Cloudy beer...Infection???

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alee

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I made a 10 gal batch of all grain IPA in January which was rather slow to finish due to too low of a pitching rate. The batch was split into 2 6 gal carboys and fermented at around 67deg. I pitched one packet of Safeale 05 in one carboy and for the other I used some safeale 05 (not enough) that I harvested from my previous batch of beer. I ended up adding a packet of the same yeast to the second carboy. This carboy was very slow to start and I ended up mixing some of the first carboy (which was fermenting strong) with this carboy. After 2 weeks, I blended both carboys into 2 5 gal carboys for secondary fermentation, then after 1 week I dry hopped one and 1 week later kegged it. When carbonated, it was clear and rather good but had a slight spicy taste (which made it quite interesting).
The second carboy sat in the basement for a couple of weeks longer and was then dry hopped for a week and kegged.
This second keg will not clear up. It tastes good but is so cloudy that would not even clear up when I took a sample to work and centrifuged it at 4000rpm for 20 minutes!
Could this be a bacterial infection? It doesn't have any off flavor, but has been in the keg at 43deg for at least 2 weeks. I am wondering if the entire batch was infected (hence the spicy taste), but the first was kegged early enough to slow the bacteria down?
Since it tastes good...just looks ugly...is it ok to drink?

Thanks for any help.
 
Not sure if its an infection but if it tastes good drink it. Use a solid mug when you serve it!

Try gelatin on the keg. Standard unflavored Knox brand gelatin - 1 tsp to 4 oz water. You heat the water to boil and let it sit covered until it cools to under 160 and add the gelatin. Let it sit for 15 minutes and stir until it all dissolves. If it clumps a little I usually microwave it just a bit to warm it up and swirl until the clumps dissapear.

Pitch this on top of the kegged beer, vent it with co2 a couple times and then swirl it.

Wait two days and pour and drink a couple or so pints and see if it clears.
 
Well just based on you centrifuging a sample at 4000rpms. I dont know what you do for a living....I am a clinical lab technologist. You typically centrifuge blood samples at somewhere around 3500rpm....and after 10 minutes all the formed elements spin to the bottom. Lets say you have a lipemic specimen...in which tons of lipids are suspended in solution. That will not spin out at 3500rpms. Bacteria would most definitely spin down at those speeds (as we do when we do urinalysis). I think you have pectin haze my friend...proteins wouldnt spin out at those speeds.
 

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