Question About Bottling And Carbonation

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

coryforsenate

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
Messages
326
Reaction score
5
Location
College Station, TX
So, when we bottle a beer from a primary, it's been cleared (through gelatin, cold crashing, etc).

Then we add priming sugar and bottle.


My question is, if the beer's cleared, where do the yeast come from that carbonate the beer?

Does the beer just not absolutely clear and there are tiny numbers of yeast still in it?
 
Does the beer just not absolutely clear and there are tiny numbers of yeast still in it?

Yes. You will also notice a few weeks after bottling that you will get a layer of yeast that settles to the bottom of the bottles. Don't be afraid, this is normal, although most decided against drinking it (not unhealthy, just does not add to the beer's flavor in most cases)
 
I've read that using polyclar or isinglass will clear the yeast to the point that you have to force carbonate it with CO2.

But gelatin and cold crashing will clear the beer without completely clearing the yeast so as to allow for natural yeast carbonation?



(side note: my ale has started to clear on its own at 1.5 weeks at 63 degrees. I can see the clearing line about 2 inches below the water line. I'll probably bottle in a another 1-1.5 weeks assuming gravity readings stay unchanged for 2-3 days, which is why I'm asking clearing questions)
 
I've never used gelatin so I can't speak to it, but cold crashing can drop aol the yeast out of suspension or shock the ones still in suspension into inactivity, although this is not always the case. It is possible to cold crash and keep viable yeast - this is where temperature and time come into play.

Just out of curiosity, what brew number is this for you and what style is it? You can get your beer plenty clear without using any clearing additives just by letting it sit for a while, plus the clarity is just for aesthetics more than anything
 
This is my first one. I don't know what exactly I would say the style is, but I would call it a bittered american brown ale. Golden promise as the base grain with a little bit of maris otter and aromatic malt, with 3.5 oz of high AA hops. wyeast american ale 1056. Original gravity was 1.047
 
OK, I wouldn't worry so much about adding anything to clear it now. Learn the process first and use your first few batches to make any modifications to your basic procedure. You can start fooling around with clarity later. I would suggest looking into Irish Moss. Its cheap and all you have to do is throw in a dash with 15 minutes left in the boil.
 
oh, I did do irish moss.

The two inches above the clearing line are actually pretty clear, which is why I'm thinking I'm just going to let gravity do its thing.
 
Ya, no need to double on on the clearing additives, in some cases they will work against each other and make everything worse. Now just wait - a skill we all have to learn. The easiest way to get on is brew another batch to keep you busy
 

Latest posts

Back
Top