How do big breweries get such clear beer?

As we all know, the last 1/4 inch or so of our bottles have a layer of sediment that we don't want to pour out, and in the bottom of the kegs a layer of "crud" typically accumulates too. My question is, how do the commercial breweries produce such clean beer? You never have to worry about slurping down some yeast at the bottom of a budweiser (although some would argue you wouldn't have to worry about taste when drinking one either!).

Filters. Macro beers are dead; the beer is pasteurized and the yeast filtered out.

Large commercial filters and isinglass.

I sort of had a hunch. Thanks!

I knew the macros filtered but i did not know they pasteurized too.

There is 100 different ways to minimize the sediment in your bottles besides filtering. The easiest thing to do is leave the beer in the secondary for a long time, though it it may be hard to tell how long is a long time.

When i care i go with a month or so. And be careful not to shake up the yeast in the carboy. Once a beer makes it into the secondary i do not move it at all. I place it on a shelf so i can siphon from it without moving it again.

Not all commercial beers are dead, or don't have sediment in the bottles...it's only a limited amount of breweries and the majority of those that produce BMC' like beers, and a few micros that also produce pilsners and lagers...

I enter contests...and placed decently last summer....in fact the biggest comments I got this summer was on the CLARITY of my beer..one of my beers was describes as being jewell like...and ruby like...I believe it comes from the fact that I leave it in primary for a month..use finings to clear it, and give it a nice period of bottle conditioning, make sure I cool the wort quicky and chill long enough to eliminate haze.....

If you work on you beer process, AND pour properly yeast sediment is not really an issue...it's a tiny bit of beer left behind in the bottle where there is a glass of uber clear beer. There's no yeast in this beerglass of mine, what little there is is still in the bottle.




This list is out of date, but it shows the huge amount of bottle conditioned beers.

Yeasts from Bottle Conditioned Beers

It's mostly new brewers who grew up drinking macro swill that think yeast is bad...The rest of us, like great parts of the brewing world, worship it.

Read this https://www.homebrewtalk.com/1045967-post3.html

Maybe it will convince you to join the yeast are our friends brigade!

Most microbrewed and pub beer is filtered.

I can rattle off a list of breweries I have been to that sterile filter the beer and then add yeast at bottling, so bottle conditioned beer certainly does not mean no filtration.

Many commercial breweries also centrifuge the beer.

Clear beer can be attained without filtering or even fining. I will have to take a picture of the Stone 2004 Vertical Epic clone I made. Good process, careful racking, and a little time in the cold is all you need.

+1 to the Cold

At least 2 days in the fridge and the little bit of yeast you still have from bottle conditioning will be clinging to the bottom of that bottle.

Revvy said:

I believe it comes from the fact that I leave it in primary for a month..use finings to clear it, and give it a nice period of bottle conditioning, make sure I cool the wort quicky and chill long enough to eliminate haze.....

If you work on you beer process, AND pour properly yeast sediment is not really an issue...it's a tiny bit of beer left behind in the bottle where there is a glass of uber clear beer. There's no yeast in this beerglass of mine, what little there is is still in the bottle.

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+1 on time, cold and some finings

SilverKing said:

+1 on time, cold and some finings

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Drool!!!

What is it? It looks great!!!

5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer....

Revvy said:

Drool!!!

What is it? It looks great!!!

5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer....

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BM's Centennial Blonde. had a good 2.5 weeks in primary, couple days on gelatin, cold in the keg.

Revvy said:

Drool!!!

What is it? It looks great!!!

5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer...5 hours till I'm home and can have a beer....

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3 hours until I can have a beer....3 years until I can have a beer...oh wait, I'm having one now with my lunch!

like everyone else said filtered. But you can get beer very clear other ways . I cold crash all my beers and some I add gelatin if its not to my liking. I also leave my beers 3-4 weeks in primary then another 2-3 weeks in the keg.This is a red that was cold crashed with no other additives to clarify.

SilverKing said:

BM's Centennial Blonde. had a good 2.5 weeks in primary, couple days on gelatin, cold in the keg.

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One of my favorite beers....

I JUST did it with Saflager, as my first lager. 2 weeks in primary in the high 40's/low 50's in a locker in my apartmnet's garage, upstairs for a 72 hour diacytel rest and racking to secondary, then back in the the locker (which is waay colder right now) for two weeks...I'm contemplating bottling it now.

When I raked it and took a hydro reading, I ended up pulling a pinto out, it was the tastiest "green" beer I have ever had...I nearly drank the entire carboy.

Revvy said:

One of my favorite beers....

I JUST did it with Saflager, as my first lager. 2 weeks in primary in the high 40's/low 50's in a locker in my apartmnet's garage, upstairs for a 72 hour diacytel rest and racking to secondary, then back in the the locker (which is waay colder right now) for two weeks...I'm contemplating bottling it now.

When I raked it and took a hydro reading, I ended up pulling a pinto out, it was the tastiest "green" beer I have ever had...I nearly drank the entire carboy.

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almost makes me want to live in Lansing again so I can drive over.

almost.:cross:

Budweiser is clear because of that "Beechwood Aging" that they advertise about. Basically they lager on a bed of beechwood chips. Beechwood carries the opposite electrical charge that yeast carries, so it makes the yeast drop out of the beer much faster than they would flocculate on their own - sort of how your house gets dustier in the winter when you have the heat on - static electricity you know.

wow those are some fine looking beers you guys posted

Mutilated1 said:

wow those are some fine looking beers you guys posted

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I just realized, they are BOTH centennial blondes.

Revvy said:

I just realized, they are BOTH centennial blondes.

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it must be good

You can also keg. Then you don't have bottle sediment

Cpsurfer said:

As we all know, the last 1/4 inch or so of our bottles have a layer of sediment that we don't want to pour out, and in the bottom of the kegs a layer of "crud" typically accumulates too. My question is, how do the commercial breweries produce such clean beer? You never have to worry about slurping down some yeast at the bottom of a budweiser (although some would argue you wouldn't have to worry about taste when drinking one either!).

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1/4 of an inch seems a little excessive. When I bottle I end up with just a slight coating on the bottom.Are you using any type of clarifying additives ?

I guess I misspoke when I said a 1/4 inch of sediment...it's usually just a small amount of stuff in the bottom of the bottle, but I leave the last 1/4 inch of beer so as not to pour any of it into my glass. I still am a noob at this, only 4 extract batches under my belt so far, so I haven't had any experience with clarifying additives yet. I am going to be doing my first AG batch next weekend though!

Geez, everybody posted pictures except me! So:


This is a Bell's Two Hearted clone, from eschatz's recipe. I don't use gelatin, or filter or anything. I do give it plenty of time, though, and that beer had some dryhopping, too.

YooperBrew said:

Geez, everybody posted pictures except me! So:

This is a Bell's Two Hearted clone, from eschatz's recipe. I don't use gelatin, or filter or anything. I do give it plenty of time, though, and that beer had some dryhopping, too.

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That is as gorgeous as the brewer who brewed it!!!!!!

Yum!!!

Revvy said:

That is as gorgeous as the brewer who brewed it!!!!!!

Yum!!!

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Well, aw shucks! Thank you kind sir. I'd offer you one, if I could! :rockin:

Cpsurfer said:

As we all know, the last 1/4 inch or so of our bottles have a layer of sediment that we don't want to pour out, and in the bottom of the kegs a layer of "crud" typically accumulates too. My question is, how do the commercial breweries produce such clean beer? You never have to worry about slurping down some yeast at the bottom of a budweiser (although some would argue you wouldn't have to worry about taste when drinking one either!).

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If you have 1/4 inch of sediement then you are doing something wrong. Commercial brewers filter.

For me alot of clarity comes down to chilling as quick as possible. The first three beers I made were all cooled by the same method, immersion chiller and ice bath. All three suffer from chill haze as a result. If I pour a beer and let it warm up for about 10 minutes it gets crystal clear. I was amazed when I did a little experiment and discovered this.

menschmaschine said:

Many commercial breweries also centrifuge the beer.

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One day at work i was trying to figure out a way to turn a washing machine into a centrifuge. I think it would be a fun project for someone, not me, but someone.

I have always went with the cooling as quick as possible method for the wort as well as crash cooling the finished product, that seems to work well for me. The thing is while crystal clear beer is pretty I don't know why so many people are obsessed with getting clear beer, I would never put fining agents in my beer just to get it clear unless I was going to enter it in a competition, it still tastes the same weather it has chill haze or not. Some brewers focus too much on getting their beer clear rather than making a great tasting product. Just my $0.02

farmbrewernw said:

I have always went with the cooling as quick as possible method for the wort as well as crash cooling the finished product, that seems to work well for me. The thing is while crystal clear beer is pretty I don't know why so many people are obsessed with getting clear beer, I would never put fining agents in my beer just to get it clear unless I was going to enter it in a competition, it still tastes the same weather it has chill haze or not. Some brewers focus too much on getting their beer clear rather than making a great tasting product. Just my $0.02

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Visual appeal is a big deal to the people who don't know anything about home brewing. It's just additional wow factor.

madewithchicken said:

One day at work i was trying to figure out a way to turn a washing machine into a centrifuge. I think it would be a fun project for someone, not me, but someone.

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Now THAT belongs in the "You know you're a brewer when..." thread.