Leave hops in or take them out?

[rlbthree]

I'm pretty new to brewing (almost a year) and currently I only do extract brewing. My question is regarding hops. I use a hop sack and add hops at the appropriate times during the boil. My question is when should I take the hops out or should I leave them in throughout fermentation. Currently I take them out at the end of the boil right when I put the wort in the ice bath. Should I leave the hops in until the wort cools or even keep them in during fermenting?

 

[UgliestLemming]

Removing at flame out is when I do it in most cases. Unless doing a hop stand, in which case I let it sit for about 15 minutes then remove.

 

[MrBIP]

Same here, if I use bags. And squeeze them with some tongs to get all the hoppy goodness out.

 

[McKnuckle]

You definitely don't intentionally keep boil hops in during fermentation, because they add nothing to that process. Hops added to the boil are usually left behind when draining the kettle to the fermentor, or at least if they are transferred, it is with the intent to rack off of them (and the other trub) soon.

Normally you'll remove the hop sack before chilling if it includes only longer-term boil additions (60, 30, 15 min. etc.). If it includes flameout or hopstand additions, though, you leave it in. Otherwise there's no point of making those additions, obviously.

For a hopstand in my case, it's normally going to be something like this:

- Add hops at flameout;
- Chill to 170F then stop chilling;
- Loosely cover kettle and leave for hopstand period (15-20 min.);
- Remove all hops and continue chilling.

 

[The Brew Mentor]

I think you guys are over thinking it.
Do you think breweries put hops in a bag?
Hops can be added in the mash, before the boil, during the boil, post boil, during fermentation and after fermentation.
It may make sense to be able to remove some or all if these, but what can't be removed will settle out and the beer can be transfered off of them.
The beauty of home brewing is that you can experiment with all different products and processes and in the end you get 5 gallons of beer to drink that may be better or different than you expected. How cool is that!
The bottom line is to have fun with it and as Charlie always says Relax, don't worry, enjoy!
Brian

 

[Hogarthe]

the only problem I've run into with leaving hops in the wort while it's fermenting is when I go to transfer to the bottles, sometimes the hop particles will clog the bottling wand. Using highly flocculent yeast helps that problem by compacting everything down to the bottom. or you need to be more careful to keep the siphon off the bottom. Of course, if I am using a bag for the hops, I remove them before it reaches the fermenter.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

an easy way to get clear wort after adding hops directly to the kettle and transferring everything to the bucket is to make sure you add Irish moss or a tablet 15 minutes from flame out, after cooling let it set for an hour or 2 before adding yeast, most everything will fall to the bottom then use the auto siphon, start at the middle and pull the clear wort off the top leaving the hop residue or trub on the bottom, of course sanitize everything and your set

 

[Brews Brother]

My sense (from 38 years of brewing) is the vast majority of what the boiled hops have to offer is gone by the time you chill and transfer. Therefore, you're best off straining them out prior to fermentation and if you want more floral spicey hop notes, then add dry hops to the secondary for 4-7 days. Some of my best pale ales and IPAs keep a modest bittering rate and double up on the aromatics during the secondary fermentation.