Austin Homebrew's Hop Back

[Beer-lord]

I got an ad for an Equinox beer from Austin Homebrew with Hop Back instructions. While I've heard of this process using hardware in breweries, I've never heard of it done like this before:
Hop Back Instructions
1. In a 1 quart Mason or Ball Jar place 1 oz of hops in the bottom of the Jar.
2. In the last 5-10 minutes of the boil draw enough wort to fill jar.
3. Cover jar and let sit for 2 hours in a cool place.
4. Continue to brew as normal.
5. Once the hops have fallen to bottom of jar carefully pour the hop tea into primary fermenter, make sure to leave behind the hop sediment.
6. Cover primary fermenter with airlock and continue to ferment as normal.

I may give this a try in the future just to see what I get out of it.

[John Sand]

Interesting. Let us know what happens.

[BlackDuck]

That does sound like a quick and easy way to use a hop back. If I may add a suggestion...add a piece of cheesecloth or paint strainer bag to the top, before closing the lid. It would make pouring the tea, leaving the hop sediment behind, much easier. I think I may try this also.

[Beer-lord]

I thought about a muslin bag too but since I cold crash before kegging, none of the sediment bothers me.
I've seen devices that push the wort out of the kettle into the fermenter but thru a hop back and many say it really doesn't work so well for the expense so maybe this is a poor man's way of getting it done.

[Inkleg]

That does sound interesting. I wouldn't worry too much about any hop debris, they'll fall out in the fermenter.

[Kealia]

So...it's a 2-hour hopstand without a controlled temp?

[BlackDuck]

So...it's a 2-hour hopstand without a controlled temp?

Yea...kinda. A real hop back forces the flow of wort through the hops doesn't it??

[Beer-lord]

Why can't you draw some of the wort from earlier in the boil? I know it might make some difference but would it make a lot? Less isomerization would be my guess.
OK, this will need some testing and maybe I'll get to this on my next brewday.

[mashani]

I'm trying to figure out what this would get me that my lid-on hop stands starting @flameout without active chilling for 30 minutes or so (or sometimes just sticking the pot in my oven and no-chilling overnight with the lid on) and them dumping those late hops right into my fermenter commando doesn't already do?

[BlackDuck]

Mashani...would the fact that the hops are only interacting with a quart of wort instead of the full volume make any difference?? I'm not sure what it would be, just kind of thinking out loud.

[John Sand]

But I like the idea of doing the hopstand during the boil.

[mashani]

Mashani...would the fact that the hops are only interacting with a quart of wort instead of the full volume make any difference?? I'm not sure what it would be, just kind of thinking out loud.

Pretty much it comes down to time/temperature/ph as far as what gets extracted and enough volume of liquid to absorb any "solutes" which I don't really think is much of a factor here as we are talking about hop oils. PH is maybe slightly different then it finishes due to boil off. Rest is more or less the same as @flameout hopstand, except the hopstand would more slowly cool without intervention. But that's why the lid stays on, to keep the good stuff in there.

But I like the idea of doing the hopstand during the boil.

I would if it actually saved time (I'm all about that!), but if your leaving it sit for 2 hours, is it really saving any time? Doesn't seem like it would be with my process at least?

[John Sand]

I wouldn't wait two hours. Thirty minutes should be enough.

[mashani]

I wouldn't wait two hours. Thirty minutes should be enough.

Hmm... now that might be worth trying.

[teutonic terror]

Interesting idea.
Curious as to whether this could be done in place of dry hopping also?
Since no heat would be involved with the fermented wort, it shouldn't add any bitterness
should it?