how to do multiple dry hop additions

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by Bwhamon, Oct 11, 2014.

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  1. Bwhamon

    Bwhamon Initiate (0) Aug 29, 2014 Kentucky

    I have 2 beers in the primary and need advice on dry hopping using pellets. Both call for multiple dry hop additions. One already has 3 oz of Citra in a small nylon straining bag and is partially floating on top. I will be using a stainless washer to make it sink next time. My questions:

    1. Do I need to remove the bag to put my next dry hop addition or can I just put the new one in?

    2. I am fermenting the Citra beer in a plastic big-mouth bubbler. There has been no bubbling in over 1 week. How can I minimize the amount of O2 I add to my vessel when I drop in the bag with the new hop pellets? My next beer (Pliny clone) is still bubbling great. Can I add some of it (if so how much) to the Citra one (Krausening) to produce more CO2 to protect it?

    3. I will be dry hopping my Pliny clone soon. How do you sanitize your hop bags? I was going to soak it in StarSan. Do you rinse yours or just put them in the vessel wet with StarSan? I have some leftover boiled water I was thinking about using to rinse the bag prior to putting in the hop pellets.

    Thanks.
     
  2. dblab33

    dblab33 Initiate (0) Dec 9, 2011 Michigan

    I like to remove the first addition before adding the second, but some folks don't and still get good results.

    What I typically do is add the first dry hops to the primary 7-10 days into fermentation, then use co2 to rack to a purged keg where it gets the second dry hop. If you plan to bottle from a bottling bucket, I'd just open the Big Mouth, pull the hops, add your second dose, then rack from there when you're ready. There's no reason to secondary in this case, especially if you're very concerned with oxygen exposure.

    I don't use muslin bags for the first dry hopping, I just carefully dump them into the fermenter. I'll use one when dry hopping in the keg. I boil them first, soak in StarSan, then wring them out by hand (with nitrile gloves on) before filling with hops.

    Hope this helps.
     
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  3. koopa

    koopa Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2008 New Jersey

    1. It's a matter of personal preference. Seeing as how you bought one of those big mouth bubblers, it would seem easy for you to do so if you choose to.

    2. Sure you could add some actively fermenting wort (krausening) or (if you have a CO2 tank) flush the headspace with CO2 gas. If you krausen, I believe you are supposed to add roughly 10% by volume so you need to make sure you have that much room (plus headspace for fermentation when it kicks up again) and ask yourself if you really want to risk altering the flavor profile of your base beer by krausening with a different beer. I wouldn't want to personally, especially considering the base beer is a single hop beer.

    3. I've used starsan and I've boiled the hop bag in water. Both have produced similar results. Just make sure to sanitize your hands and then give the bag a good wringing out after wetting it with either method.
     
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  4. psnydez86

    psnydez86 Initiate (0) Jan 4, 2012 Pennsylvania

    @Bwhamon do you have a fridge/cold place to fit your fermenters? If so you can start throwing your hops in nude.
     
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  5. koopa

    koopa Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2008 New Jersey

     
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  6. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

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  7. psnydez86

    psnydez86 Initiate (0) Jan 4, 2012 Pennsylvania

    @koopa (Without watching link) "It shrinks??" "Like a frightened turtle!" Thanks for that.
     
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  8. psnydez86

    psnydez86 Initiate (0) Jan 4, 2012 Pennsylvania

    @GreenKrusty101 was listening to a brew strong episode on double dry hopping. Jamil swears by it and even said (I believe) that he noticed a difference in a batch of evil cousin that his brewers forgot to double dry hop without knowing that they did not double dry hop.

    I tend to only do one dry hop but certainly would like to give this a try.

    It was either evil cousin or evil twin. I've yet to have either. :-(
     
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  9. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    No and yes b/c fishing-out the 1st addition will likely destroy the CO2 blanket.
    Remove the lid slowly so as not to create suction which would disturb and evacuate the protective CO2 blanket ... lower the hop bag gently into the beer ... then re-cap slowly to avoid pushing air into the fermentor's head-space.
    Boiling the bag for a couple of three minutes is probably good enough but if it makes you (and me) feel better follow up with a sanitizer dunk.
     
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  10. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada


    I will try anything once :slight_frown:, but I guess I'm just too lazy for the perceived benefits to consistently double dryhop.
     
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  11. PortLargo

    PortLargo Pooh-Bah (1,831) Oct 19, 2012 Florida
    Pooh-Bah

    1. I don't remove, just toss the second bag in.

    2. The way to minimize O2 pollution is just to work fast. I would not mix beers from different fermentors . . . incestuous beer doesn't appeal to me . . . might frighten my turtle.

    3. I boil my hop bags when they are new (never know where they have been). Then when re-using a good scrubbing followed by a starsan soak.

    For your Pliny clone there is no reason to not follow the Russian River technique. Here's how they handle the double dry hop (me too).
     
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  12. Bwhamon

    Bwhamon Initiate (0) Aug 29, 2014 Kentucky

    10% would likely change the flavor. From what I read, this technique is best used when brewing the same batch over and over again. Then you would not really change the flavor at all.

    I have a 7 cu ft. freezer with temp control. Last time I dropped in hop pellets they just formed a green film on top and never really went into the beer.

    Nice article, looks like they just drop them on top and even "push" with CO2 to get the first dry hop addition back in solution.
     
  13. Bwhamon

    Bwhamon Initiate (0) Aug 29, 2014 Kentucky

    Wish me luck (or good technique rather). I will be racking my Pliny Monday and adding my second dry hop to my Citra/Munich SMaSH.

    Thanks everyone for the advise.
     
  14. FATC1TY

    FATC1TY Pooh-Bah (2,564) Feb 12, 2012 Georgia
    Pooh-Bah

    I normally just toss in the pellets if I have them, leaf if available in the fermenter right around 7 days from pitching. Usually done fermenting and I'm allowing it to warm up a bit to finish.

    I give it 5 days, and then I start cooling it a bit to help it drop down a bit. I purge the headspace again while I'm cooling it a bit.

    Then I rack with co2 to my keg which has been purged, WITH my leaf hops in a bag suspended from the PRV of the keg.

    I allow it to sit at room temp for another 4 days, then cool it down to keg temps. At that point, I will sometimes carb it up with the hops in there at keg temps, or I'll pull hops.

    I'm going to try to now cool it down, rack from one keg to another under a co2 blanket to get it off the hops.

    I have tossed the idea around of hooking up my hop rocket with 4 ounces of leaf, and pushing the beer from one keg to another through the hops to a clean keg for carbing and enjoying. Should be saturated at that point.
     
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  15. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,635) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah

    Yes, that is one application of the hop rocket. You can go back and forth to get the most out of the hops.
     
  16. telejunkie

    telejunkie Savant (1,107) Sep 14, 2007 Vermont

    I have an article on Advanced Dry Hopping Considerations coming out for the december issue of BYO which has a section focusing on layering in dry hops. It is obviously something a lot of the top pro-brewers do, but is something that is probably unnecessary for homebrewers with one exception. It's a technique I've done over the past few years, but now have basically stopped. Hope you guys will read it.
    Regarding question #2...why haven't homebrewers yet devised a mini-hop cannon?? Blow the hops in with a CO2 charge
     
  17. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,635) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah

    From what I have read they use some pretty high pressures for that, more than we use.

    Not a cannon, but I have been pushing beer through my hop rocket, keg to keg through the hops. You can go back and forth a few times keg to keg. If you want more hops aroma, reload with fresh hops and repeat.

    Edit - you can also do a purge with CO2 to get the O2 out.
     
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