Multiple dry hop vs. single addition

In commercial cylindroconicals, staggered dry hop additions help to increase surface area contact with the beer. At home, in carboys/buckets this isn't a major concern because of the flat bottom. However, I like to split my dry hops between the tail end of fermentation (where yeast will scavenge oxygen, and you can get some fun yeast-hop interactions) and the keg (where I can flush with CO2, and allow the hops to sit in the beer as I drink it, helping to extend the hoppy lifespan of the beer).

 

For my Zombie Dust clone, I dry hop with 4 ounces for 10 days, for a 5 gallon batch.

 

This is what I have decided on, at the end of fermentation in the primary, then in the keg.

 

I brew so many IPAs that I can't imagine double dryhopping every batch. Mine usually get dryhopped at 12-14 days, sit in the keg at room temp for 2 days and then lager for the duration. First snowy day this season...last IPA is 13 days in...guess what I'll be doing today with 4oz of Equinox/El Dorado?

 

Mike, Did you find that adding dry hops prior to fermentation beginning added anything(I think you did this recently)?

 

For a beer like that, I don't think you'll get much out of it but you can always give it a shot with little work/risk.

The main theory behind multiple additions is to get biotransformation out of adding hops while there is still some yeast activity to change the hop oils, then coming back and adding more hops when the yeast drop out in order to get another layer of different aroma. This works well if you are doing a big IPA and want a complex aroma but I don't think it works as well in smaller beers with less hops.

Then you also have to consider what you want out of the hops. If you want a more raw, pellet-y aroma, wait until all activity is done and add the hops in one dose (pr even after cooling the beer). If you want a fuller, fruitier aroma with a little less in-your-face, raw hop punch, then add the hops right as you are approaching terminal gravity and you still have plenty of yeast in solution. Use two doses of hops if you want a huge aroma with the full spectrum of character.

In a commercial setting I think you give up some aroma from blowing the tank down to add the second dose (and all the CO2 you lose from nucleation, carrying aroma with it) but if you add enough hops you can overcome that. No so much a concern at home though.

 

Certainly improved the beer prior to my standard first dry hop, but I didn't think the finished beer was substantially different to warrant it. Might be better technique for something like a hoppy saison where a more subtle/integrated hop aroma is called for.

 

Doing multiple dry hop additions can have advantages, but not in the way you plan to do them. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it anyway.