Never mucked about with my kits much but I plan on making a pilsner by adding some sazz hops to a coopers draught kit.I have the kit, I have 100gms of hops.
Any tips on how much to add, I thought maybe 25 gms?
Also should I just dry hop in the FV or boil them for a few minutes and then strain and add the water?
adding hops.
Re: adding hops.
All depends on what you are adding hops for and how strong you want it to be, Bittering wise, probably not much point as kits come pre bitter hopped, so that leaves flavour and aroma. Flavour normally boil 1oz in boiling water for 10 mins (if you can boil it in the wort even better, I have heard some people say 20mins so this could be semi wrong).
Aroma (i.e. just the nice hop smell) comes from a small boil say 5 mins or less in my experience, and dry hopping is a must for me, if you want the smell, again some people use 1/2 oz all the way up to 3oz + depending on beer style. If you just want to try it out though, just use 1oz for boil and dry hop with 1oz and see what you get, what hops have you bought btw?
Aroma (i.e. just the nice hop smell) comes from a small boil say 5 mins or less in my experience, and dry hopping is a must for me, if you want the smell, again some people use 1/2 oz all the way up to 3oz + depending on beer style. If you just want to try it out though, just use 1oz for boil and dry hop with 1oz and see what you get, what hops have you bought btw?
-
truemay
Re: adding hops.
I have 100 gms sazz hops vacuum packed.could you equate your amounts to grams please.I'm trying to make a chech pilsner.
Re: adding hops.
1oz = 28g roughly.
-
cellone
Re: adding hops.
Start with the yeast, swop it for lager or get a kit with lager yeast, otherwise you're chasing a flavour that's just out of reach.
-
simon50
Re: adding hops.
you really need a lager yeast and cold fermentation / conditioning to make a pilsner ...and also the right malt.
BUT you have the right hops !
if i were you, i would bring some water to boil in a large pan, add a cup full of spraymalt (or beer enhancer ...or sugar) then boil about 25g (rolling boil) for 5 minutes, then strain and add the liquid to the fv.
i've tried hop teas before but to me they tasted a bit "grassy" although that is just a subjective opinion.
after about a week of fermentation in the fv, i would add a further 30g+ (really as much as you want) in a muslin bag to the wort and leave it another week, then bottle / keg as usual.
you can add them directly to the wort, but you will need to attach a filtering device to your syphon and it can become VERY troublesome this way.
BUT you have the right hops !
if i were you, i would bring some water to boil in a large pan, add a cup full of spraymalt (or beer enhancer ...or sugar) then boil about 25g (rolling boil) for 5 minutes, then strain and add the liquid to the fv.
i've tried hop teas before but to me they tasted a bit "grassy" although that is just a subjective opinion.
after about a week of fermentation in the fv, i would add a further 30g+ (really as much as you want) in a muslin bag to the wort and leave it another week, then bottle / keg as usual.
you can add them directly to the wort, but you will need to attach a filtering device to your syphon and it can become VERY troublesome this way.
Re: adding hops.
Good advice above, except one thing, take it off the boil when you add the hops and let it just hit in boiling water for 5 mins off the heat (this is what caused his grassy taste).
Didn't notice in the original post about the Pilsner thing, some pretty sound advice from last few posts about yeast and cold fermenting, lager is easy to do, Pilsner has to be done properly from what people have said on here.
Didn't notice in the original post about the Pilsner thing, some pretty sound advice from last few posts about yeast and cold fermenting, lager is easy to do, Pilsner has to be done properly from what people have said on here.
-
truemay
Re: adding hops.
Cheers for all the advice.I was basing it on something I found here.
http://www.aussiehomebrewing.com/Custom ... opers.html
http://www.aussiehomebrewing.com/Custom ... opers.html
-
cellone
Re: adding hops.
Those recipes are a good start for a nearly there pilsner type drink. If pilsner and lager are something you intend to brew reguarly then try those whilst you build a brew fridge. It took me a while to get mine together but now I get the results I am after. If you can brew below 18c you can just about get away with brewing lager, but if you can get it down to 12c then you're on to a winner.
-
truemay
Re: adding hops.
Two other questions-
Are hope pellets more potent than my vacuum packed stuff?
And where the he'll do you get the muslin bags?
Are hope pellets more potent than my vacuum packed stuff?
And where the he'll do you get the muslin bags?
Re: adding hops.
I'm not sure about more potent, mostly just easier to use, some people just throw them in, if you are just making a hop tea and can't find muslin bags easy, you could always just throw them in a pot with water and then pour that water into FV via a sieve, problem solved, you can also dry hop without a bag but it will be messy.
But you can buy the bags online, I got 10 off ebay for a few quid inc postage, I also bought my hops there. Some people swear by leaf hops alone, but honestly you are better off with pellets for ease of use.
Also not sure what you mean about vacuum packed, as my pellets and all pellets i've ever seen have been vacuum packed.
But you can buy the bags online, I got 10 off ebay for a few quid inc postage, I also bought my hops there. Some people swear by leaf hops alone, but honestly you are better off with pellets for ease of use.
Also not sure what you mean about vacuum packed, as my pellets and all pellets i've ever seen have been vacuum packed.
-
truemay
Re: adding hops.
Tell you the truth.I don't know what they are they could be pellets for all I know.It just says 100 gms sazz hops.It's in a shrunken foil pouch????
Re: adding hops.
I'm not 100% on this, but I think both come in the shrunken air tight packs, you will be able to feel the difference, pellets are like rabbit food, just cylinder shapes and all the same size, while leaf hops are well like flowers and leafs haha.