Dry hopping with pellets?

[Otto Von Blotto]

Are these bits you're referring to from dry hopping? You won't get the same results as dry hopping from boiling then straining them, but it will provide some flavour and aroma. Dry hopping doesn't add IBUs like boiling (or steeping above 80C to a lesser extent) does, although it is theorized that it does contribute to perceived bitterness - chew on a hop pellet and you'll see what I mean, they're bitter as all hell even though they haven't been boiled.

 

You can either cold crash the beer for a few days to a week before bottling which should drop the hops into the trub, or contain them in something (but give them enough room to expand).

[Morrie]

OVB:

Dry hopping doesn't add IBUs like boiling (or steeping above 80C to a lesser extent) does, although it is theorized that it does contribute to perceived bitterness - chew on a hop pellet and you'll see what I mean, they're bitter as all hell even though they haven't been boiled.

 

This has been bouncing around inside my head for a while now. I don't understand why dry hopping is not supposed to contribute to bitterness when as you say....try and eat a hop pellet and then see if you can eat another one. They are extremely bitter. I tasted my last brew prior to dry hopping and I did not think that it was bitter enough. I dry hopped 90 grams, 30 each of cascade, EKG and amarillo. I now find the beer is adequately bittered and i tend to think that dry hopping does contribute to bitterness. Happy to be proven wrong though...

[botanical]

Hi all

 

Otto, would you get more flavour doing a hop tea before cc'ing or just before bottling ?.

 

Cheers Greenie

 

[Otto Von Blotto]

It makes sense really. IBUs are a measure of the amount of iso-alpha acids in the beer, which are created by boiling the hops or to a lesser extent by steeping them above about 80C. It isn't a measure of perceived bitterness, and if you go and add a bunch of really bitter things such as hop pellets to the beer, it seems logical that they would contribute at least a small amount of bitter flavour.

[Otto Von Blotto]

Hi all

 

Otto' date=' would you get more flavour doing a hop tea before cc'ing or just before bottling ?.

 

Cheers Greenie

[/quote']

 

That's a good question actually. It's probably neither here nor there, although the flavour may stick around longer in the beer if you do the tea at bottling time, as it won't have had the week or whatever of cold crashing during which to slightly diminish, and also won't be affected as much by the yeast dropping out and pulling some of the hop compounds with it.

[botanical]

Have just added 25g cascade @ 20 min steeped to my latest os draught brew the day before bottling and it seems a bit weak but it was my first time using hops. It smells really nice and tastes really

good from the sample I tried yesterday after bottling but ?. Is there another hop that goes well with the cascade that could round it out, or maybe next time go with more cascade. Just looking for suggestions.

 

Cheers Greenie

[Otto Von Blotto]

You could simply add more Cascade hops, or you could try a second hop in combination, either will work. From batches I've brewed, I found Chinook went well in tandem with Cascade. I've used it with Centennial as well although that was in a more malt driven red ale and the hops are similar anyway. Others have done a 2 to 1 ratio of Cascade to Galaxy with good results too.

 

There are so many varieties out there now, I haven't even really scratched the surface of trying them all and I've been brewing for 4 years making up my own hop schedules, beginning with extract for about 6 months then moving to AG. Even the ones brought out in that time I've only tried one of I think, that being Mosaic.

[Morrie]

Greenie - some of the brewers on here like to use galaxy with cascade with a ratio of 2 parts cascade to 1 part galaxy.....or half as much galaxy as cascade. You can read my post above on what I used with cascade and I think it tastes nice. This was a dry hop addition only on a coopers extract. The dry hops (aroma and flavour) seem to diminish with age in the bottle I think.

 

Next brew I do will be a cascade/galaxy dry hop.

[Otto Von Blotto]

That is correct, the hop influence does diminish over time, bitterness included. That's why I find hoppy beers like pale ales and such are better drunk fresh than aged, because you get the most out of the hops.

 

A friend gave me a few bottles of Cricketers Arms IPA the weekend before this one just gone. I tried one on Saturday and it was lacking very much in hop character. Very sweet flavoured. I asked her how long they'd been sitting in the cupboard at her place and she said maybe over a year. So yeah.. perfect example right there.

[botanical]

Thanks Morrie,

 

Reason I ask is that I am going to do an order from Hopdealz tomorrow and am just looking for ideas

for the os draught brew that I did today and given the taste I think I need something sour to counter act the extra sweetness from the brown sugar that I added.

 

os draught

100g dextrose

100g brown sugar

os-o5 pitched at 22c and dropping

 

Given Otto's response I would be doing a tea the day before bottling.

 

Cheers Greenie

 

[Morrie]

I think I can taste the difference in a month from first sample of my beer. I think the hops have mellowed out nicely now. I thought I had over done it at first but now as time progresses it is just delicious.

 

Yes....I've noticed that too with buying Gage Roads IPA Sleeping Giant. The last box I bought didn't have the hop influence as the previous ones in my opinion....so I just put it down to a bit of age in the beer......or maybe I'm aclimatised now to a greater hop exposure.

[Morrie]

Greenie - I just had a look on hop dealz and they don't seem to have a real lot....wondering if they are closing down. Didn't see any galaxy listed.

 

I'm not sure if you've been given the drum about using sugar and dextrose. Its not a good substance to be brewing with in my opinion. Tends to throw cidery flavours. I like to use 100% malt.

[botanical]

Sorry forgot the 300g dme

[Otto Von Blotto]

You'll probably find samples from the fermenter taste more bitter than when the beer has been sitting in bottles for a couple of weeks or whatever. I certainly have noticed this in my beers, they usually taste overly bitter at FG sample time, but once they are ready to drink properly they settle down to the expected level.

 

I'm not sure what causes this, but I take little notice of the FG samples' flavours as a result, other than tasting for any problems. The final flavours that I taste in the glass are there, but the bitterness tends to mask them a bit; they come out more when it dissipates a little after carbonation and yeast settling.

 

Hop Dealz is closing down yes. Not sure exactly when but some time in the coming months. He's starting up a new venture so I'm not sure what that is yet.

[Morrie]

I think that beer would taste much nicer doing away with the sugar, dextrose, DME (although nothing wrong with DME) and just using 1.5kg of coopers light liquid malt extract instead.

 

 

[Morrie]

Thanks Kelsey - I'll keep that in mind not to place too much creedence on SG sample tasting. Just kinda use it as a rough guide I guess.

[botanical]

Just experimenting and using what is available to buy without going online. Nearest lhbs is 1500 km north or south and a hell of lot more east or west. I am going to do a hop tea at the end of it.

 

Cheers

[Otto Von Blotto]

I don't think dextrose or brown sugar in small amounts like that will cause any problems. It's when it starts to get up in to the 500-600g or more amounts that you get the issues, usually in combination with too high a ferment temp as well. The old kit and kilo of sugar fermented at ambient in the middle of summer =

 

I used 250g of raw sugar in my last ESB (first time one of my AG batches hasn't been technically AG ) but unfortunately the frickin cube got infected and blew up so I have no idea how it would have tasted. It seems to be used regularly in ESB's though and none of them tastes cidery. It really depends on how much is used and the fermentation temp. Using dextrose doesn't automatically mean a beer will taste cidery.

 

That said, I do prefer using all malt as well. I do have the advantage of being able to manipulate the FG by changing the mash temperature though, so if I want a drier beer I simply mash lower to produce a more fermentable wort rather than add dextrose.

[Morrie]

I'm trying out the coopers wheat malt extract can next (50% wheat malt & 50% pale barley malt). Putting down a brew tomorrow night. Dunno what the flavour will be like compared to Light barley LME. Scotty suggested to try it and the only way to find out is to do just that.

[Corksniffer]

I've boiled a tiny little nothing bag of 'finishing hops' Cascade from my local which has about 8 pellets inside for just 3 minutes in 500ml water and thrown it in day-4, but then I got to thinking: WTF is THAT gonna' do!? I think I need a bit more than that, boiled for a bit longer than 3 minutes. . But since cervea's a house beer now I got a few more so will go get some more hops today (if those tiny bags are even worth it? Or should I buy some free pellets online?) Those hop tea bag types break at the slightest touch too, seem like rubbish

[jeremy-o]

One thing worth noting is that the alpha acids in hops seem to have a very low saturation point, which means half a litre of tea will top out pretty quick and probably not have the impact of the same amount of hops in more water. I've been told that even topping up wort volume with a couple of litres of water post boil could be detrimental following even a modest hop schedule. Not sure about that.

[Otto Von Blotto]

I reckon you're better off buying pellets online. For one thing, they'll be fresher, and if you've got 200g of a hop or whatever, you can put as little or as much as you want into a brew. It's also a lot cheaper.

 

So you've got the advantage of fresher hops for less money and the freedom of using however much you like, as opposed to poorly stored pre-packaged tea bag things that are overly expensive for what they are and contain hardly any hops.

 

I know which way I'd be going

[Old Bloke1525229737]

I've boiled a tiny little nothing bag of 'finishing hops' Cascade from my local which has about 8 pellets inside for just 3 minutes in 500ml water and thrown it in day-4' date=' but then I got to thinking: WTF is THAT gonna' do!? [img']rolleyes[/img] I think I need a bit more than that, boiled for a bit longer than 3 minutes. . But since cervea's a house beer now I got a few more so will go get some more hops today (if those tiny bags are even worth it? Or should I buy some free pellets online?) Those hop tea bag types break at the slightest touch too, seem like rubbish

 

Hi mate, have you tried http://darwinhomebrewing.com.au/ for brewing supplies.

They are located in Darwin, which makes them convenient, and are reasonably priced.

[Beerlust]

OVB:

Dry hopping doesn't add IBUs like boiling (or steeping above 80C to a lesser extent) does' date=' although it is theorized that it does contribute to perceived bitterness - chew on a hop pellet and you'll see what I mean, they're bitter as all hell even though they haven't been boiled. [/quote']

 

This has been bouncing around inside my head for a while now. I don't understand why dry hopping is not supposed to contribute to bitterness when as you say....try and eat a hop pellet and then see if you can eat another one. They are extremely bitter. I tasted my last brew prior to dry hopping and I did not think that it was bitter enough. I dry hopped 90 grams, 30 each of cascade, EKG and amarillo. I now find the beer is adequately bittered and i tend to think that dry hopping does contribute to bitterness. Happy to be proven wrong though...

Chew on a vitamin C tablet & you'll experience the same thing as it is in a concentrated form, but much like a hop pellet, disperse it in 23 litres of liquid & you'll be lucky to notice it at all.

 

To attain bitterness from hops the oils need to be isomerized at boiling temperatures. Dry hopping won't add bitterness, but in some cases can add a grassy tone to the beer usually as a result of prolonged exposure time, that is often confused with tasting bitterness as it is a harsh & noticeable tone in beer.

 

You can dry hop a beer with as much hops as you like & it could end up tasting grassy, but it won't have any true bitterness in a traditional sense.

 

Cheers,

 

Lusty.

[ben 10]

Dry hopping won't add bitterness' date=' [/quote']

 

It's true. IBUs are not added BUT as everyone's palate is different it can addd the perception of bitterness.