Whirlfloc question

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b_d

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This may be a dumb question, but...

I'm assuming whirlfloc tabs don't add any value if you use the "dump kettle into fermenter" transfer method? Correct? I.e. any clarification would be achieved by leaving material in the kettle. Nothing happens in the fermenter?
 
I'd still use them even if you were dumping your break into a fermenter.
 
even if you dump it all into the fermenter, it still drops out.. the proteins just get re-suspended, not dissolved again, so they just drop out to the bottom of the fermenter.

plus, if you look it up, there was a blog post (beerlosopher i think?) about an experiment testing the effect of dumping all the trub material into the fermenter as opposed to leaving it in the kettle. ironically, dumping all of the trub into the fermenter actually led to clearer beer with a cleaner taste after the same amount of time in the fermenter.
 
Thanks for the responses. I really didn't think about the process before buying the tablets. I threw half a tab in my brew today. Will see if it makes any difference.
 
I'm not advocating dumping all your trub in the fermenter. I don't think that's a good brewing process, based upon my own observations BUT use the WF no matter what.
 
Adding whirfloc to the boil 15 minutes before flame out benefits coagulation of proteins before wort transfer reducing less in the fermentation. I have found clearer beer for sure a benefit from friends opinion on the beer. For some reason people think good beer is clear. So the only positive effects are people with clear beer syndrome. ;)
 
I used a whole tab in a gallon once, and it looked like big moon rocks on the bottom. Makes it very clear.

For lighter colored beers, definitely use it. Except most wheats. I think it cost you less than 25 cents per batch.
 
I love using whirfloc tabs since I've gone all grain! I still dump the kettle in the fermenter but my beers are quite clear. I would not brew without it, which is good because it's cheap. Bought 25 tabs for under $3!


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b_d said:
...I'm assuming whirlfloc tabs don't add any value if you use the "dump kettle into fermenter" transfer method? Correct?...
Click to expand...

Clearly not a dumb question, since no one has answered it.

I can't answer it either, though I have wondered about it. And in all my web searching, I've never found an actual answer to that question, either.

I do a full kettle dump into the fermenter (except screening out hop matter), and have always used Whirlfloc (or the like) on the "it's cheap, why not?" principle. However, looking at the brulosopher exbeeriment referenced earlier in this thread (in which more trub produced greater clarity), I could concoct a theory that if you are NOT whirlpooling out break in the kettle, that NOT using Whirlfloc could actually be beneficial to clarity.

Someday I'm gonna do an A / B comparison (with / without Whirlfloc) to answer it for myself.
 
agrazela said:
Clearly not a dumb question, since no one has answered it.



I can't answer it either, though I have wondered about it. And in all my web searching, I've never found an actual answer to that question, either.



I do a full kettle dump into the fermenter (except screening out hop matter), and have always used Whirlfloc (or the like) on the "it's cheap, why not?" principle. However, looking at the brulosopher exbeeriment referenced earlier in this thread (in which more trub produced greater clarity), I could concoct a theory that if you are NOT whirlpooling out break in the kettle, that NOT using Whirlfloc could actually be beneficial to clarity.



Someday I'm gonna do an A / B comparison (with / without Whirlfloc) to answer it for myself.
Click to expand...


It looks like people have answered it. If you use Whirlfloc, it collects "stuff" in the fermenter. There must be some in suspension even after chilling, just like there is break material that settles out. (It's not all yeast at the bottom of the fermenter.)

So using Whirlfloc seems to collect stuff in suspension and help it drop out faster in the fermenter.
 
I can agree that whirlfloc probably does drop trub in the fermenter faster than without, but does it do it better than without? That is, does it really make for clearer beer IF you aren't whirlpooling to leave most of your trub in the kettle?

That's the meat of the question, and it has not been answered.
 
I'm more interested in the flavor impact of trub... not the aesthetics of clear beer. If you want brilliance cold crash and fine with geletin or filter. It works on everything.
 
agrazela said:
I can agree that whirlfloc probably does drop trub in the fermenter faster than without, but does it do it better than without? That is, does it really make for clearer beer IF you aren't whirlpooling to leave most of your trub in the kettle?

That's the meat of the question, and it has not been answered.
Click to expand...

Yes.

It really does help to break up proteins out of the wort, and they coagulate, fall out, and don't resuspend. It helps with preventing chill haze and helps with long term stability in the finished beer.
 

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