There has been a lot said regarding the effec of suspended yeast on dry hop charechter. The theory being that hop oils attach to yeast then drop out. Because of this, one of the only times that I transfer to secondary is when I dry hop. Today I had the idea that fining with gratin prior to transferring and dry hopping would be an even better solution. Anyone here try this and have results to report?
I have not used a fining agent before dry hopping before but I have let the krausen drop before dry hopping. Just got back from Sierra Nevada and the scientists there say they would dry hop with 1-1.5 degrees plato of fermentable sugars left so you wouldn’t oxidize your beer.
I have had good success with dry hopping right after fermentation without the use of fining agents.
SN dry hops with whole hops; I would expect that the chance of oxidation with pellet hops is substantially less.
When I am really looking for tons of dry hop charechter I will usually dry hop per the SN model at about 1 degree plato to terminal. Then transfer to a secondard and dry hop again. The hops really pop - this is a technique I picked up from Firestone Walker.
I am thinking that fining (or even filtering) before the second dry hopping could make this even more effective - but I am not sure to what degree. (In other words, it may not be worth the effort)
I would say not worth the effort but try both ways and let us know how it turns out.
that is really interesting info - thanks for sharing that.
Firestone-Walker dryhops in the primary when fermentation starts to die down and has no problems with loss of flavor/aroma.
I tried this in a recent IPA and it gave a fresh flavor and brillantly clear beer.
The only time I use a secondary is for sours, high-grav brews, or when I’m out of kegs.
Union Jack is dry hopped twice. Before the second dry hop goes in the tank gets dumped which is basically the same thing as transferring to a secondary just without the risk of oxygen pick up.
One thing that I have heard Bryndlson say is that the combination of dry hop with beer that is still fermenting does create some unique flavores.