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That nasty dry hop "vegetal" flavor

Northern Brewer General
#1

So I’ve got 2 kegs of an IPA that each got 1 oz Colulmbus and 2 oz Centennial dry hopped for a total of 9 days (first 5 days at room temp then crash cooled for last 4 days). I honestly thought I was safe but wouldnt you know I got that nasty vegetal flavor that was definitely not present beofre the dry hop.

I have read that the flavor will condition out with a little time. Which would be reassuring enought were it not for the fact this beer is (hopefully) being served to a gathering in five days.

I have it kegged and on gas at room temp as we speak. I am hoping that the temp will help accelerate any conditioning. And I might vent off some gas a few times to see if that helps.

Anyone have any similar experience? And hopefully a positye outcome???

#2

I have had this several times but then I noticed only with whole hops. I use only pellets now and the issue is long gone. Same thing with my hop Randall.

#3

I believe that taste comes from suspended vegetal matter in the beer, and it does clear up in time.
If I were in your position, I’d do a keg-to-keg transfer (under pressure and CO2) off of the dry hops, and then move the keg into the serving area for it to settle.

If this is a situation where your gathering is somewhere else, so you are going to have to move the keg, then the above is an absolute must, and on top of that, I’d consider using gelatin finings in the current keg for a day or two before the transfer.

#4

This is why I don’t really dry hop anymore and when I do it’s only for a few days. I usually load up hops at the end of the boil and am happy with the aroma/flavor that I don’t feel the need to dry hop.

#5

I’ve been dry hopping my IPAs in the keg with pellets in a bag suspended about half way down. Last couple I haven’t even removed the bag until the keg kicked. No issues with off flavors. Maybe because it’s the pellets as Greg pointed out above?

#6

There is no doubt in my mind that it’s the whole hops. Try DH with pellets and see for yourself.

#7

I just don’t understand…I dry hop close to 75% of my beers with whole hops that stay in the keg for months. Yet I have never experienced the dreaded “vegetal”. What am I doing wrong?

#8

[quote=“Denny”]I just don’t understand…I dry hop close to 75% of my beers with whole hops that stay in the keg for months. Yet I have never experienced the dreaded “vegetal”. What am I doing wrong?[/quote]Living in hop land, I don’t know. Good question Denny. Any other ideas? When I experienced it, the taste was like a muslin bag.

#9

This batch in question was DH’d with pellets in a bag.

Denny (and others who have never had this isssue) what temp do you dry hop? I have read best to start out at room temp. So that is what I do. Then move to fridge after 4-5 days.

Maybe better to just do whole DH in fridge.

I was quite rpoud of this one before the DH. Bummer.

#10

[quote=“Steeler D”]This batch in question was DH’d with pellets in a bag.

Denny (and others who have never had this isssue) what temp do you dry hop? I have read best to start out at room temp. So that is what I do. Then move to fridge after 4-5 days.

Maybe better to just do whole DH in fridge.

I was quite rpoud of this one before the DH. Bummer.[/quote]
Mine go in the keg and straight into the fridge at about 36 degrees. Some kegs last 4-6 weeks.

#11

How are ur hops stored? How fresh are they?

#12

Just to clarify what I stated above-- I get the grassy/vegetal taste at the BEGINNING of the dry hop period. Sometimes just for the first few days and sometimes for as much as two weeks. This happens with american varieties (centennial, amarillo, simcoe, etc). I typically use leaf hops, either just loose with a surescreen, or in a nylon bag, with no fishing line. These are dried hops stored under vacuum in a freezer (not old or oxidized) I’m typically using 2-4 oz of leaf hops in 5 gallons of IPA.

Once it goes away, it does not come back-- I too have left hops in my keg for up to 2-3 months (usually they kick much sooner than that).

I just consider this an awkward phase that my highly dry hopped beers go through, but once it’s over, the beer is typically amazing.

I have soft water and usually adjust with enough gypsum to add about 50 ppm of calcium.

Regarding temperature, I’ve always thought that warmer (cellar) temps help this go faster, but I haven’t kept good enough records to know for sure. I do feel like it is only a few days in the summer and can take longer in the winter but I haven’t isolated that to storage temp.

#13

Excellent thread! :cheers:

#14

You’re used to? You like it? You’re blind to it? I don’t know…y’all drink nothing but hoppy beers up there, wouldn’t surprise me if it’s something that’s there and you don’t taste it.

#15

[quote=“Steeler D”]This batch in question was DH’d with pellets in a bag.

Denny (and others who have never had this isssue) what temp do you dry hop? I have read best to start out at room temp. So that is what I do. Then move to fridge after 4-5 days.

Maybe better to just do whole DH in fridge.

I was quite rpoud of this one before the DH. Bummer.[/quote]

I sometimes dry hop in a secondary, but most often they go into a keg. Generally, the keg is carbed for 2-4 days at room temp, then goes into the fridge. The hops stay in until the keg is gone, usually 2-3 months.

#16

Denny, do you ever taste the beer right after dry hopping? How about the next day?

#17

F#@k !!!

This beer would have been so outstanding. It smells fantastic. And if it were not for that vegetal/grassy note that arose after the DH, it would taste just as fantastic.

Three days of room temp conditioning made no significant difference. So I am going to follow the tip from earlier in the thread and try gelatin.

It cold crashed down over night and now I’ll give it 48 hrs with the gelatin and hope for a miracle.

I am so pissed at myself for not monitoring the DH more carefully. Lesson learned.

#18

Yep, always. No off flavors.

#19

I have definately had a vegetal character in my beer before, but since I rarely dry hop, I never associated it with DH. (I also only use pellets)

My best guess has been to associate it with OLD hops. Makes sense that this would come out more in dry hopping, as the flavor of old hops becomes less of an issue the longer you boil it (IMO).

My only other guess had been to associate it to chloramine reacting to hops. But since I started eliminating the chloramine factor at the same time as improving the freshness of my hops, this was probably just coincidence.

#20

[quote=“Brew Meister Smith”]I have definately had a vegetal character in my beer before, but since I rarely dry hop, I never associated it with DH. (I also only use pellets)

My best guess has been to associate it with OLD hops. Makes sense that this would come out more in dry hopping, as the flavor of old hops becomes less of an issue the longer you boil it (IMO).

My only other guess had been to associate it to chloramine reacting to hops. But since I started eliminating the chloramine factor at the same time as improving the freshness of my hops, this was probably just coincidence.[/quote]

I agree with you. I think it’s related to both the age and variety of the hops.

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