Dry Hopping, Increased Fermentation

I have been brewing for 10 years and often do double batches and always keg my beers. I have chronically had this issue come up when dry hopping. I don’t think it is an infection issues but please advise!

After a typical 9-14 primary fermentation I have transferred to dry hop in kegs or carboys. I like the idea that the beer is 80-90% attenuated. The gravity reading and fermentation activity suggests the beer is close to terminal gravity, although I don’t always take a reading at this point I admit. Upon adding the dry hop i see an almost immediate increase in CO2 release and subsequent fermentation activity (bubbles rising to surface) which lasts 7-12 days into the dry hop. I like to limit dry hop contact so I become stressed as of what to do. I often am legging with minimal but continued activity. This has happened on many batches over the years (IPA, pale, ambers, ext…) I have even racked to secondary and waited several days with a calm surface on the beer prior to dry hopping with the same result. Oxygen in pellets aiding yeast fermentation or infection seem likely culprits. Please advise an annoyed home brewer.

Most likely it’s just CO2 being released from the beer due to the nucleation sites on the hops. Monitoring gravity would let you know for sure.

+1, worried me first time it happened too, just CO2 coming it of soliton due to above mentioned nucleation sites.

Drop your temp to get the yeast to drop out say 60f and then dry hop, you reduce the nucleation and then the yeast doesn’t pull the dry hop aroma and flavor out by the yeast dropping as the added benefit

You try to limit dry hopping time but you are dry hopping for more than twelve days?

+1. You’re paranoid. If you are in secondary and the beer is flocked out its just residual co2 being released.