I brewed an IPA couple weeks ago (OG=1.064, IBU=65, no dry hopping but large 30 minute whirlpool edition), and have a small dilemma. I always ferment my IPAs for four weeks. I usually dump trub after about two weeks and cold crash the last three or four days. Due to summer vacation to Ireland, I will either have to keg right at three weeks, or at 5 1/2 weeks. It has already reached final gravity. Any opinions on which to choose? Not sure it really matters since it will condition in the keg but want to make sure the yeast has time to clear up everything.
Thanks
No reason you shouldn’t be able to keg @ 3 weeks, especially if you’re @ FG now.
+1, if its at FG and not dry hopping then cold crash it and keg it, when you get home you’ll have some tatsy well carbonated beer to enjoy:)
My IPA’s are most always kegged up and carbing by 2 wks. About 7-9 days for primary fermentation, 3-4 days on dry hops, cold crashed overnight, then kegged with gelatin. Come out great. No need to let them sit for 4 wks+. Drink’em fresh for best hop overload!
Same thing I do (except that I dry hop in keg now). Quicker is definitely better with hoppy beers.
do you use ss dry hop cannister? If so, does it really keep pellet hops out fairly well?
I bag mine and throw them in at kegging. I get some hop debris for the first few days while I pull samples for evaluation but after that it’s all good.
No plugging of dip tube/poppet?
It’s been a work in progress. I have a canister that I like for APA level dry hops (ie., 2-3 oz). But IPA level dry hopping (2X APA) causes the pellets to clump up and not fully dissolve, so I use weighted 5 gallon paint strainer bags there.
No clogging of dip tubes or poppets with this?
To answer your question, it keeps the vast majority of hop matter out. A very small amount gets through. Lately I’ve been experimenting with using 2 layers of paint strainer bags, with the pellets obviously going in the inner bag. Seems to work better than anything I’ve tried before, including the canister and sure screen.
Nope
Cool. Double strainer bag. Interesting solution.