Dry hop question

Not trying to thread jack but I dont want to post another thread with the same title.

Does anyone change the temperature at which their beer is fermenting at once you start to dry hop?
Example: I have my primary at 65* for 10 days. Ramp the temp up/down the day I dry hop.

 

Interesting. I've heard yeast like to gobble up hop compounds.

 

Many of the resins and bittering compounds stick to the yeast membranes. Some say the oils get processed.

Read this for more information.
http://www.amazon.com/For-The-Love-Hops-Bitterness/dp/1938469011

 

Crikey !!! I was given instruction to ALWAYS get your primary off the sediment after a week... and i'm sure my racking ability is NOT gentle... my beers have been OK, so thats an indication i haven't totally messed up..
I've been fiddling around with some pale ales as a newbie, and even a raspberry wheat beer, but the beer i'm wanting to perfect is an american IPA dogfish head clone.. How long would i leave in primary ? would i even rack to secondary after xx days ? dry hopping obviously for this hopped out beer ? I love this forum and hate it at the same time. lol second guessing everything i do..

 

Those are yesterday's instructions. In fact, it is well-known these days that the yeast have a lot of clean up to do after the first week. Racking off the yeast cake that early is not at all necessary and, in fact, will result in a lower quality beer.

Somewhat depends on how big you go. E.g., are you gunning for a 60min or a 90min? Generally, though, two weeks would be better than one for either.

As noted by lots of folks way more experienced and knowledgeable than I, racking to secondary is no longer a preferred practice for lots of reasons. I recently racked a beer to secondary for dry hopping to free up my primary for an upcoming batch. If I didn't need the fermenter, I definitely would have dry hopped in primary and only racked at bottling time.

The second-guessing is a good thing. I have learned a shite-load of stuff from the good people on this forum. I am no stranger to feeling like a homebrewing dunce in here, but again, that is a good thing. Besides, these people are (kinda) nice about it ;-)

 

This is about how I've been doing it for nearly two years and my beers come out fine. Obviously if the alcohol is higher I leave it in the fermenter longer, but most of what I've made is along the lines of 5-6%, so this has worked great for me. I dry hop usually 3-6 days (this depends more on schedule than the exact choice of how long to dry hop, hey I do what I gotta do).

My PtE pseudo-clone will have a more robust dry hopping schedule tho.

 

If you are going to do a secondary, you should wait until fermentation is pretty much done. The timing of that will vary; so "Always rack after exactly ___ days" is shitty advice, frankly. And yeah--as long as you do a good job racking, it won't reduce the quality of your beer. But still: why do the extra work?

 

Nonsense, there's no need to get your beer out of primary after only one week. It's been said lots of times, but I'll say it again. Just leave it be. An average moderate ABV pale ale doesn't need a secondary. Dry hop it in the primary. I bet if you do this and don't mess with your beer, it will come out better. Always give your beer at least two weeks on primary no matter what you do. Give the yeast a chance to work!

Asking questions and improving your process doesn't have to equate to second-guessing everything you do. Just improve over time, taking in new knowledge as it comes, and incorporating it appropriately. Nobody can digest everything there is to know about brewing in a small length of time, it's a lifelong learning process.

 

I always dryhop in the primary or the keg. I think the benefits of racking your beer to a secondary (clarity) for dryhopping are outweighed by the cons (oxidation, hassle, possible contamination). If you are having clarity issues after dryhopping, I would recommend using some keg finings (gelatin works great for me). I can get excellent clarity in a beer with a pound of hops by using gelatin.

 

Isn't it best to dry hop in primary? I've heard the introduction of oxygen with the hops is good for the yeast while they are still somewhat active (~80% ferm complete). If you you introduce the oxygen in secondary you have a higher chance of oxidation problems because the yeast don't clean it up as well.

 

Thank you for all the advice ! I love reading about home brewing on these forums.. I learn more on this site and simply you tubing to see 'how' other people process their beer.. Really the main reason I rack to secondary is to free up my 5 gallon carboy so I can brew another batch.. Simple solutions.. Buy another 5 gallon glass carboy and keep brewing trying all the different processes of making beer.. Much appreciated...

 

Do you have a hygrometer? That is the most reliable method of determining when the yeast have consumed all the sugar they can. BUT, that by no means is an indication of where the yeast stop working. The hardest thing to learn is to fight the urge to do something just for the sake of doing something. I like 2 weeks in primary for pale ales, but that is not an answer that is dependable. When 2 hygrometer readings a few days apart are identical, then wait longer. The yeast still have work to do. The best advice I can give is brew often, brew with a consistent process, take good notes, get to know what you can expect, and forgive yourself for mistakes as long as you learn from them.

 

I do have a hygrometer.. I need to learn the numbers and science of brewing much much more...
Just walked out of my home brew store.. Another $100 .. Lol
I'm definately impatient and love to fiddle, so I know I'm doing things way before their time.. Thank you..
Very sound advice

 

The yeast do not know about my schedule I like to keep them in the dark . Here is the deal .. Im new to the brewing scene and the last two batches I have made were great. Seriously. One was extract/grain and one was extract. One was racked after 5 days to secondary the other was racked to secondary after 7. Both were bottle conditioned for two weeks and both tasted awesome. I have read 20 different ways to dry hop and 20 different ways to primary ferment. Im not saying anyone is wrong or right and I appreciate ALL advice from the more experienced brewers. So im going to do the following based on all the information I have been given.

Extract pale ale brew: Primary two weeks, then dry hop with oz of Citra hops for 7 days and bottle... No secondary this time.

P.s the last two batches I have made the hydrometer readings were as follows
10.50 OG and bottled at 10.10 FG (two weeks)... it tuned out like this and was fantastic.



Batch two looks like this here

 

Nice pun and congrats on successful brews as a beginner.

You are right that there is a ton of information out there, just not all of it is good. Brew a lot, take good notes, and don't follow everyone's advice, including mine, if it doesn't make sense to you or won't work with your process. Brewing isn't complicated, but we can make it complicated. Take it all in, pick out what is good, and brew.

 

glad you got the pun ! Ill do exactly what you just said ! Thanks !

 

I was gonna have ten puns in this post if they all made my wife laugh, but no pun in ten did.

 

Should be about perfect!

 

I ramp up my temp at the end of the fesrmentation from low sixties to mid sixties and dryhop at that temp.