I’ve been searching the past posts and still have some first-timer questions. I’m brewing the extra pale ale sometime in the coming weeks and would love to dry hop it with an ounce of cascades.
When dry hopping, how much, if any, should the original recipe be tweaked? Specifically, should I forgo the last addition of aroma hops or brew it as directed? Will it be TOO hoppy if I don’t?
The EPA needs to be in the secondary 2-4 wks. Two weeks seems to be the consensus for an outside limit for dry hopping but so far I’ve preferred to leave beers in the secondary for four weeks (or more). Is it better to add the hops two weeks into the secondary fermentation and risk oxidation dropping them into the beer (splash, splash, splash) OR put the hops in the dry carboy, add the beer and leave it in the secondary for only two weeks before bottling?
Basically, how do you go about dry hopping a beer that ought to stay in the secondary longer than the duration of the dry hopping? I mean if I absolutely HAVE to buy another carboy, I’ll find plenty of ways to use it.
From my experience, and from reading a lot of posts, I guess you could go about it a few different ways. For one, lots of people leave the beer in the primary without going to secondary. The reason you take it to secondary is to let it clarify and age as I’m sure you know. Leaving it on the yeast for a long time (over a few months) can cause bad flavor from yeast autolysis (yeast cells dying) from what I understand. So unless you’re brewing a beer which would require a few months to age, you don’t really need to transfer to secondary. Besides, the more you mess with it, the greater chance of screwing it up. So, with what you’re brewing, leaving it in primary shouldn’t be a problem for the style of beer since it doesn’t need to age for a long time. With a week left before you bottle you could add the hops (keeping sanitation in mind) directly in the primary.
Or, you could just add the hops to secondary, and transfer the beer on top of them for a week or two, then bottle after leaving it in the primary for 2 to 4 weeks.
You needn’t mess with the original recipe. It won’t add any bitterness, mostly just aroma and some flavor.
And get another carboy just for the hell of it. You can make more beer!
Brew the recipe as is and then after 2 w in primary, transfer to a secondary and dump in a oz of dry hops. 2 w later, you’ll have one helluva great beer.
+1, this is how I do it as well. I’ve never brewed the EPA, but on my smaller beers (and especially ones that get dry hopped), I feel they taste better sooner vs. later.
As I write this I’m drinking my Extra Pale I made a few weeks back and wish I had dry hopped it as well. I would say 1 oz for 5-7 day in secondary. Another thing I will make sure to do is when bottling is to stir the beer around to even out the bottles. I seem to have different flavors in different bottles, some more malty and others more hoppy.
It’s amazing what you learn the more brews you make
I’ve been dry hopping in the primary for a while now with great results. About a week after active fermentation has completed, I just toss them in and DH for 7-10 days, then cold crash.
Yeah but then you don’t get that awesome visual with a carboy topped with hops!!! This is what I love about brewing advice. I ask a question and the responses all have one thing in common: Throw some hops in there–it’ll be good. Word. Thanks all.
