Dry Hopping

[edp12568]

OK guys. Question

We're ready to transfer our Zombie Dust clone to secondary, but we have an issue with timing. Recipe calls for 5-7 days primary and 4-7 days secondary dry hop. With Christmas around the corner we have to decide between stretching the primary to 9-10 days and secondary 4-5 days, or go with 7-8 days with 7-8 days secondary dry hop. It's our first time dry hopping and for some reason i'm leaning toward the shorter secondary/dry hop time. What say you guys.

 

[A2HB]

No need to do a secondary. Add your dryhops 7 days prior to when you plan on bottling or kegging and you'll be good.

That is to say add your hops to your main fermenter 7 days prior to when you want to bottle or keg. Just leave it all in the same container, there's really no need to be moving it until bottling time

 

[brewpool]

Agree with the post above. I've made this beer twice and left in primary the whole time. I left it in primary for about 18 days, 5 of which were dry hopping.

 

[cam5fc]

So when you're dry hopping, do you need to sanitize the hops somehow or are you just relying on the present alcohol to take care of that?

 

[Patrick87]

So when you're dry hopping, do you need to sanitize the hops somehow or are you just relying on the present alcohol to take care of that?

No need to sanitize them. Hops have natural antibacterial properties, so there won't be anything "living on them", so to speak. I guess it's possible that a grain of dust harboring some wild yeast/bacteria could land on the pellets, but as long as their stored properly (not just lying around), a dry hop addition won't infect your beer.

Also, like you suggested, the alcohol/low PH/hoppy nature of beer should help defend against most microbes at this point, or at least slow it down to the point the beer will be gone (drank) before an infection can really get going.

 

[brewpool]

I sanitize my hop bag but not the hop pellets. I sanitize the scissors I use to open my hop packets too.

 

[Elkobrewer]

Agreed no need for secondary. If your using a hop bag just boil it for about 15 min then put the hops in it and through it in your fermenter for 7 days. And you will be golden