Have we all died...or are we all just brewing...???

[shaggyt]

I was thinking along the lines of stretching the utilization of whole leaf...time will tell at this point...I'll let you know.

[slothrob]

I can't remember if we already had this discussion, but I wouldn't expect much gain from pulverization. Supposedly, the difference in utilization between pulverized 90 pellets and whole hops is 10%. That's probably because of the 10% woody material that's removed to make them "90" pellets.

It will be interesting to hear your results, though. I can't imagine it can hurt, since pellets are used successfully.

[shaggyt]

I racked to the secondary this past Saturday and I have to say, the gravity sample tasted great. This is my first brew to tasted very close to some commercial brews I enjoy, though it was not finished quite yet.

Great hop aroma and flavor...more to come.

[Suthrncomfrt1884]

Has anyone run across plans to build a continuous hopper? I was reading a little about the one that Sam from Dogfish Head used to use for his 120 minute, but I'd like to see a little more info on it before I attempt to build one.

[jawbox]

you are better off just adding hops every couple minutes than fabricating anything. they did have plans in one of the brew your own issues. not sure which one.

[shaggyt]

I would think unless you are not present during the boil, the easiest thing would be to add hops manually. I kept staring at my watch to keep the intervals spaced evenly.

Preparation would also make it easier...I mulled over several different ways of separating the hops into equal size groupings or just grabbing half handfuls. All involved too much thought, so I eventually just used a simple ktichen scoop and eyeballed the amount I added each interval...I got about five scoopfuls out of 1oz of ground whole leaf hops.

Bottomline though...watching the process become mechanized would be cool if the time, effort, and finances are available...I have this picture in my head of a conveyor belt dropping the hops in the boil like something out Bugs Bunny.

[Suthrncomfrt1884]

Well, the only reason I'd like to build something, is because I want to take the guess work out of it. I'd like to add things exactly even throughout the boil, and that's almost impossible to do when you factor in the human aspect.

Plus, the term "eyeballed" scares me. I do that when I cook, and it's almost impossible to recreate something.

[shaggyt]

Suthrncomfrt1884...I understand where you're coming from but the differences in scoops are minimal at best, a small fraction of a gram. I cannot see too much of an impact as a result. Plus, my doctor says I gots good eyeballs, LOL!

So the continuous hopping was a success. Very good aroma which I was hoping for with a well balanced bitterness and flavor. Legman, it is smooth. I just used the same method for my Ground Hog day brew session...we'll see there as well.

One note: I used both pellets and ground whole leafs. The pellets I added using a traditional hop schedule (60-30-10 minutes). The leaf hops were continuous. For the last brew, it was all continuous, alternating between pellets and pulverized leafs from beginning to end.