Add Some Flavour And Aroma to Your Beer Kit By Dry Hopping And Making Hop Tea

HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
edited June 2016 in Beer Brewing
Adding dried hops to your beer kit is a great way to easily customise the flavours and aromas.

The quantity and length of time differs for various hops styles, but the below gives our general recommendations.

There are two methods that we would recommend using:

Dry Hopping with beer kits
Place around 30g of dried hops into a sterilised muslin bag or similar and add to the beer mix in the primary fermenting vessel. They should be added after the initial vigorous fermentation has settled down, usually after a couple of days. The bag of dried hops can then be left in the mix for 3-5 days, depending on the intensity required. Avoid leaving the hops in for too long as some types of hops can create unpleasant flavours if left for an excessive amount of time.

Hop Tea with beer kits
Another method is to make a Hop Tea to add to your beer mix. To do this there a few different variations which all do the job.

Making a Hop Tea using the can supplied with the beer kit
Simply empty the cans of malt extract to the beer mix as normal. Then boil a kettle and fill the empty can, which will have some liquid malt left in it. Add around 30g of your chosen hops to a muslin bag and place in the boiling water. Leave for 10-15mins and remove the hop bag. Pour the infused water into the fermenting vessel and carry on as normal. The metal can will get extremely hot so care is required.

Making a Hop Tea using a pan
As above, place the hops in a muslin bag and boil in a clean pan for 10-15mins. Add the infused water to your fermenting vessel.

link to our vac packed hops:

http://www.home-brew-online.com/ingredients-c45/hops-c226

Comments

  • markomarko Administrator Posts: 76
    edited May 2018
    Here is a quick hop guide, if you have any recommendations let us know. My personal favourite is Wherry with Goldings.

    Bitter: Goldings, Progress

    Barley Wine: Goldings, Hallertau, Progress

    Lager: Saaz, Hallertau, Progress

    Pale Ale: Goldings, Hallertau

    Mild: Fuggles, Northern Brewer, Progress

    Brown Ale: Northern Brewer, Fuggles

    Stout: Northern Brewer, Fuggles
  • CovbaggieCovbaggie Member Posts: 14
    Thanks guys, its quite nerve racking when you first start. Tried my Wherry at the weekend (3wks in the bottle) good carbonation in the beer with a nice head, tasted quite sharp to me so hope in time it mellows. Covbaggie.
  • HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
    That is quite common, if you leave it in the bottles for a while the flavours will fully develop, it will help if it is somewhere cooler if possible, perhaps around 12 degrees or so, it may also need to clear if it is still a bit cloudy
  • MWHBMWHB Member Posts: 5
    Covbaggie said:
    Thanks guys, its quite nerve racking when you first start. Tried my Wherry at the weekend (3wks in the bottle) good carbonation in the beer with a nice head, tasted quite sharp to me so hope in time it mellows. Covbaggie.

    This happened to me also on my 1st brew of Wherry. It really does mellow with time so just sit tight it will deffo be worth it!!!
    One week til mine is ready, the worst bit is waiting! haha
    Have brewed Sundew by Woodfordes too and that was pretty good! Any ideas on your next one?

  • CovbaggieCovbaggie Member Posts: 14
    Have got a Brew Makers IPA which I intend to dry hop after the initial vigerous ferment (2days) Am I ok to make tea type brew leave to cool then add or just leave for ten minutes then add, any help would be appreciated. Drinking my first brew...Coopers lager its about 2 months old now and tasting pretty good
  • HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
    Good news on the Coopers Lager, it is definitely best if left for a few weeks to condition. With the hop tea bag you can make up the 'tea' with hot water and the teabag, allow it to cool down a bit so it is not hot, warm is OK, then add it to the brew
  • neilmccaneilmcca Member Posts: 4
    This web link provides an extensive list of hops and suitable beers to use them in,
    http://kotmf.com/beer/2012/list-of-common-hops/

    I've found it a god send !

    Neil.
  • CovbaggieCovbaggie Member Posts: 14
    Neil, Thanks very much for the link, bottled my ipa today dry hopped with cascade and it tastes pretty good already. I will update when a little more mature. Mean while I will research my next brew for dry hopping. Regards, Covbaggie
  • CovbaggieCovbaggie Member Posts: 14
    Hi guys, Would anyone suggest dry hopping a Woodfordes Wherry ? I have done 2 brews of this so far and find it a very pleasant drink. Suggestions of a brew to tamper with would be most welcome, I love the IPA light beers. Regards, Covbaggie
  • HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
    People do add hops to all kits including the Wherry, it is often a good idea to have made the beer as the manufacturers recommend so you know how it should taste, and then you can add hops for a future batch and alter it to your preference if you have any particular hops you want to flavour it with, and you then know the difference it has made compared to the original. You wont go wrong with most of the IPA's, the Coopers and St Peters are very popular
  • ScruffysaintScruffysaint Member Posts: 1
    Covbaggie said:
    Hi guys, Would anyone suggest dry hopping a Woodfordes Wherry ? I have done 2 brews of this so far and find it a very pleasant drink. Suggestions of a brew to tamper with would be most welcome, I love the IPA light beers. Regards, Covbaggie
    I haven't tried this Wherry tweak myself but others are raving about it. http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=2923
  • baz7baz7 Member Posts: 3
    is it ok to add hop tea after primary fermentation ?
  • HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
    You can add the hop flavouring towards the end of the primary fermentation, as it would be mixed in with the whole batch, although it may need leaving to settle again if it stirred up the settled sediment
  • baz7baz7 Member Posts: 3
    just added 15g hop tea to 8litres  of  a youngs 16litre harvest bitter ,the other  8litres left without for comparison .smells and tastes good already :!!
  • HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
    Sounds good, and you can make a comparison between the two to see how much flavour you like to add
  • HowardHoward Member Posts: 62
    I just added a hop tea to my pilsner that I have on the go had some amazing hoppy notes off the brew and was really easy to use...... :-?
  • ozzybrewozzybrew Member Posts: 48
    Hi - i am going to add 25g of hops in a muslin bag weighed down by a few marbles (sanitised of course!) after about 4 days in a lager in my FV. Is it OK to do that, and if so, how long sho9uld i leave in for? about 5 days? Thanks all!
  • HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
    Adding the hops and weighting them is fine to do, the amount of flavour they infuse will depend on how long they are in there and the amount of liquid the brew is being made to, it can be a bit of trial and error to get the amount of flavour you want, it can also help the hops to infuse more flavour if you soak the bag in some hot water and add the bag and liquid to the brew if you want it nice and hoppy
  • BUDFORCEBUDFORCE Member Posts: 275
    Are there dry hops packets available at the HBO website that you can buy that are not in a tea bag? (I know its not aactually a tea bag but you know what I mean!).

    With many kits you get a little pouch of dry hops that you just tip in the FV a day or two before.

    The reason I ask is because I am concious that if you are dry hopping a day or two before the end of the primary fermentation, depending on the kit, you may have a thick layer of sediment on the top or bottom and adding a tea bag style pouch may either disturb the sediment or sink to the bottom in to the sediment and fully release in to the brew. Of course I may be completely wrong on this.
    Beer League: 1. Young's - American Pale Ale 2. Bulldog Brews - Imperial Red Bad Cat 3. Young's - IPA 4. Young's - American Amber Ale 5. Bulldog Brews - Evil Dog Double IPA
  • HBO_StaffHBO_Staff Administrator Posts: 2,115
    You can also get hops in packs which are then loose, and add as many as you want, and also then add the flavour from the style of hops you prefer, there are ones such as these which include teabags and foil pouches:

    http://www.home-brew-online.com/ingredients-c45/beer-making-c181/hops-t257

    The hops will sometimes float and others can sink, but as long as they are in the liquid they will infuse their flavour. The hops can be added loose or some people add them in a little muslin bag to try and contain them and minimise the amount they then clog the syphon when transferred over into a barrel/bottles
  • mompessonsmompessons Member Posts: 7
    I have a couple of questions if someone is able to help please.
    1. When adding the hops, do you just add the water after the hops have been boiled in for 10 mins, or do you add the water and the hops?
    2. Are you muslin bags a once use only?

    Thank you.
  • BUDFORCEBUDFORCE Member Posts: 275
    Water and hops together. And I probably wouldn't attempt to resue the bags, assuming those are the ones you get in the packets of hops you buy.
    Beer League: 1. Young's - American Pale Ale 2. Bulldog Brews - Imperial Red Bad Cat 3. Young's - IPA 4. Young's - American Amber Ale 5. Bulldog Brews - Evil Dog Double IPA
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