Dry hopping question

Starsan, or boil it. Seriously, take a bowl.. spray the muslin bag with starsan and and bam. Fill it with hops and go.

 

My recommendation: boil the muslin bag. I would also suggest something like marbles to weigh down the bag & hops.

Cheers!

 

I use paint strainers and I boil these along with 4 steelies that I use to weigh down the bag. Good luck.

 

I'd boil and use Star San to be safe, but I'm anal about sanitization.

 

I always boiled them, but I've stopped using them all together. I either use a tea ball or I just throw whole hops in.

 

I use a paint strainer bag. Dunk it in the no rinse sanitizer of your choice. Take whatever you're going to use to weigh the bag down (I usually use sanitized soup spoon, but people us marbles, bearings, etc) and put that in the bag, then swing it overhead like you're a cowboy swinging a lasso. Do this in an area where it will be acceptable to spray droplets of sanitizer all over everything within ten feet, and take care to avoid breaking lamps, harming pets, or otherwise creating mayhem. The circular motion and our old friend centrifugal force will get most of the sanitizer off the bag. Put your hops in and you're good to go.

 

Haha. Got a good chuckle..

I dunk in sanitizer, and wring it out with my hand. A little starsan foam never hurt anything.

 

Might be a good idea to add "Check bag for marble-sized holes" to the beginning of this process.

 

Well, sure, that'd work, but where's the fun in that? You need that element of potential catastrophe to liven up an activity like this.

BTW, I forgot to add that you should yell "yeeeee-haw!!!" while you're lassoing. It will amuse the neighbors no end.

 

When I used muslin bags or paint strainers or tea balls, or hop torpedos, etc. I would boil for 5-10 minutes and then have a bowl of vodka to place them in until use.

I just throw the whole hops right in. Much easier/quickers and more surface area of the hops comes into contact with the beer. Win/Win!