cloudy beer

just cracked into my 2nd batch, irish red ale, after 3 weeks aging...no complaints about the taste whatsoever, but just out of sheer curiosity, i'm wondering if anyone could maybe tell me why it came out cloudy

A lot of homebrew ends up cloudy, especially extract brews. Making sure to rack to a clearing tank (commonly, and inacurately, referred to as secondary fermentation) after 1+ weeks in primary, then leaving it there for 2 (preferably 3-4 IMO) more weeks will reduce the cloudiness. It will not, however, get rid of it. In my experience without long stays in clearing and bottle conditioning, I never was quite happy w/ extract clarity. I've been able to improve on this with all grain brewing and multi-step mashing, but getting a completely 'clear' beer it still not an exact science to me.

(One of the more experienced guys around here might be able to give you a more techincal explanation about why this happens, so I'll leave it to them!)

Did you use a secondary? If so how long did you leave it in there? Also it depends on the Flocculation of the yeast. Some yeast drop out of suspension quickly (high flocculation) others take a while and some beers (like a hefeweizen) are suppose to stay cloudy. Chances are it needed a little more time in the Secondary.

Edit: I gotta start typing faster I got ninjaed again

Did you chill the beers before drinking? It could also be chill haze which is due to proteins in the beer. They become cloudy at cold temps. They do not affect taste so much as appearence.

EmptyH said:

Edit: I gotta start typing faster I got ninjaed again

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I response fastest when I'm at work, on the clock, getting paid to post on HBT.com. :rockin:

Fiery Sword said:

I response fastest when I'm at work, on the clock, getting paid to post on HBT.com. :rockin:

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same here, I am at home, on the clock, but not getting paid much just yet.

Boss is a real *#@hole too! What, I heard that! In my office now!

If you are really worried about the looks of the chill haze I recommend using a ceramic mug instead of clear glass.

homebrewer_99 said:

If you are really worried about the looks of the chill haze I recommend using a ceramic mug instead of clear glass.

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Or make darker beer.

1. Yeast
2. Secondary
3. When did you put in the extract? Late or early in the boil. Not so much cloudiness, but color will be darker when you put it in early.

Also, some people say Irish Moss works too. I have used it both times I have made beer and both have been very clear. I will probably continue to use it unless someones says it does nothing (and offer proof since it is cheap).

Yeah, what they all said. Try and be careful when racking to the "conditioning fermenter" (how's that Fiery Sword? )

You'll likely find your freshly bottled beer to be perfectly clear (unless it's a wheat). Chill haze, as mentioned is a bit of a pain but soon overlooked when you consider the better quality of what you're drinking.

I found that a long spell in the fridge and the chill haze seemed to dissipate. Maybe my imagination or those beer goggles make everything look clearer...

Beerrific said:

Also, some people say Irish Moss works too. I have used it both times I have made beer and both have been very clear. I will probably continue to use it unless someones says it does nothing (and offer proof since it is cheap).

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Irish moss does help with chill haze when added to the boil. It does not help with other haze problems (like yeast in suspension)

Whirlfloc also works pretty well when added into the boil. It's a variant of Irish Moss that's in a dissolving tablet.

Which works better, the Irish moss or the whirlfloc..or do they work the same..?

BierMuncher said:

Yeah, what they all said. Try and be careful when racking to the "conditioning fermenter" (how's that Fiery Sword? )

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A+, Ol' Chap.

I've never used the tablet, but Irish Moss does it's thing pretty well.

the beer was in the secondary for a week, yes i chilled it, i put in the extract at the beginning of the boil and i used irish moss

like i said, i could care less if its cloudy cause it still tastes excellent, just wondering why

Hell I like my beer to be cloudy. It makes me feel like I'm drinking something. Clear beer reminds me of the yellow fizzy pisswater i used to drink before getting into homebrewing.