How cloudy can a saison be?

[RayInUT]

Style guidelines seem somewhat vague. What is acceptable? My saison that I brewed using WLP 565/550 is fairly cloudy. It's almost like a wit. Is this acceptable? It tastes great!

 

[WorryWort]

It is probably acceptable. Are you entering it in competition? If so, when is it? It will clear somewhat in time.

 

[RayInUT]

I was going to enter it but the deadline was a few days ago. It's 90* F at my house rigtht now and the beer is cold so I doubt it will clear before it is gone. It is the first saison I have brewed and I wanted to know for future reference. I suppose as a Belgian beer the guidelines are very loose. I would enter it in a competition as I think it is that good. It would be really good with some age behind it. It conditioned for about four weeks.

 

[WorryWort]

Yeh I'm sure it's fine. Every commercial saison I've had from a bottle is always very cloudy because it pretty much starts foaming the moment you open it. This causes the yeast to mix in and cloud the beer almost instantly.

I've never entered a saison, but I'd bet you won't lose marks when you do.

 

[RayInUT]

I just looked at a picture of a gblet filled with DuPont on the internet. I've never had one before. My saison lookes exactly the same so I guess I am alright. The WLP 565 yeast I used is the DuPont strain so it makes sense.

 

[WorryWort]

I just looked at a picture of a gblet filled with DuPont on the internet. I've never had one before. My saison lookes exactly the same so I guess I am alright. The WLP 565 yeast I used is the DuPont strain so it makes sense.

Yah, I guess Dupont is a passable example of a saison! (sarcasm) Good for you. (no sarcasm, seriously that's great.)

 

[RayInUT]

I used the recipe in Randy Mosher's book Radical Brewing and mashed at around 146 for two hours. I had an OG of 1.68 I think and ended at 1.006ish. It's really dry but also, fruity, spicy, and sweet in a way. It's a good recipe. I just wasn't sure about the cloudiness. I keep my keg fridge around 38* but this really opens up if I let the goblet sit for a few minutes to warm up around 50*. I think I would have done okay if I would have got it into the competition.

 

[E-rok]

I know I am resurrecting an old thread, but i didn't want to start a new one for a simple question. I have brewed 3 saisons, each of which were a little cloudy. Never thought much of it until the other night when I my girlfriend and I adjourned to the bedroom and I left a nearly full saison in a pint glass on the table. The next morning The glass was clearer then when it is poured. Is this the yeast falling out of suspension or chill haze or what?

 

[solo103]

Some saisons are actually refermented in the bottle and will be slightly cloudy like sorachi ace saison by Brooklyn brewing company. Also St somewhere's saisons are cloudy as well

 

[E-rok]

right, like I said, I am not surprised by cloudyness, just wondering what made it cloudy. I should add that I keg carbonated and not bottle conditioned it and it is a take off the sorachi ace. I substituted honey malt for wheat and used pacific jade hops instead.

 

[E-rok]

can anyone answer?

 

[DannPM]

E-Rok it sounds like protein haze if it is getting clearer when it gets warmer. The fix is just to cold condition longer or use a fining like Whirlfloc to get more protein to fall out of solution when the wort is in production prior to fermentation. You could also seek out to substituent lower protein malts if that is a possibility as well, it will shorten the cold conditioning time in respect to getting a clearer beer.

 

[BrewKnurd]

To elaborate a little on dannpm's answer... chill haze results from proteins that are soluble at room temp. At fridge temos, they are no longer soluble and they come out of solution. Given enough time at cold temps, they usually precipitate to the bottom of the bottle.

 

[solo103]

I'm sure wheat malt might leave a slight have if you don't filter