Dry hops in keg

[duskb]

I took the advice of some of you and decided to dry hop in the keg for this latest IPA. I didn't do anything extravagant, I just filled a sanitized paint strainer, tied the bag shut and dropped it into the keg.

It's been about two weeks now and the beer is doing nicely but I'm getting ALOT of hop flakes in the pour. It's the dirtiest IPA I've ever seen. I've got half a mind to call it a feature and just go with it. I'm not sure many will drink it though.

Assuming I try to get this beer to be what it should be am I forced to transfer this to another keg or is there a belief that eventually all of this will settle to the bottom?

 

[GHBWNY]

I took the advice of some of you and decided to dry hop in the keg for this latest IPA. I didn't do anything extravagant, I just filled a sanitized paint strainer, tied the bag shut and dropped it into the keg.

It's been about two weeks now and the beer is doing nicely but I'm getting ALOT of hop flakes in the pour. It's the dirtiest IPA I've ever seen. I've got half a mind to call it a feature and just go with it. I'm not sure many will drink it though.

Assuming I try to get this beer to be what it should be am I forced to transfer this to another keg or is there a belief that eventually all of this will settle to the bottom?

It will settle out eventually and how long it takes depends on whether you used whole or pellets. I dry hopped with both in my most recent IPA and after 7 days, the pellets settled out while the whole hops remained afloat. I didn't want the beer sitting on the dry hop any longer, so I racked it to another vessel for cold-crashing. Obviously, letting it settle out is the least invasive option if you have the time to wait. Wonder if your paint strainer is fine enough? If it's fine enough, you shouldn't be getting "flakes" in your beer.

 

[Psylocide]

I took the advice of some of you and decided to dry hop in the keg for this latest IPA. I didn't do anything extravagant, I just filled a sanitized paint strainer, tied the bag shut and dropped it into the keg.

It's been about two weeks now and the beer is doing nicely but I'm getting ALOT of hop flakes in the pour. It's the dirtiest IPA I've ever seen. I've got half a mind to call it a feature and just go with it. I'm not sure many will drink it though.

Assuming I try to get this beer to be what it should be am I forced to transfer this to another keg or is there a belief that eventually all of this will settle to the bottom?

The paint strainer weave is too coarse... when the pellets break up, all the little pieces can go right through the holes.

I wouldn't use anything less than muslin or voile (preferably) to contain hop pellets in the keg. I suppose all you could do now is find some way to pull the dip tube and put a filter of some kind over it, or wait until all the flakes settle out before taking another pull... but that seems unlikely to work real well.

 

[duskb]

I dry hopped with pellets. I got the same Home Depot paint strainer bags someone on here mentioned and I even doubled the bag over to thicken it before tying it off. There are definitely flakes floating around in it. It's hard to say if some of it isn't sediment from primary that made it over but usually in those cases the sediment settles out after the first pint or two. This keg is swimming in it.

Technically the beer is conditioning so I'm not supposed to be pouring it for a couple more weeks. Then again I'd hate to have a beer this dirty in two weeks and be forced to transfer it after it's conditioned.

 

[KennyM]

I've been using these and they work amazing. Just remove after the dry hop period and then cold crash in the same keg.
http://www.stainlessbrewing.com/Dry-Hopper-with-twist-cap_p_155.html

 

[m00ps]

Yeah, you need a finer mesh. Or maybe two bags. I just use whole hops for my keg hops, but Ive heard many reports of pellets working just fine in the keg without grassy off flavors

 

[Gavin C]

I've keg hopped the sum total of 2 beers. Both with leaf hops.

The first one was an APA. It pours nice and clear. (paint strainer bag used)

The second is an IPA. It is cloudy as an Irish July but this is due to the large hop bill prior to the dry-hopping. The beer was cloudy at kegging and is no more cloudy since. (Voile bag used)

I think the key is not to use pellet hops.

 

[Legume]

I have keg hoped 2 beers with pellets, and have had no issues with hop bits floating in the beer...you just need a finer mesh bag.

 

[Yooper]

For leaf hops, those stainless mesh tea balls or paint strainer bags work pretty well.

For pellet hops, you need a fine mesh hops bag or fine stainless hops holder: http://biabbags.webs.com/ (Scroll down to the "dry hop" bags).

 

[chickypad]

These plus a teaball or paint strainer bag work pretty well, but I already had a couple laying around. If you're buying new I'd defintely go with one of the products linked above specifically for dry hopping pellets.

 

[BrewDawg79]

I have two of these. Work great for immediately pouring clear beer from keg. In my experience, thus far, no sediment or hop flakes. Draws beer from the top portion of the keg instead of the bottom.

http://www.clearbeerdraughtsystem.com

 

[chickypad]

I have two of these. Work great for immediately pouring clear beer from keg. In my experience, thus far, no sediment or hop flakes. Draws beer from the top portion of the keg instead of the bottom.

http://www.clearbeerdraughtsystem.com

That's a really interesting design, I've never seen those before.

 

[duskb]

Well, unfortunately this (expensive) beer turned out to be a great lesson of what NOT to do. Obviously using the Home Depot paint strainer bags just does NOT work for pellet hops (despite that I had seen several posts on here that appeared to claim it did). Once I did get the bag out of the keg at least half of the hops had worked their way out. Clogging the system.

I tried several attempts to rack the beer out of the keg but because the beer had already been fully carbed it just foamed everywhere. At that point I just dumped it into a sanitized bucket and racked from under the foam through a strainer. It cleared the beer but oxidized it pretty heavily. It does not taste the same now.

Lesson learned. I read it on the Internet does not give one license to try it and expect the same results.

 

[StonesBally]

I have been using knee high nylon stockings for dry hopping in the keg. I just fill them up and tie off the end, drop on the keg. I don't get to much sediment and I haven't noticed any flavor impact from the stockings either. I have used them with whole leaf, pellet, and a mix of the two types and have been pleased with the pour quality of brews.

 

[slym2none]

IPAs can be cloudy. I kinda like "chunky" IPAs.

I remember when Victory's DirtWolf was a lot chunkier. I liked it a little better.

 

[The_Bishop]

I dry hop in the keg with just about any hoppy beer I make. Been using voile bags for it, and pellet hops. No issues. I don't weigh the bags down, either.

 

[GHBWNY]

Even with using the very best of filtering products to initially strain debris from the beer, there will be a minimal amount of residue left behind, even if it is only a dust layer on the bottom of your keg/fermenter. I get super clear beer with gel/cold-crashing, but I still have to allow time for everything to settle and then handle/rack with extreme care so as not to disturb that bottom layer.

This won't apply to all applications, but I bought a piece of #4 SS mesh and cut out a round section to fit the bottom of my fermentation bucket. I pushed a 'dome' into it so the center of it sits about 1/2" off the bottom (kind of a 'false bottom' of sorts). I sanitize it and drop it in before fermentation. The trub layer forms below it so when I rack to my bottling bucket, I can confidently rest the tip of the racking cane on the mesh and not suck up any debris. I've also used it in a post-ferm bucket and racked the beer strictly for gel/cold-crashing. Then rack to bottling: SUPER-clear beer in the end.

 

[Calichusetts]

I use the muslim hop bags you get at shops. Pellet, no real issue after a few days in the fridge. Just got the tea balls so that I can add some hops for the duration of the keg as well.

 

[m00ps]

I use the muslim hop bags you get at shops. Pellet, no real issue after a few days in the fridge. Just got the tea balls so that I can add some hops for the duration of the keg as well.

You know that the Qur'an generally prohibits alcoholic beverages, right?

 

[Calichusetts]

You know that the Qur'an generally prohibits alcoholic beverages, right?

haha...was going to edit it, but guess I'm just a rebellious follower of Islam now.

 

[duskb]

This won't apply to all applications, but I bought a piece of #4 SS mesh and cut out a round section to fit the bottom of my fermentation bucket. I pushed a 'dome' into it so the center of it sits about 1/2" off the bottom (kind of a 'false bottom' of sorts). I sanitize it and drop it in before fermentation. The trub layer forms below it so when I rack to my bottling bucket, I can confidently rest the tip of the racking cane on the mesh and not suck up any debris. I've also used it in a post-ferm bucket and racked the beer strictly for gel/cold-crashing. Then rack to bottling: SUPER-clear beer in the end.

I wondered about the viability using thin SS mesh for long term immersion. Whether it be a strainer, tea-ball, or something like what you constructed above (which is really a great idea because it solves issues I struggle with during racking) has anyone run into issues with the SS eventually breaking down or rusting in the bucket? I think the only reason I would be reticent to submerge something like that long term (say for more than 4 weeks at a time) is that eventually it'll rust. My brewing luck of late has not been good so dealing with dry hopping in the future (which I'm just gonna do in 2ndary for now on) using thin mesh sounds like I'm inviting eventual trouble.

 

[iijakii]

My last pale had a few ounce keg hop in one of Wilsers' hop socks and there was 0 particulate in my pours.

 

[Psylocide]

My last pale had a few ounce keg hop in one of Wilsers' hop socks and there was 0 particulate in my pours.

Yeah... Voile would be the only material I'd trust for keg hopping with pellets.

 

[Neptune]

I had this same experience. The hop debris stayed for the life of the keg. I swore I'd never dry hop in a keg again... But then I heard that dry hopping in the primary might not be the best idea (because, trub sponge!)

I now have a dry hopped keg going with a muslin bag inside a voile bag. Overkill, I guess, but no issues.

 

[VonAle]

I use the paint strainer bags from HD.
I use 2-3 oz in a 1 gal bag. Tie with fishing line and drop it in.
I don't move the keg again once I seal it up and place it in the fridge.

The first pint or two are cloudy/crappy, but pours relatively clear after that.
The bag settles at the bottom against the dip tube and similar to lautering the mash tun, the bag transforms into a filter.

I tried suspending the bag once and the beer NEVER did pour clear.