Thu Jul 11, 2013 3:58 am
Here is my technique for getting bits out of my dry hopped beers.
Get a fine mesh bag from your brewshop, sanitize it and some sort of non porous weight (I use 3-4 spoons), drop the weights in the bag and tie it to the tubing end of your autosiphon (with sanitized hands, of course). As you siphon, the bag at the end of hte tubing will act as a rough filter for the hop material, catching it before it enters your bottling bucket. I also take the tip off my autosiphon to keep it from plugging, and just stay well away from the sediment at the bottom. If the draw end plugs with hop bits, the siphon will suck air in past the seal between the inner and outer tubes, so you really don't want it plugging there. The bag provides plenty of surface area for the beer to flow out while still capturing any stray hops. Just make sure you do a very through job of making sure everything is clean and sanitary. The bags can take high temp, so you could even boil it and your weights and let them cool in the pot with the lid on until you need them.
Spiderwrangler
PFC, Arachnid Deployment Division
In the cellar:
In the fermentor: Belgian Cider
In the works: Wooden Cider