Yeast in the Bottle

Hi - Iv got a couple of questions about yeast cakes

1) Once people have bottled their beer, and it is allowed to carbonate (1-2 weeks on average say), how long is it usually before the yeast forms a hard yeast cake?

2) Does lager yeast take longer to form a hard yeast cake compared to ale yeast (if a secondary fermentation isn't done even)?

3) What are some yeasts that are known to form hard yeast cakes?

I have one bottle of Nutbrown Ale with Muntons yeast. After 5-6 weeks it had a pretty tight yeast cake. Now after 11 weeks the last bottles yeast cake looks really solid.

With Saflager S-23 yeast, after 8/9 weeks there is sediment build up at the bottom, but lots of sediment floating in the lower half of the bottle still. Its also no where near as hard as the Muntons yeast cake was at this time. Another batch @ 4 weeks with this yeast has less sediment at the bottom and more yeast sediment floating around.

Any feedback about Saflager yeast cakes or other yeast cakes will be helpful, as the beer seems to taste yuk when its not settled!!!

Hi, I may not be an expert, but let me answer some of your questions

1. You mean a small layer of yeast at the bottom? Well, depending on the yeast and the speed of carbonation (temp), usually when it has finished carbonating.

2. No, it's dependent on the yeast strain. Not too worry, most brewing yeast do form a nice yeast cake at the bottom.

3. Notthinghams seem to give me a clear beer. I am sure there are others.

Use finings like gelatin to help clear your beer.

Kiwi_Jonno said:

Hi - Iv got a couple of questions about yeast cakes

1) Once people have bottled their beer, and it is allowed to carbonate (1-2 weeks on average say)...

Click to expand...

I don't know who the "people" who say that are...around here we say 3 weeks @ 70 degrees minimum to carb and condition in the bottle.

This explains it....and there's a nifty video.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=558191&postcount=101

solidghost said:

Hi, I may not be an expert, but let me answer some of your questions

1. You mean a small layer of yeast at the bottom? Well, depending on the yeast and the speed of carbonation (temp), usually when it has finished carbonating.

2. No, it's dependent on the yeast strain. Not too worry, most brewing yeast do form a nice yeast cake at the bottom.

3. Notthinghams seem to give me a clear beer. I am sure there are others.

Use finings like gelatin to help clear your beer.

Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply,

What do you mean by "Use finings like gelatin to help clear your beer.", what is this?

With some of my lagers there is sediment floating in the bottom half of the bottle, yet it is very well carbonated. If anything, probably too much carbonation for me. The yeast is slowly forming a tighter yeast cake, but it has been 8 weeks. If I tipped the bottle upsidedown the yeast would all move, where with the Muntons, it would take a bit to move the yeast.

The resulting Saflager beer is not drinkable the yeasty taste is way over powering. The whole bottle tastes like the last inch of a "good home brew".

I just read the link that was posted...

The beer that is 4-5 weeks in the bottle does "gush when they open" for about 7seconds. This one tastes the worst and has the most floating sediment in the bottle, loose yeast cake.

The 8 week old beer doesn't gush etc but is still kinda highly carbed, yet tastes soo yeasty.

Carbonation doesn't happen because of the amount of yeast in the bottle, it happens because the yeast eats the new sugars added at bottling. You never really see floaties after its in the bottle unless you've racked too much trub into the bottling bucket or didn't let the beer clear enough. If you're getting a bunch of gunk in your bottles use a clearing tank or leave it in the primary two weeks longer.

Every yeast makes a layer of sediment. All of them will clear except hefe yeasts, which are supposed to be cloudy.

If you're getting gushers, either fermentation wasn't done yet and you bottled too early, or your bottles weren't cleaned out enough. To me it sounds like you bottled too early.

EvilTOJ said:

Carbonation doesn't happen because of the amount of yeast in the bottle, it happens because the yeast eats the new sugars added at bottling. You never really see floaties after its in the bottle unless you've racked too much trub into the bottling bucket or didn't let the beer clear enough. If you're getting a bunch of gunk in your bottles use a clearing tank or leave it in the primary two weeks longer.

Every yeast makes a layer of sediment. All of them will clear except hefe yeasts, which are supposed to be cloudy.

If you're getting gushers, either fermentation wasn't done yet and you bottled too early, or your bottles weren't cleaned out enough. To me it sounds like you bottled too early.

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Thanks for your advice. The beer thats 8 weeks was bottled after 2 weeks in primary. The FG was 1008, OG 1046.

The other was 18days primary, OG 1052, FG 1016. This one might not have been complete as is gushing? But only 4-5 weeks old.

I guess your right about not overly long time in primary. I have no secondary tank. The bottling tap leaves the bottom inch in the tank behind, so there shouldn't be too much sediment getting in.

Iv put one of the bottles in the fridge for a few days, and there is stil l sediment floating in it. I thought it was yeast that hadn't formed a yeast cake yet?

The top of the bottles seem clearer.

Kiwi_Jonno said:

Thanks for your reply,

What do you mean by "Use finings like gelatin to help clear your beer.", what is this?

With some of my lagers there is sediment floating in the bottom half of the bottle, yet it is very well carbonated. If anything, probably too much carbonation for me. The yeast is slowly forming a tighter yeast cake, but it has been 8 weeks. If I tipped the bottle upsidedown the yeast would all move, where with the Muntons, it would take a bit to move the yeast.

The resulting Saflager beer is not drinkable the yeasty taste is way over powering. The whole bottle tastes like the last inch of a "good home brew".

Click to expand...

You can add gelatin to your wort/beer one day before you bottle. This way, most of the yeast will be stuck to the bottom of your fermenter when you bottle.

If you don't want to use gelatin or other finings, then use a secondary fermenter. You need a siphon to rack your wort/beer to the secondary fermenter from your first fermenter.