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Author Topic: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?  (Read 16457 times)

Offline bayareabrewer

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #30 on: October 31, 2017, 11:31:08 am »
 keg hopping is frustrating to me and I think I may have developed a solution. I normally fill my kegs with sanitizer and push out with CO2, hopefully getting an oxygen free keg. The only problem is, popping the keg open to toss in a bag of dry hops probably introduces a ton of 02. What if I took a keg that was clean and sanitized, added a sack of dry hops to in, then during primary fermentation connected the airlock to my outpost on my keg so that the ensuing fermentation would purge the keg of 02 as it was replaced with c02 from fermentation. I'd have a spunding valve set to 1 or 2 psi on the inpost to allow 02 to escape.

Would this in theory leave me with an 02 free keg with dry hops in it that I could then do a closed transfer?

Offline a10t2

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #31 on: October 31, 2017, 12:25:25 pm »
I foresee two potential issues:

1. Your hops would be sitting at fermentation temperature for a couple weeks. Not ideal but maybe not a deal-breaker.

2. A slow trickle of CO2 leaves plenty of time for diffusion to homogenize the gases in the receiving keg. Fermentation produces ~20 vol CO2, so if the keg started out full of air (~20% O2), the end result, at least theoretically, would be a keg with ~1% O2 content.
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Offline bayareabrewer

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #32 on: October 31, 2017, 12:57:31 pm »
I foresee two potential issues:

1. Your hops would be sitting at fermentation temperature for a couple weeks. Not ideal but maybe not a deal-breaker.

2. A slow trickle of CO2 leaves plenty of time for diffusion to homogenize the gases in the receiving keg. Fermentation produces ~20 vol CO2, so if the keg started out full of air (~20% O2), the end result, at least theoretically, would be a keg with ~1% O2 content.

damn

Offline denny

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #33 on: October 31, 2017, 12:57:56 pm »
keg hopping is frustrating to me and I think I may have developed a solution. I normally fill my kegs with sanitizer and push out with CO2, hopefully getting an oxygen free keg. The only problem is, popping the keg open to toss in a bag of dry hops probably introduces a ton of 02. What if I took a keg that was clean and sanitized, added a sack of dry hops to in, then during primary fermentation connected the airlock to my outpost on my keg so that the ensuing fermentation would purge the keg of 02 as it was replaced with c02 from fermentation. I'd have a spunding valve set to 1 or 2 psi on the inpost to allow 02 to escape.

Would this in theory leave me with an 02 free keg with dry hops in it that I could then do a closed transfer?

I talked about the same thing on the podcast. A listener off
ered the solution to keep 1-2 psi on the keg when you open it. Makes sense.
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Offline blatz

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #34 on: October 31, 2017, 01:01:32 pm »
A listener off
ered the solution to keep 1-2 psi on the keg when you open it. Makes sense.

that's what I do when I open the bail on my purged DH keg (gas hooked up to liquid side though) seems to work well.

is it perfect?  no - there is still oxygen in there.  Its an improvement over previous methods though.
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Offline bayareabrewer

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #35 on: October 31, 2017, 02:14:51 pm »
keg hopping is frustrating to me and I think I may have developed a solution. I normally fill my kegs with sanitizer and push out with CO2, hopefully getting an oxygen free keg. The only problem is, popping the keg open to toss in a bag of dry hops probably introduces a ton of 02. What if I took a keg that was clean and sanitized, added a sack of dry hops to in, then during primary fermentation connected the airlock to my outpost on my keg so that the ensuing fermentation would purge the keg of 02 as it was replaced with c02 from fermentation. I'd have a spunding valve set to 1 or 2 psi on the inpost to allow 02 to escape.

Would this in theory leave me with an 02 free keg with dry hops in it that I could then do a closed transfer?

I talked about the same thing on the podcast. A listener off
ered the solution to keep 1-2 psi on the keg when you open it. Makes sense.

I'm sure that's better than not having the gas on, but wouldn't the hops and bag themselves contain a lot of o2?

I'm really hoping that with all the new forms of hop products out there, someone finally produces an acceptable hop extract that can be injected into the beer via the gas in. Maybe a screen around the outpost in the keg and use degassed water and hop hash?

Offline Stevie

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #36 on: October 31, 2017, 02:24:34 pm »
They exist, Bryan Rabe uses them in his kegging procedures.

Offline denny

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #37 on: October 31, 2017, 02:52:09 pm »
keg hopping is frustrating to me and I think I may have developed a solution. I normally fill my kegs with sanitizer and push out with CO2, hopefully getting an oxygen free keg. The only problem is, popping the keg open to toss in a bag of dry hops probably introduces a ton of 02. What if I took a keg that was clean and sanitized, added a sack of dry hops to in, then during primary fermentation connected the airlock to my outpost on my keg so that the ensuing fermentation would purge the keg of 02 as it was replaced with c02 from fermentation. I'd have a spunding valve set to 1 or 2 psi on the inpost to allow 02 to escape.

Would this in theory leave me with an 02 free keg with dry hops in it that I could then do a closed transfer?

I talked about the same thing on the podcast. A listener off
ered the solution to keep 1-2 psi on the keg when you open it. Makes sense.

I'm sure that's better than not having the gas on, but wouldn't the hops and bag themselves contain a lot of o2?

I'm really hoping that with all the new forms of hop products out there, someone finally produces an acceptable hop extract that can be injected into the beer via the gas in. Maybe a screen around the outpost in the keg and use degassed water and hop hash?

Forget hop hash..it's pre oxidized.  I've been using cryo hops for dry hopping.  Virtually no O2 there.  And I have inside info about new extracts being worked on...what you ask about is on the horizon.
Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

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"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell

Offline a10t2

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #38 on: October 31, 2017, 03:00:27 pm »
Unfortunately, I don't think anyone repackages in homebrewer quantities, but single-varietal extracts have been on the market for years. Sometimes they're the only way to spot buy something as popular as Citra, for example.
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Offline bayareabrewer

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #39 on: October 31, 2017, 03:01:32 pm »
They exist, Bryan Rabe uses them in his kegging procedures.

I'm sure he does.

Offline bayareabrewer

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #40 on: October 31, 2017, 03:02:13 pm »
keg hopping is frustrating to me and I think I may have developed a solution. I normally fill my kegs with sanitizer and push out with CO2, hopefully getting an oxygen free keg. The only problem is, popping the keg open to toss in a bag of dry hops probably introduces a ton of 02. What if I took a keg that was clean and sanitized, added a sack of dry hops to in, then during primary fermentation connected the airlock to my outpost on my keg so that the ensuing fermentation would purge the keg of 02 as it was replaced with c02 from fermentation. I'd have a spunding valve set to 1 or 2 psi on the inpost to allow 02 to escape.

Would this in theory leave me with an 02 free keg with dry hops in it that I could then do a closed transfer?

I talked about the same thing on the podcast. A listener off
ered the solution to keep 1-2 psi on the keg when you open it. Makes sense.

I'm sure that's better than not having the gas on, but wouldn't the hops and bag themselves contain a lot of o2?

I'm really hoping that with all the new forms of hop products out there, someone finally produces an acceptable hop extract that can be injected into the beer via the gas in. Maybe a screen around the outpost in the keg and use degassed water and hop hash?

Forget hop hash..it's pre oxidized.  I've been using cryo hops for dry hopping.  Virtually no O2 there.  And I have inside info about new extracts being worked on...what you ask about is on the horizon.

can you share anymore?

Offline denny

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #41 on: November 01, 2017, 09:57:27 am »
Unfortunately, I don't think anyone repackages in homebrewer quantities, but single-varietal extracts have been on the market for years. Sometimes they're the only way to spot buy something as popular as Citra, for example.

It's coming....
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Offline denny

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #42 on: November 01, 2017, 09:58:53 am »
can you share anymore?

Bryan Pierce of YCH alluded to it in the interview we did with him for the podcast.
Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

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Offline a10t2

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #43 on: November 01, 2017, 10:15:00 am »
It's coming....

Need any beta testers? ;)
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Offline denny

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Re: Dry hopping in the keg questions ?
« Reply #44 on: November 01, 2017, 11:02:12 am »
It's coming....

Need any beta testers? ;)

I'll let ya know when I know more.
Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

www.dennybrew.com

The best, sharpest, funniest, weirdest and most knowledgable minds in home brewing contribute on the AHA forum. - Alewyfe

"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." - Bertrand Russell