I hang it year round. I have been doing it so long that I cant sleep if I don't do it. I even carry my cord with me to national parks that have cable hanging systems at the backcountry sites. Does that sound crazy? Well its not. I got to a site in the Smokies some years back and the cables were broken. but I could still hang my food and sleep. Also, if its a really crowded site and everyone has their stuff on the cables and the cables feel like they weigh a ton - I just sneek off from the crowd and hang my food. And if fgor some reason I have to an emergency stealth camp, not a planned stealth camp, I will at least have the means to hang my food.
I bag in the winter because we have mild winters and its not just bears that look for food. And I had a friend that was accosted by a bear mid winter and he hangs his food now also.
I have been using masons twine for many, many years. It is light, strong, cheap, disposable and comes in yellow, pink, and white. Available at home depot. The braided does not last as long.