Cedar Rapids Brewing Society

OK. So I wanted to try dry hopping in the keg. I sanitized a fine nylon mesh bag and put an ounce of simcoe hops in it. Tied it at the top with a string and suspended it in the keg. However, the string must have been too long, because the hop bag was restricting the flow of the beer. I opened the keg, in order to raise it a bit, and when I pulled the string, it came right out, with no hop bag. The hop bag is not secured at the top, so the hops will eventually come out and be floating in the beer. So here is the question. Would you:

A. Leave it and drink it. Floating hops be damned.

B. Sanitize some tongs, and fish the bag out.

C. Pull the out tube on the keg, put a mesh filter on it, and secure it. Then put a jumper to another keg's out tube and transfer to another keg.

We lost one bag while dryhopping but the top was tied and floating close to the surface. Sanitized tongs retrieved it. If you can see it you might be able to get it. If not I think I'd do the transfer. I've only dryhopped once though.

My take is just to leave it. You will end up with more of the hop flavor by letting them loose float anyway. Only problem is they are there until the keg is emptied.

I concur.

On Mon, Apr 12, 2010 at 12:15 PM, BrewHound <brew-tech@crbeernuts.org (brew-tech@crbeernuts.org)> wrote:

My take is just to leave it. You will end up with more of the hop flavor by letting them loose float anyway. Only problem is they are there until the keg is emptied.

--
Prost!
Travis Scheidecker
Head Brewer
Third Base Brewery
500 Blairs Ferry Rd NE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52402
Tel.  319-378-9090  Fax:  319-378-9697
http://twitter.com/3rdBaseBrewery

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BrewHound wrote:My take is just to leave it. You will end up with more of the hop flavor by letting them loose float anyway. Only problem is they are there until the keg is emptied.

So far, I have done nothing. I am drinking it, and there are no floaties (yet). I expect the bag is actually creating a filter bed for the hop particulate. The end of the keg will be the interesting part. I will bring some to the meeting.

That sounds like a major problem. You don't want the hops to sit in there too long so why don't you bring it to my house and I will drink it for you.

I have tossed some hop bags in the keg and just let them sit there until its gone. The hoppy beers tend to go fast at my place. I say as long as the beer comes out, just keep drinking it.

If it takes too long to drink it might get vegetal. You might need help. Let us know.

tompb wrote:If it takes too long to drink it might get vegetal. You might need help. Let us know.

It's settled, we shall sit and drink of the keg until she be dead!