Geletin and Vegetarians

[maida7]

So I had some friends over the other day and we were enjoying some homebrew on the back deck. We were marveling about how clear the beer was and I started to explain that I used gelatin as a fining to clear out the yeast. Then it dawned on me that my friend is a vegetarian and gelatin is made from animal bones. Kinda awkward.

I think vegetarians assume that beer is "OK" for them and does not contain animal parts. I wonder if any commercial beers using animal parts as finings. Issinglass is made from fish guts and is a pretty popular fining.

What do you think?

 

[Denny]

Most of the commercial brewers I know find that using gelatin or isinglass is too much hassle. If they want to clarify they filter.

 

[Yooper]

I don't know of anybody (except on this forum!) where gelatin and isinglass are used.

I never use animal products in any of my beers, because I don't want to have to inquire about dietary preferences when I offer someone a beer (plus it's not needed anyway generally).

A few commercial breweries proudly proclaim on their label "unfiltered", but the rest generally are filtered.

 

[Xpertskir]

I never use gelatin. When I want animal products in my beer I stick to the normal stuff...you know Bull testicles, oysters, and bacon.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

I had a similar experience where a vegan friend did some dogsitting for us over a weekend and I brought him a growler of homebrewed rye saison when I picked up the dog. It didn't dawn on me until quite a bit later that gelatin would be a no-no for a vegan.

When I next saw him and apologized, he said "Don't worry about it... I make exceptions for good beer!"

That said, if someone is a strict vegan, remember that these are fining agents meant to drop out of suspension. So ideally there should be no gelatin in the finished product. Though realistically that's not probably true, the amount would be so miniscule as to be an afterthought. It's not like eating a big bowl of jello, we're probably talking about micrograms of gelatin AT MOST.

You're right to mention it to someone if you know they're a vegetarian or vegan, but I wouldn't change your brewing practice unless you regularly serve beer to folks who are *extremely* strict. And if so, you might want to try filtration instead.

 

[Clonefan94]

I've never used gelatin. I use whrilfloc with 15 minutes left in the boil, then cold crash for a week before serving. I haven't had one beer yet that hasn't matched commercial clarity since I started doing this.

That being said, back to you inquiry. I've always understood that the gelatin is used as a binding agent. to group the solids together and help them drop out of suspension quicker. If this is the case, I would think that as long as they aren't vegan, there probably isn't any left in the beer you are drinking, it's settled out, in the bottom. Vegan might be more of an issue because that goes into the whole production, contact of animals, etc. Vegetarianism is based more in actual consumption.

 

[norsk]

Pretty simple to stay away from animal products and still produce clear beer... though I only obsess over clear beer when brewing for weddings and such... We went vegan several years ago and never looked back...

 

[maida7]

I had a similar experience where a vegan friend did some dogsitting for us over a weekend and I brought him a growler of homebrewed rye saison when I picked up the dog. It didn't dawn on me until quite a bit later that gelatin would be a no-no for a vegan.

When I next saw him and apologized, he said "Don't worry about it... I make exceptions for good beer!"

That said, if someone is a strict vegan, remember that these are fining agents meant to drop out of suspension. So ideally there should be no gelatin in the finished product. Though realistically that's not probably true, the amount would be so miniscule as to be an afterthought. It's not like eating a big bowl of jello, we're probably talking about micrograms of gelatin AT MOST.

You're right to mention it to someone if you know they're a vegetarian or vegan, but I wouldn't change your brewing practice unless you regularly serve beer to folks who are *extremely* strict. And if so, you might want to try filtration instead.

Good to know I'm not the only one who's had that moment...

 

[MichaelBrock]

It seems most of my friends are vegetarian/vegans. They will not drink beer that has been fined with gelatin, egg whites, isinglass, etc. I have been gifted quite a few six packs that they buy only to find out later they can't drink it. And of course for that reason I do not use gelatin or isinglass in my beers. There are more commercial beers which are not vegan/vegetarian friendly than you think:

http://www.barnivore.com/beer

 

[maida7]

It seems most of my friends are vegetarian/vegans. They will not drink beer that has been fined with gelatin, egg whites, isinglass, etc. I have been gifted quite a few six packs that they buy only to find out later they can't drink it. And of course for that reason I do not use gelatin or isinglass in my beers. There are more commercial beers which are not vegan/vegetarian friendly than you think:

http://www.barnivore.com/beer

Wow that is a fascinating website.

 

[Zamial]

I don't know of anybody (except on this forum!) where gelatin and isinglass are used.

There was a Micheal Jackson Beer Hunter episode I saw not long ago when he was in Europe (I do not recall the exact brewery) but they were most certainly using isinglass and even said that it was made from fish.

When I want that "extra clear" beer, I use Irish Moss and that is just a kelp.

 

[PseudoChef]

I'm pretty sure all the beers done at the Russian River Brewpub are fined with gelatin.