Yeast Sediment

Does anyone know how to avoid the yeast sediment that forms at the bottom of each bottle?

I was thinking about letting the whole beer sit in a secondary container after I add the priming sugar so all the yeast sets to the bottom at once - and then bottle it from there.

Does that sound like a good idea? I am open to other suggestions.

I don't actually mind the problem that much but other folks seem put off by it.

Thanks

the yeast reproduce in the bottle when eating the priming sugar you added to get the bottles to carbonate. If you carbonate in the bottle naturally, there is no way to be rid of the yeast.

If you put your priming sugar into the secondary and then mix it will defeat your purpose because you need to bottle it soon afterwards. I don't think you will get around not having the sediment unless you go to kegging.

There is no way to avoid the sediment other than filtering the beer and force carbing. The sediment is a natural by-product of bottle conditioning since you need some yeast in the bottle in order to generate carbonation.

Leave your beer in the clearing tank for a month, then rack to your bottling bucket, add the priming sugar and bottle. That's about the best you can do. Stick with highly flocculate yeasts (this means no wits or wheats) that give a tight trub.

david_42 said:

Leave your beer in the clearing tank for a month, then rack to your bottling bucket, add the priming sugar and bottle.

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Do you mean leaving the beer in the primary fermenter for a whole month even long after actual fermentation has ceased?

Thank you all for your comments.

Duke said:

Do you mean leaving the beer in the primary fermenter for a whole month even long after actual fermentation has ceased?

Thank you all for your comments.

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No, a secondary or even tertiary fermenter. Keep this in mind though, you *need* yeast in solution to make your bottles carbonate. If you clear them all out, your bottles will take exceedingly long to carbonate. Either way, you'll still have sediment. Like TheJadedDog said above: There's no way to avoid it without filtering and force-carbing.

So essentially I'm gathering that I'm always going to have some sediment on the bottom of my bottles...? It hasn't hurt my beer, but my beers have been coming out clear which is awesome, but I just feel that someone is going to see that sediment on the bottom of my bottles and be turned off. Usually I try to pour mine into a glass, but sometime people just grab a bottle. And if its not a real light setting its hard to see in brown bottles too I guess.

natefrog255 said:

So essentially I'm gathering that I'm always going to have some sediment on the bottom of my bottles...?

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Yes unless you force carb in a keg and then bottle from the keg

After the beer has carbed up, put them in the fridge for a week or two. The yeast will drop out and compact in th ebottom of the bottle, so there is less chance of pouring it out.

But, yes you are always going to have the sediment there.

I've heard that you always want to pour homebrew (or any bottle conditioned beer). The yeast sediment isn't bad to consume, but if it gets resuspended in the beer it will affect the flavor (and not in a good way).

natefrog255 said:

...I just feel that someone is going to see that sediment on the bottom of my bottles and be turned off...

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Great opportunity to explain the health benefits of yeast and the natural process you use. All about marketing.

Check out www.sedexbrewing.com. It its a really cool product that I saw reviewed on Craig tube. They are expensive but if you really want no sediment in your bottles then it is the only way without kegging equipment.

TyTanium said:

Great opportunity to explain the health benefits of yeast and the natural process you use. All about marketing.

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+1, bottled beer with yeast sediment reflects the natural and hand crafted process that we use. It's common in many commercial beers as well. Many Belgian beers and Sierra Nevada for instance still use this process. I'd explain the process to your buddies. Other than that, you can get into kegging, force carbonate the beer within the keg using CO2 from a tank, and bottle using a counter pressure bottle filler.

I enjoy beers with a little sediment in the bottom as they tend to be higher quality beers. Many people pour the beer into a glass in a way that leaves the sediment behind in the bottom of the bottle. I know what you're saying though, our uncouth friends find using a glass and the yeast sediment different from their familiar, mass marketed, swill.

BrewScout said:

Check out www.sedexbrewing.com. It its a really cool product that I saw reviewed on Craig tube. They are expensive but if you really want no sediment in your bottles then it is the only way without kegging equipment.

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Lol, seems interesting.

Yeah the sediment doesn't bother me and all of my beers have turned out well. Once I fridge it sticks to the bottom pretty well. Its more of aesthics thing I guess. Until I get complaints I won't change anything since its common.

natefrog255 said:

Lol, seems interesting.

Yeah the sediment doesn't bother me and all of my beers have turned out well. Once I fridge it sticks to the bottom pretty well. Its more of aesthics thing I guess. Until I get complaints I won't change anything since its common.

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The only way I can see me buying any if these would be if I wanted to be able to drink out of the bottles. But you have to admit, it is a really cool concept!

I usually put my beer in secondary for about a week. Enough yeast haas settled out by then that not too much ends up in the bottling bucket. And the bit that builds up int the bottle is a thin film rather than a layer.

I'm not concerned with pretty beer but its nice to not have any more leftovers than bottle conditioned pro craft brews.