Cloudy beer

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danerelj

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Hello!

I have recently started brewing beer, admittedly using the kits you can buy as I wanted to practice with then before venturing out. However, I have done about 3 batches, they all taste good but the beer is always cloudy no matter how long I seem to let the bottles stand. I was wondering if there's any tricks or tips to get clearer beer? Or if there is any equipment such as filters or fining agents I should be using?

Any help would be great:)

Thanks,

Dan
 
You can cold crash before bottling if you have something you can manage to fit your fermentation vessel in. You can also fine with gelatin to add to the clearing.
 
The only thing I do is use whirlfloc tablets in every batch. They are cheap, and work well. You add one tablet (or 1/2 tablet for a 5 gallon batch) with 10-15 minutes left in the boil, and they help coagulate proteins that cause haze.

Make sure you reach a rolling boil (as that encourages 'hot break') during the brewing, and chill as quickly as possible to encourage 'cold break' and that will help as well.
 
What kits have you done? If they have wheat in them they usually will not be clear.

Whirlfloc or Irish Moss can be added during the boil and helps. How long are you leaving the beer in the fermenter? Are you careful to not transfer trub to the bottling bucket. You can also let the beer sit in the bottling bucket for a while to let things settle a little there also.

I get some beers that are crystal clear and others that are cloudy, if they taste good I don't worry about it.
 
Gelatin fining

http://www.bertusbrewery.com/2012/06/how-to-clear-your-beer-with-gelatin.html

2/3 cup water
1 tsp gelatin

microwave it in short (15 second) bursts until it reached 145-150°F, stirring with the end of a thermometer between each burst.

Add it to 35*F beer. Wait two days, rack to bottling bucket being sure to rack above the trub and bottle. Works every time.

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1466952380.420566.jpg

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1466952950.825065.jpg
 
The only thing I do is use whirlfloc tablets in every batch. They are cheap, and work well. You add one tablet (or 1/2 tablet for a 5 gallon batch) with 10-15 minutes left in the boil, and they help coagulate proteins that cause haze.

Make sure you reach a rolling boil (as that encourages 'hot break') during the brewing, and chill as quickly as possible to encourage 'cold break' and that will help as well.

^THIS!

Mike

:mug:
 
Hey guys thanks for all the replies! I haven't done any boiling, the kits say to add 2 litres of boiling water then top with cold until it's at 22 degrees Celsius. I have done Cooper lager, a gravity hammer of thor lager and a better brew czech pilsner. I only have the one barrel to brew in at the moment so I should invest in another so I can cold crash?

I leave my beer in the fermenter for 2 weeks, I bottle from this fermenter and leave bottles for another 4 weeks.

So I should try Irish Moss, cold crashing and racking into another container before bottling?

Thanks,

Dan :)
 
Yes, irish moss near the end of the boil, no racking necessary really, just use biofine or gelatin in your fermenter and cold crash the whole fermenter. No secondary required.
 
I take it you're using the newer Cooper's FV? I'd leave it to settle out more after fermentation is tested as done with the hydrometer. Cooper's ale yeast is high flocculation. That is to say, it settles out quite easily. Clear or slightly misty, then prime & bottle. They should clear up in the first couple days by my observations with everything from Cooper's to morebeer! kits. I still use the Cooper's Micro Brew FV...with spare parts.
Also, allow the beer at least 5-7 days fridge time, as chill haze can be stubborn in settling out like a fog.
 
I use Whirlfloc and leave the beer 3 weeks in primary. Ends up clear every time.
 
I'd say start with any/all of these that you can manage: good hot break, whirlfloc, rapid chill after boil, cold crash. If that doesn't work, then try gelatin. My beers didn't get super clear quickly until I started using gelatin. Good luck.
 
Are your beers possibly clear when warm, but turn cloudy when cold? If so, you have "chill haze" and there's not much that can be done about it at this point. It's not harmful in any way, just cosmetically annoying to some. It happens when you don't get a good a cold break right after the boil, i.e., if your wort takes too long to cool down to pitching temp it will cause proteins in the wort to suspend instead of fall out of suspension. They will remain suspended in the final product, but are only apparent when the beer is cold, causing a haze. A good cold break is similar in effect to a cold-crash, except that it has to be done immediately following the boil, say for instance getting your wort from 212F to 65F in 10 min.. If it turns out you are getting a good cold break, then the suggestions offered here for cold-crashing are well-worth considering.
 
Leaving the bottled beers in the fridge at least 5-7 days will give chill haze a chance to form as the beer cools down. then settle downward like a fog over the 5-7 day period. if any kind of haze doesn't settle out, or even need to chill to see, then it's starch haze from incomplete mash conversion. Starch haze won't settle out in my experience.
 
Leaving the bottled beers in the fridge at least 5-7 days will give chill haze a chance to form as the beer cools down. then settle downward like a fog over the 5-7 day period. if any kind of haze doesn't settle out, or even need to chill to see, then it's starch haze from incomplete mash conversion. Starch haze won't settle out in my experience.

Good point.
 
I am using the coopers fv, it's not bad to be fair! I'm going to try doing another batch within a week or two and will try these things. Yes they are clear at room temperature but after being in the fridge for about 7 days they still come out cloudy! Room temperature is clear, but not perfect, a slight haze is present! When you say cold break, Is that just cooling the wort down to temp quickly in an ice bath? What is cold crashing?
 
If you chill the wort down quick enough, the " cold break" is proteins that look sorta like wet popcorn that coagulate & settle out. Gives clearer beer later.
 
I am using the coopers fv, it's not bad to be fair! I'm going to try doing another batch within a week or two and will try these things. Yes they are clear at room temperature but after being in the fridge for about 7 days they still come out cloudy! Room temperature is clear, but not perfect, a slight haze is present! When you say cold break, Is that just cooling the wort down to temp quickly in an ice bath? What is cold crashing?

Yes, cold break is cooling the wort as quickly as possible. On a bigger batch, say over 2-3 gallon, I would think you are going to have a hard time getting a cold break using an ice bath. Some sort of chiller is needed.
Cold crashing is done after fermentation. It involves lowering the temp to your beer that has finished fermentation a day or more before bottling to the lower 30 degrees f. Sometimes gelatin is used to help thing settle out. I've personally never cold crashed because using Whirlfloc and 3 weeks in the fermenter gives me a plenty clear beer.
 
I am using the coopers fv, it's not bad to be fair! I'm going to try doing another batch within a week or two and will try these things. Yes they are clear at room temperature but after being in the fridge for about 7 days they still come out cloudy! Room temperature is clear, but not perfect, a slight haze is present! When you say cold break, Is that just cooling the wort down to temp quickly in an ice bath? What is cold crashing?

Like 'union' said, the cold break is when you chill the wort down to pitching temp as fast as possible. An ice bath is usually not considered fast enough to cause proteins to drop out of suspension and prevent chill haze. It may be a little early in your brewing experience, but you might want to consider a wort chiller as soon as you are able.

"Cold-crashing" is when, after fermentation is complete, you stick the beer in the fridge for a couple days. This sudden and prolonged cold helps any suspended material settle out and provides ultimate clarity in the finished beer. FWIW, my C-C procedure is to ferment 3 weeks, stick the beer in the fridge, wait 24 hrs. and add gelatin to beer, leave it another 2-3 days, bottle.
 
I can get cold break chilling the hot wort down to 75F or so in an ice bath. Then strain into fermenter, topping off to recipe volume with spring water chilled a day or two in the fridge before brew day. This gets the wort down to about 65F rapidly, causing a cold break.
 
I use Whirlfloc and leave the beer 3 weeks in primary. Ends up clear every time.

+1! Nothing special to it really.

Had one batch last November end up cloudy but tasted delicious. I called it my 'Ugly Citrus' pale ale.
 
Hey guys, thanks for all the responses i appreciate it has been a while but i thought i would give a quick update!

I did a few of things, i chilled my wort quicker than before, and i also used filtered water not my hard tap water! I also used some irish moss, these things have helped tremendously!

My beer isnt perfectly clear still, but its a damn bit better than it was!

All trial and error from here on in, might try racking it a couple of times on my next batch!

Thanks,

Dan! :mug:
 
Wondering if anyone can help me out please? I have brewed 4 batches now, and I tried cold crashing for the first time on my last batch. I tapped the first of it yesterday, and it looked pretty cloudy. Is there a maximum temperature to cold crash? I left it in the refrigerator for about 6 days. Tastes fine though.
 
Wondering if anyone can help me out please? I have brewed 4 batches now, and I tried cold crashing for the first time on my last batch. I tapped the first of it yesterday, and it looked pretty cloudy. Is there a maximum temperature to cold crash? I left it in the refrigerator for about 6 days. Tastes fine though.
Six days is not really enough time to fully settle out from a cold crash in some cases. I always give it at least a week - two if I have the time.

Another thing we can borrow from our wine-making friends is degassing. A beer will clear much faster if it is degassed. You need to be careful about introducing O2 but done carefully it really helps make a nice clear beer.

I use a small hand vacuum pump like this connected to a carboy:



You don't pull very much of a vacuum, just enough to make some negative pressure, and keep it there for a couple days. Otherwise the CO2 will help keep the solids in suspension and resist attempts at fining and settling.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Wondering if anyone can help me out please? I have brewed 4 batches now, and I tried cold crashing for the first time on my last batch. I tapped the first of it yesterday, and it looked pretty cloudy. Is there a maximum temperature to cold crash? I left it in the refrigerator for about 6 days. Tastes fine though.

If your beer is cloudy even after cold-crashing, it is usually an indication of not getting a good cold break. That is, if you don't cool your wort quickly after boil, proteins will remain suspended and show up (especially) in your finished beer. The sudden cooling drops the proteins our of suspension. The way to know if it's a cold break problem is that the beer will be clear at room temp and cloud up when cold. This is called 'chill haze' and poses no harm to the beer and won't effect taste. If you don't get a good cold break, cold-crashing won't do a lot of good after the fact. You need a good cold break to insure clear beer regardless of what else you do.

To your other point, I cold crash in the fridge @ 33-34F for 24 hrs., add gelatin, leave in fridge for 3-4 days. And it provides super-clear beer (provided I got a good cold break). :mug:
 
If your beer is cloudy even after cold-crashing, it is usually an indication of not getting a good cold break. That is, if you don't cool your wort quickly after boil, proteins will remain suspended and show up (especially) in your finished beer. The sudden cooling drops the proteins our of suspension. The way to know if it's a cold break problem is that the beer will be clear at room temp and cloud up when cold. This is called 'chill haze' and poses no harm to the beer and won't effect taste. If you don't get a good cold break, cold-crashing won't do a lot of good after the fact. You need a good cold break to insure clear beer regardless of what else you do.

To your other point, I cold crash in the fridge @ 33-34F for 24 hrs., add gelatin, leave in fridge for 3-4 days. And it provides super-clear beer (provided I got a good cold break). :mug:

Thanks! I guess I'll find out in a few weeks. I bought the Brewers Best immersion chiller yesterday and tried it out on a batch yesterday. It seemed to cool off much quicker. Probably about 30 minutes to 72 degrees. Is there a certain time to shoot for, or can it vary? Also, I converted my upright freezer to a fermentation cooler and am using that now. Could the lower temp cause it to take longer to start bubbling? Thanks!
 
Thanks! I guess I'll find out in a few weeks. I bought the Brewers Best immersion chiller yesterday and tried it out on a batch yesterday. It seemed to cool off much quicker. Probably about 30 minutes to 72 degrees. Is there a certain time to shoot for, or can it vary? Also, I converted my upright freezer to a fermentation cooler and am using that now. Could the lower temp cause it to take longer to start bubbling? Thanks!

Shoot for as fast a cold break as possible. Some people use two chillers, the first in a basin of ice water connected to one in the wort. That said, you can also put your wort in a basin of ice water while using the single chiller.

Re: using your ferm chamber in conjunction with your WC, no matter what combination you use to cool your wort, and while it has to happen ASAP, every yeast has its ideal pitching temp, so there is no need to lower the wort temp beyond what is recommended. Yes, over-cooling your wort can definitely cause the yeast to 'go to sleep' and fermentation to stall. Follow recommended temps for each individual yeast. And keep in mind that when yeast begins to feed, it creates an endothermic reaction that can cause your wort temp to rise 5 - 10 degrees higher than it started. Try your best to avoid wide swings in ferm temp.
 
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