Just brewed two 5-gal batches this past weekend. With both batches I decided to run them through a strainer to filter out the hops and grain remnants left in the bottom of the boil kettle. Has anyone else done this and if so did it affect the quality of the final product?
Done it many times. Not a problem.
Great, thanks for the reply!
I have also done this with no problems. I believe it helps aerate the wort too. The only problem I have come across is the strainer getting clogged up with hop debris on a few occasions. :cheers:
DrShroom, I agree, I had to use a spoon to clear out the strainer to keep it flowing. Eventually I would stop and just clean the strainer out. I know it didn’t catch everything but its a lot less crap in the bottom of the carboy. Thanks for the reply!
I pour from the BK through a large fine mesh grain bag into the fermentor. The bag is over a large funnel with a built in strainer. When I harvest the yeast, from a five gallon batch, there is very little evidence of hop material in the yeast. I’ll have about 6 ounces left over in the BK from a boil that had 3 ounces of hops.
The bag does begin to clog. Lifting the corner of the bag gets better drainage through the side of the bag. The strainer in the funnel sometimes clogs. Sanitized fingers take care of that.
My wife helps hold the bag as I pour. The system would work better if the bag was sewn into a cone shape to promote better drainage through the sides as the bottom fills with hops. Less chance then of slopping over the side of the funnel. Maybe some day I’ll get the sewing machine out and get that done.
I do it almost every time. Make sure you sanitize the strainer!!!
I put it in a 20 qt pot with an inch of water and steam sanitize for 10 minutes as I’m chilling the wort.
I used to do this as my SOP until I switched to using a plate chiller, which meant that I had to filter out the hops in the kettle.
We strain every transfer using a SS pastina strainer, boil to primary, to secondary to bottle boy, to keg, its running anyway , why not clean it up,
correct me if I’m wrong but couldn’t this cause oxidation issues straining after primary?
Mike, your absolutely correct. I would not recommend that technique.
I always use the strainer and spoon technique to transfer the wort into the fermenter. I find it removes most of the (pellet) hops but not much else. If I dump the whole kettle in, which I usually do, I end up with a inch or more of trub in the bottom of the fermenter. I don’t know if it’s a bad habit or not but, I always dump the whole kettle in because I hate to leave any wort behind. I may change this habit just to see how it affects the taste of the beer.
Straining prior to fermentation is fine. Running fermented beer through a strainer POST fermentation is a recipe for disaster.
correct me if I’m wrong but couldn’t this cause oxidation issues straining after primary?[/quote]
10 years with NO issues, I really believe most are caught up in a bunch of facts created to fit the myths,
correct me if I’m wrong but couldn’t this cause oxidation issues straining after primary?[/quote]
10 years with NO issues, I really believe most are caught up in a bunch of facts created to fit the myths,[/quote]
That aeration after fermentation doesn’t cause oxidation?
