[Steve Ruch]

I was thinking about making a hop tea for an IIPA that I'm making and straining out the hops just adding the tea to the carboy thereby losing less wort to hop absorption.
Any downside to this I'm not seeing?

[morticaixavier]

yes, i you steep or  boil the hops, it's not dry hopping. dry hopping is about cold extraction while a tea is hot. you'll get very different character.

[HoosierBrew]

yes, i you steep or  boil the hops, it's not dry hopping. dry hopping is about cold extraction while a tea is hot. you'll get very different character.

+1.  Hop losses to volume are definitely a part of making big IPAs and IIPAs, but I just don't think this is the best way to help the problem. To me, there is no substitute for the hop flavor you get in the whirlpool/steep and the aroma you get from dry hopping. I think either (or both of these together) are better solutions :

1/  Use HopShot for your bittering addition. Admittedly, the bittering hops are often small in proportion to the rest, but it will remove some of the absorbent hop matter from the total.
2/  Make adjustments to your recipe to collect a bit more wort, to account for this. I often do this, since I'll use 14-16 oz for AIPA, 18+ for IIPA.

[hophead636]

I would boil water chill and then soak your hops,  I would say best way would be with a french press let them soak for a few days press and should add some nice contribution to your beer with less loss,   I say french press because I have made cold pressed dryhopped coffee before and it was amazing nap figure more hops can only make it better

[hophead636]

yes, i you steep or  boil the hops, it's not dry hopping. dry hopping is about cold extraction while a tea is hot. you'll get very different character.

+1.  Hop losses to volume are definitely a part of making big IPAs and IIPAs, but I just don't think this is the best way to help the problem. To me, there is no substitute for the hop flavor you get in the whirlpool/steep and the aroma you get from dry hopping. I think either (or both of these together) are better solutions :

1/  Use HopShot for your bittering addition. Admittedly, the bittering hops are often small in proportion to the rest, but it will remove some of the absorbent hop matter from the total.
2/  Make adjustments to your recipe to collect a bit more wort, to account for this. I often do this, since I'll use 14-16 oz for AIPA, 18+ for IIPA.

Yea I agree on those points fully as well, figured french pressed dryhopped could add something to the mix as well

[Stevie]

This guy did it in a press pot with vodka

http://www.stempski.com/hop_vodka.php

[HoosierBrew]

This guy did it in a press pot with vodka

http://www.stempski.com/hop_vodka.php

I could see it if you're stranded in at some bar or function with crap beer - dose it up Bert Grant style. Don't think I'd trust it in a batch of IPA to get the hop character I wanted, though.

[pete b]

This guy did it in a press pot with vodka

http://www.stempski.com/hop_vodka.php

I did this with my fresh homegrown cascade. I didn't use it to hop a batch of beer though. I just keep it in the kitchen and occasionally dose a beer with it to perk it up. Recently we had a party and someone left behind some so-so IPA and I did this. I also sometimes put a few drops in soda water on nights I don't want to drink alcohol but want something interesting. I also put a few drops on a paper towel and rub packets of yeast before opening to sanitize just because its right there.

[Steve Ruch]

Looks like I need to dry hop like usual. Thanks guys.