dry hopping help - 2 questions

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by monkeybeerbelly, Jun 19, 2015.

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  1. monkeybeerbelly

    monkeybeerbelly Initiate (0) Dec 6, 2012 New York

    ok so I brewed the famous Heady Topper clone from BYO mag (i know not the greatest clone recipe....) and the recipe calls for two dry hop additions.
    I know many on this site frown on secondary and as Im short on space and equipment so do i, but the recipe calls for one dry hop addition in primary and one dry hopping in secondary.
    first question: will any harm be done if i do both additions in primary?

    second question involves dry hopping technique:
    is it better to dry hop in hop bags or just add hops directly to fermenter?
    if bags, do i lose some hops to the bag, and does the bag need to be sanitized?
    if direct to fermenter, how do i avoid getting hop matter in bottles during bottling process?

    thanks in advance to the experienced BA's that will help with sage advice
     
    #1 monkeybeerbelly, Jun 19, 2015
  2. michaeltrego

    michaeltrego Crusader (447) May 21, 2004 New Hampshire

    Both rounds of dry hopping in the primary is totally fine.

    Loose hops are also fine, no need to bag them.

    If you can, drop the temperature of your primary after dry hopping to help settle out the hop matter. Then simply be careful when siphoning to avoid transferring any hop matter, or attach a sanitized strainer bag over the bottom of the siphon.
     
    #2 michaeltrego, Jun 19, 2015
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  3. pweis909

    pweis909 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,250) Aug 13, 2005 Wisconsin
    Pooh-Bah

    I would do both in primary, or one in primary and one in the keg, if you keg. Unless the beer needs extended aging, or there is an ingredient to be added late in the process that requires additional fermentation (e.g., fruit), I think the risk of an additional transfer (oxygenation) outweighs the benefits. I am especially sensitive to oxygenation of hops, which I think can be the first thing to go bad (probably not bad as in awful; bad as in no longer super awesome) in a hoppy beer. If you feel comfortable that you can minimize the risk there may be some value to doing the secondary. Or it may just be an extra step with no perceived benefits. You'll never really know until you try it both ways. Chances are, you won't ruin your beer by doing it one way or the other.
     
    #3 pweis909, Jun 19, 2015
  4. monkeybeerbelly

    monkeybeerbelly Initiate (0) Dec 6, 2012 New York

    2 weeks in dry hopping or 2 weeks from first fermentation?

    just pour them in? or stir gently? (but i assume thats a bad idea)

    will siphoning through a strainer bag affect the yeast i need for bottle conditioning?
     
    #4 monkeybeerbelly, Jun 19, 2015
  5. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    No. Unflocculated yeast are way too small for significant quantities to be caught by a strainer bag.
     
    #5 VikeMan, Jun 19, 2015
  6. monkeybeerbelly

    monkeybeerbelly Initiate (0) Dec 6, 2012 New York

    @BigHornyDevil

    like i asked above:

    2 weeks in dry hopping or 2 weeks from first fermentation?
     
    #6 monkeybeerbelly, Jun 21, 2015
  7. PapaGoose03

    PapaGoose03 Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,057) May 30, 2005 Michigan
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    1. Either way is okay.
    2. If you are using pellets, a hop bag isn't really worth using because it will still allow a lot of the fine stuff to get thru the mesh, so you'll still have some trub to try to leave behind when siphoning to your bottling bucket. AND, definitely, if you use a bag, it has to be sanitized. Your beer is sterile at this point, so anything touching that liquid needs to be sanitized.
    3. The 'carefully' description above is the best answer; however, if some hop material gets into your bottling bucket, you'll have a second opportunity to leave it behind, which is fairly easy to do if your bottling bucket has a spigot.
     
    #7 PapaGoose03, Jun 21, 2015
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  8. inchrisin

    inchrisin Pooh-Bah (2,013) Sep 25, 2008 Indiana
    Pooh-Bah

    Both additions in primary with a hop bag and a sanitized weight in it. pull the bag before you rack.
     
    #8 inchrisin, Jun 22, 2015
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