Cold crash, keg, dry hop, carb all at once?

[Neptune]

This is my first all grain batch and first time kegging.

Fermentation is near completion. When it finishes, I'm thinking about racking to the keg and adding the dry hops (with a fine mesh bag) at the same time and cold crashing. It was BIAB so there is a good bit of trub in my primary. I'll be taking care not to stir too much of it up, but I'm sure a decent bit will end up in the keg.

Is this a bad idea? Will I clog my dip tube?

Also, can I just start carbing at the same time?

 

[Remmy]

This is my first all grain batch and first time kegging.

Fermentation is near completion. I am thinking about racking to the keg and adding the dry hops (with a fine mesh bag) at the same time and cold crashing. It was BIAB so there is a good bit of trub in my primary. I'll be taking care not to stir too much of it up, but I'm sure a decent bit will end up in the keg.

Is this a bad idea? Will I clog my dip tube?

Also, can I just start carbing at the same time?

The only way you could really clog your dip tube is by introducing loose hop pellets into the keg. You mentioned you will siphon as carefully as possible. So, the yeast cake shouldn't clog the dip tube.

Just make sure you add some weight (sanitized marbles) into the hop bag and ensure you have a long enough piece of string so the bag is fully-submerged in the beer until the keg kicks.

I would let the beer sit in the keg for 3-4 days so that as much yeast settle as possible. Pour off the first 2 pints or so (make sure the beer looks relatively clear). Then start drinking...considering you force carb!

 

[Neptune]

So there is no issue leaving the dry hops in (the mesh bag) for the life of the keg (they are pellets)? My thought was to pull them after 4-5 days (thinking it might give off a bad flavor or something after a while) as it's carbing up.

But if that's not a concern, I guess it would be easier to just leave them in...

 

[Hopper5000]

Dry hopping usually works better at room temps so it won't infuse aroma as quickly when it's cold. Many people use this method and just leave them in until it kicks. If you kick the keg within 2 to 4 weeks it's prolly not a big deal but if you start to notice a grassy flavor you could just pull them out. There are no real issues/problems with you methodology.

 

[doug293cz]

I prefer cold crashing in the primary to keep as much junk out of the keg as possible. One sequence is to dry hop in primary, cold crash, rack to keg, force carbonate. You could also throw additional dry hops into the keg when you rack. Your keg hops will be in there for a while, so having the flavors/aromas extracted at a slower rate over a longer period of time due to being cold (if that is even what happens) might be a good thing.

Brew on

 

[Mikeystew]

Dry hop, crash, carb in the keg is how I do almost all my dry hopped beers. I've left the hops in for 2-3wks with no problems. Now I tie the hops bag to a piece of plain floss and wrap the floss under the lid o-ring, so that the bag hangs suspended mid keg. It won't clog the dip tube that way, and it naturally pulls the hops out as the beer passes the halfway mark, which is for me about 1-2wks.

 

[Remmy]

Dry hop, crash, carb in the keg is how I do almost all my dry hopped beers. I've left the hops in for 2-3wks with no problems. Now I tie the hops bag to a piece of plain floss and wrap the floss under the lid o-ring, so that the bag hangs suspended mid keg. It won't clog the dip tube that way, and it naturally pulls the hops out as the beer passes the halfway mark, which is for me about 1-2wks.

That's the typical method of tying the bag. I have a few keg lids with a welded bracket beneath each and a hole drilled through the middle of the L-bracket so that you can tie something to it. It's awesome.

http://www.homebrewing.org/New-Corny-Keg-Lid-with-welded-tab-lid-o-ring-included_p_3946.html

 

[Natdavis777]

Dry hop, crash, carb in the keg is how I do almost all my dry hopped beers. I've left the hops in for 2-3wks with no problems. Now I tie the hops bag to a piece of plain floss and wrap the floss under the lid o-ring, so that the bag hangs suspended mid keg. It won't clog the dip tube that way, and it naturally pulls the hops out as the beer passes the halfway mark, which is for me about 1-2wks.

My process as well. Except I usually do all this in the primary, and then keg, usually without an additional dry hop addition. When I have dry hopped in the keg, I utilize the floss method, and use a length of sanitized pantyhose as my containment for hops.

 

[acidrain]

In usually crash first and dry hop in the keg, but I always use whole cones.
With pellets, I would dry hop in the primary, crash after 7-10 days (warm) and them keg it.

 

[Mikeystew]

My process as well. Except I usually do all this in the primary, and then keg, usually without an additional dry hop addition. When I have dry hopped in the keg, I utilize the floss method, and use a length of sanitized pantyhose as my containment for hops.

Nice, either way works. My very first ever brew was using my wife's pantyhose in a macgyver'd BIAB! Turned out great. Got me hooked.

 

[RodrigoEick]

I'm currently trying a new method:
- after fermentation terminated, soft-crash to 59F for 2 days so most of the yeast will drop
- add the dry-hop and let the temperature rise to 66F (is hot here, this happens fast)
- after 4-5 days, cold crash for 2-3 days and keg.

its said that the hop aroma will stick to the yeast cells, so by dropping most of the yeast before dry hop should help.

I'm currently on the last day of the dry hop and I wont add gelatin this time.

lets see how this will turn out

 

[kombat]

My preferred way is to dry hop and carb in the keg, then remove the hops, cold crash, and serve.

After 2 weeks of fermentation, I rack the beer to a keg and suspend a (sanitized) hop sock containing the hops in the keg/beer, tying it off with a strand of (sanitized) dental floss out the lid of the keg so I can remove it later. I hook it up to CO2, purge 5 times, then set it to 30 psi and let it sit (at room temperature) for a week. After a week, I vent the keg, remove the hop sock, seal it back up, move it into the keezer and hook it up to CO2 at 12 psi to finish carbing and cold crashing. Another week later and it's ready to drink.

As someone else mentioned, dry hopping is much less effective at cold temperatures. So I would dry hop at room temperature. But there's no reason you can't also carbonate at the same time. It just takes more pressure.

 

[Neptune]

Would your fermentation be complete at 2 weeks in that case? Or do you let it finish fermenting in the keg?

 

[kombat]

It's virtually complete. The yeast may still be cleaning up after themselves, but they're no longer producing meaningful amounts of CO2 (which would carry off the precious hop aroma I'm trying to impart by dry hopping). But they can finish that cleanup at the same time I'm dry hopping and getting a head start on the carbonation, since it's all happening at room temperature during that third week.