Any tricks to help clarify?

Tophe · 03-05-2007, 11:36 AM

I brewed up a beer this weekend, for got to add the irish moss. Recipe consisted of 4 lbs amber DME, 3 lbs Light DME, 1 oz target bittering, 1 oz fuggels aroma. Its been in primary for a couple days and is a little cloudier than expected. I know its still earlier and it will settle, but are there any tricks I can do from here on out that may help it clarify a little better?

Its fermenting at room temp right now, which varies from about 65 -69* air temp. Last night I looked at the fermenter and the liquid was almost 77*

Kaiser · 03-05-2007, 11:40 AM

It will always look cloudy in the primary fermenter because of the yeast and the movement created by fermentation. You should not worry about clarification until the fermentation has completed and the yeast had time to settle.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tophe96

Its fermenting at room temp right now, which varies from about 65 -69* air temp. Last night I looked at the fermenter and the liquid was almost 77*

77 *F is way to hot for your average ale. You may want to expect sharp alcohol notes from the fusel alcohols that are produced at that temperature.

Kai

zoebisch01 · 03-05-2007, 11:58 AM

In addition most stuff will clarify just fine given time unless it is a really stubborn yeast (low flocculation), high amounts of unusual adjuncts in the beer (Pumpkin etc), or chill haze (which will not go away). Irish Moss is nice to get results early on, but most beers tend to clear out just fine if you keep them in a cold area (< 58°F) for a few weeks.

cweston · 03-05-2007, 12:02 PM

I forget the irish moss half the time, it seems. My beers always seem to clarify nicely, with or without it.

**HuxleysBrew** · 02-06-2012, 12:22 AM

Another idea is to move it to a secondary through a filter, remove a lot of the solids after fermentation begins to slow. If you're really going for a clear ale, no harm moving to a third as well. I'm working on a Red IPA that I want to be super clear, going to be moved to a secondary through a filter and dry hopped, then moved to a 3rd as well and dry hopped as well, using a lower a.a.% hop as I go to add layers of aroma.

Also, why not just boil up a little Irish Moss in a pint of water, then add it to the ferm later? Goal is to coagulate solids so they're heavy enough to sink to the bottom, thus clearing out the beer.

**Darwin18** · 02-06-2012, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HuxleysBrew

Another idea is to move it to a secondary through a filter, remove a lot of the solids after fermentation begins to slow. If you're really going for a clear ale, no harm moving to a third as well. I'm working on a Red IPA that I want to be super clear, going to be moved to a secondary through a filter and dry hopped, then moved to a 3rd as well and dry hopped as well, using a lower a.a.% hop as I go to add layers of aroma.

Also, why not just boil up a little Irish Moss in a pint of water, then add it to the ferm later? Goal is to coagulate solids so they're heavy enough to sink to the bottom, thus clearing out the beer.

Transferring to a secondary will introduce oxygen to the beer and increase the risk of oxidation. Filtering will most definitely clear the beer, but also strip out flavor.

You can accomplish the same thing by letting your beer sit in primary for 3-4 weeks. You'll get even better results by doing a long primary and then cold crashing - letting your beer sit at 36 - 38 degrees for a couple of days.

solo103 · 02-06-2012, 01:28 AM

Look in to using white labs servomyces. It's a yeast nutrient and increases floculation (spelled that wrong I'm sure ). You can cold crash it as well when its done fermenting and your through with secondary you can put it in the fridge at 58 degree for a week and that will make most of the left over yeast fall into suspension. I rack to secondary a lot and have never has a problem with oxidation.

Frodo · 02-06-2012, 01:34 AM

I think his beer is probably very clear by now, since the OP was in 2007.

Robin0782 · 02-06-2012, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frodo

I think his beer is probably very clear by now, since the OP was in 2007.

Indeed. I imagine it's been converted back into water by now. Perhaps even been made into another beer. But to stay on topic a little bit... I don't personally care if my beer is hazy. I almost like it better that way.

Calichusetts · 02-06-2012, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darwin18

Transferring to a secondary will introduce oxygen to the beer and increase the risk of oxidation. Filtering will most definitely clear the beer, but also strip out flavor.

You can accomplish the same thing by letting your beer sit in primary for 3-4 weeks. You'll get even better results by doing a long primary and then cold crashing - letting your beer sit at 36 - 38 degrees for a couple of days.

Transfering at anytime increase the risk of oxidation...I siphon 4 times between brew to bottle without ever having oxidation...heck I have POURED my beer from my primary into bottles without oxidation. The risk is minute at best and most likely nonexistant as long as you know what you are doing

Cold crashing before bottling is a must, as well as a few weeks in a fridge before drinking