Straining Hops

[trenta]

Hi All
Probably a silly question but I'm making a Shark Attack XPA. At the beginning I have to boil 3 types of hops and then strain it into the fermenter. I use a strainer for flour etc. When I do most of the green 'gunk' remains in the strainer.
1.What strainer should I use?
2. Should l keep breaking down the remaining hops in the strainer into the fermenter or am I doing it correctly?
Thanks everyone in advance

 

[Sidney Harbour-Bridge]

I'm not sure if straining the hops is a recognized technique, it would likely expose the hops and wort/beer to oxygen which is not good for hop flavour, have you considered just adding the hops into the fermenter?

 

[trenta]

I'm not sure if straining the hops is a recognized technique, it would likely expose the hops and wort/beer to oxygen which is not good for hop flavour, have you considered just adding the hops into the fermenter?

 

[S.E]

I have strained hops years ago when using flowers but have never tried with pellets. I guess you could use anything that strains most of the hops out, it wouldn’t really matter if some gets into the fermenter as it would settle to the bottom same as dry hopping the fermenter.

 

[dkril]

Btdt. Through both grain bed from a mini mash, and through a hop bag.

Either way you need a fairly large surface area as the pellet sludge will quickly form an impermeable layer.

 

[trenta]

Btdt. Through both grain bed from a mini mash, and through a hop bag.

Either way you need a fairly large surface area as the pellet sludge will quickly form an impermeable layer.

So in other words toss the sludge out?

 

[dkril]

That's what I did. Still got plenty of hop character.

 

[An Ankoù]

You coud boil each of the hops in a fine-mesh bag. Give them plenty of room with a very oversize bag. You'll still get a bit of green sludge, but that'll settle out with the yeast.
Or you could use whole-cone hops (non-pelletised) I don't know if whole leaf hops are readily available in Australia, but they make a natural filter bed when it comes to straining.
the comment about getting oxygen in your wort needs a bit of clarification. It's true that oxygen is the enemy of beer and hop flavour in the later stages of fermentation and in the packaging stage. it'll totally ruin some styles of beer and won't improve any style. But oxygenating the wort before pitching the yeast can be beneficial to the yeast health.

 

[JDW81]

Hey Trenta,

What’s your overall process? All grain, fresh wort kit or basic kit brew? This will help guide how to best sort your question.

A few options are:
- Strain you hops. This is a bit of a pain, as they gum up your kitchen strainer pretty quickly, but does work. There is a risk of adding some oxygen, but this isn’t a massive issue prior to fermentation (compared to the final product)
- Hop bag/socks. You can get these from your LHBS and are a good solution. You just boil in the bag and toss at the end. You can get some ”green” leakage from them, but it’s not an issue for the final product.
- Hop spider: Basically a big stainless, perforated tube which you put your hops in for a full volume boil.

What is the best solution will depend on your technique, the volume of hops and if you plan on making lots of hoppy beers down the track.

JD

 

[Dave70]

Hi All
Probably a silly question but I'm making a Shark Attack XPA. At the beginning I have to boil 3 types of hops and then strain it into the fermenter. I use a strainer for flour etc. When I do most of the green 'gunk' remains in the strainer.
1.What strainer should I use?
2. Should l keep breaking down the remaining hops in the strainer into the fermenter or am I doing it correctly?
Thanks everyone in advance

You're kind of pushing **** uphill 'straining' hop pellets through any fine mesh. I think its mainly to do with the hydrophilic nature of the pellets wanting to disperse and stick to everything. There's another word for why they seem to have an affinity for fine metal surfaces that I can't remember.
Paint strainer bags are cheap and freely available everywhere from Amazon to Bunnings and make perfectly serviceable hop bags.

 

[trenta]

Thanks for all the advice. How is oxygen an issue if I haven't started fermentation yet and closed the fermenter lid?

 

[Sidney Harbour-Bridge]

Reading this, i would say it's just about keeping the hop particles in the fermenter to a minimum, I have used a coffee plunger to do this, don't be too concerned about getting every drop of hoppy goodness out of them, there will be plenty with the method shown.

Low dissolved oxygen brewing is best practice, try searching for low oxygen brewing.

Avoiding oxygen is important as it spoils hop and beer flavour, reduce splashing when stiring will help, once fermentation is under way removing the fermenter lid can increase oxidation so avoid if possible.

When oxygenating the wort it is best to add the yeast first as they need to take up the oxygen and will reduce the effect on the beer.

 

[yankinoz]

If you're straining into the fermenter, you're straining out trub proteins along with the hops. That's your green gunk. Plain cotton voile from Spotlight makes an effective strainer. Secure it over the mouth of the fermenter to form a sack. Ladle into it first the fairly clear wort, and then work your way down to the sediment, stirring up as little as possible.

Near the end the trub will start clogging the cloth. Use a sanitised large spoon to keep raising the trub up the side of the strainer. You can get the trub fairly firm this way, and you can gently scrape trub upward and all you'll force through the mesh is a very small amount of precipitated proteins. Toss some if necessary, then keep going.

Most home brewers whirlpool instead.

This is the one stage in the brewing process where excluding oxygen accomplishes nothing, provided you have cooled the wort to pitching temperature or lower (e.g., for cold crashing). After all, you are about to aerate the wort prior to pitching.

 

[Dave70]

Thanks for all the advice. How is oxygen an issue if I haven't started fermentation yet and closed the fermenter lid?

If you're talking about hot side aeration having a detrimental effect on the finished beer I don't think you need to worry. Myth.