bag (I understand it may fizz up?).

That way I will be drinking the beer and seeing the hop flavours evolve. Once it's to my tastes I will fish it out. Feedback seems to be 2-3 days is best for keg hopping so the keg won't have been drained all that much (I hope!) and shouldn't be too hard to retrieve as not far from the top of the keg.

I find my primary dry hopping fades quickly so looking forward to that fresh aroma straight from the keg.

 

[Sprungmonkey]

ive got a fat yak clone in ferment at the moment - was thinking about hopping into the fermentor once chilled for a few days before kegging - anyone tried this?

 

[paulmclaren11]

I keg hopped for the first time my keg as planned but have done it from day one - put them in yesterday. 20g of Centennial. I haven't used a lot of this hop and the majority of my late hop bill is Centennial @15 and 5 and bittered with Magnum.

Only just over 24 hours and the hop aroma and flavour is sooo pungent! I am not sure I like it....

Perhaps should have gone Citra or Amarillo.

Considering pulling them out already and hoping things mellow down.

Am I panicking on my first attempt or do the flavours improve with a couple more days? I am thinking if I don't like it now, it's only going to get worse!

Thoughts?

 

[Womball]

I keg hopped for the first time my keg as planned but have done it from day one - put them in yesterday. 20g of Centennial. I haven't used a lot of this hop and the majority of my late hop bill is Centennial @15 and 5 and bittered with Magnum.

Only just over 24 hours and the hop aroma and flavour is sooo pungent! I am not sure I like it....

Perhaps should have gone Citra or Amarillo.

Considering pulling them out already and hoping things mellow down.

Am I panicking on my first attempt or do the flavours improve with a couple more days? I am thinking if I don't like it now, it's only going to get worse!

Thoughts?

Haven't tried a centennial dry hop, my last was a Cascade/Willamette mix @ 40g per 22L for and American Brown for four days in the keg with hop bag at fermentation temp before pulling the bag and crash chilling and it turned out great. I'd leave it, let it age a little and see how it turns out. I wouldn't panic.

 

[paulmclaren11]

I am hopping it at serving temps... some reading suggested it would actually take longer for the keg hop to benefit.

Might wait until tomorrow night which is just over 48 hours and pull it. As you say over time it will mellow with age.

Perhaps I just don't like Centennial all that much.

 

[Womball]

I am hopping it at serving temps... some reading suggested it would actually take longer for the keg hop to benefit.

Might wait until tomorrow night which is just over 48 hours and pull it. As you say over time it will mellow with age.

Perhaps I just don't like Centennial all that much.

Haven't tried a cold dry hop, but there are people that like a cold over a fermentation temp dry hop. I prefer a 4 day schedule after doing a bit of research and the results where great after a week or two of aging. I transfer to secondary (keg) to get the wort off the yeast cake only if i'm dry hopping. I'm about to attempt an Imperial IPA with multiple dry hop additions so the schedule with change from 4 days to 10 or so, should be an interesting experiment......

 

[Nick JD]

Ooo, centenial is a grassy one.

 

[paulmclaren11]

and the hop sock has sunk......

 

[Womball]

and the hop sock has sunk......

Time to going fishing...... :blink: I tie my hop bag off with dental floss to one of the posts and seal the corny. Works a treat.

 

[paulmclaren11]

Yes.... I thought it would float, it was when I put it in!

Crisis averted. A starsan-ed mash paddle and tongs got the bugger out.

No wonder it tasted so strong, was just sucking up pure hop juice!

It's out now after only 24 hours so hopefully it mellows and tastes okay in a week or so.

Lessons learnt!

 

[Truman42]

I left my hop sock of NS in the keg for 24 hours and had to pull it out with bbq tongs. The first 5-6 pints were full of hop particles and tasted very hoppy and bitter then it cleared up but the hop aroma also went away.

 

[Nick JD]

I have 2g/L of Cascade for 36 hours in a AAA in my fermenting fridge.

Been tasting it on and off over that time. It's got to the point where it;s not getting any hoppier - which with a lot of hops is when it's going to start deteriorating rather than improving the flavour.

I strongly recommend taste testing when dry hopping after FG.

Also - anyone that says dry hopping doesn't change the IBUs of a beer is full of it! I reckon this AAA has gone up about 10 IBUs.

 

[paulmclaren11]

I agree about the IBU's, it may just be percieved but my tastes of my APA with only 24 hours keg hop time seems waay more bitter.

In hindsight my beer tasted good @ FG without the dry hopping so should have just gone with that.

Might just stick to dry hopping in primary as per my usual routine.

 

[BobtheBrewer]

I agree about the IBU's, it may just be percieved but my tastes of my APA with only 24 hours keg hop time seems waay more bitter.

In hindsight my beer tasted good @ FG without the dry hopping so should have just gone with that.

Might just stick to dry hopping in primary as per my usual routine.

I dry hop in the keg, mainly because I am worried about infection if dry hopping in the fermenter after vigorous fermentation has died down. I put the hops in a sanitised stocking toe secured with a plastic clip (Ikea type). The hops are in the keg usually for 4-5 weeks before drinking. I have never had a problem with grassiness or excess bitterness, or blockages. I recently made an APA using only Centennial and dry hopping with 9.3g in the usual way. A great blast of aroma for the first few days which gradually died away to leave a very drinkable beer.
My 2c.

 

[lukiferj]

Dry hopping at the moment. As per the previous suggestions, dental floss works a treat. Kegs are holding their seals nicely. Now to play the waiting game...