Yeast contribution to the "haze craze" of the New England IPA movement

[threeviews]

Former head brewer of Vermont Pub & Brewery and brewing revolutionary Greg Noonan (RIP) whose teachings are largely carried forth by John Kimmich of The Alchemist, the culturing and use of the "Conan" yeast strain is at the heart of the "New England IPA" craze.

Highly non-flocculent, the Conan strain is one that stays in suspension...but the haze of these IPAs is not only contributed by the yeast, but by protein-rich malts (Wheat, Oat, Aromatic) along with residual hop particulate. It is of my opinion that the lack of flocculent yeast keeps all of these elements in suspension...

If I present a cogent argument, then has any member of this forum "aged" an IPA from one of these juggernauts (The Alchemist, Trillium, Tree House, etc.) who currently define the New England IPA style? If you, allow a Congress Street from Trillium sit still for a number of weeks (and well within the freshness window of an IPA which is...arguably...recognized as 90 days), is it still as hazy as when it was first packaged?

Might you consider the massive haze component to a lot of these New England IPAs simply a result of demand thereby shortening the turnover time of the beers...accelerating a process which normally takes week(s) into days to satisfy demand?

Lastly, do you think the intense haze of these beers has any effect on their shelf life? What if they sat on a retail shelf at room temperature for a time...do you think that would have an "immediate" impact on flavor and aroma?

Please comment and help me understand the current phenomenon what is now known as the "New England IPA."

 

[Bensiff]

I haven't seen any of the NEIPA's out my way to experiment with; but, I don't think that necessary. My experience with Conan is that I can brew a beer and have it clear out with no issue or I can brew a NEIPA and have it stay cloudy. It is not the yeast that controls the clarity with Conan, its how the brewer crafts the beer.

 

[DurtyChemist]

It's an East coast interpretation of a West coast style (edit) that originated on a farther East coast.

 

[cegan09]

It is mostly not the yeast. I have a strain of conan that I've used in a number of styles, and they all drop out crystal clear, except the NE IPAs. The haze comes from the massive whirlpool and dry hops and the way that interacts with the yeast during fermentation.


I don't have any good pictures, but I made a pale ale, that was basically my IPA grain bill scaled back, and no dry hops, only a boil addition and a bunch of flame out. Same Conan yeast. No finings at all. That beer was crystal clear going into the bottles.

The haze is simply a byproduct of the style in which the goal is a smooth bitterness with huge over the top aroma and flavor.

 

[Redlantern]

Have had old Treehouse, Heady, Sip of sunshine and among others. they drop a little clearer over time, but not completely.

Have brewed some of my own using other than Conan and made hazy beers. Some strains have been medium floccers, so the haze was not entirely dependent on the yeast.

My experience, however limited has taught me these things happen -
1) Older hazy IPA’s do drop clearer over time, although not completely
2) Adding wheat to the grist increases haziness as well as adding oats
3) My own personal brews have been hazier without wheat when I do decent size (5+ oz for 5 gal) longish hop stands at cooler temps (140°f for 40 min)

 

[Ben58]

Polyphenols are the main contributor to the haze. They come from the generous dry hoppings applied to this style.

 

[eric19312]

Grimm and Other Half in my region are recommending gently rolling their cans if they've been sitting to resuspend the hop particles.

http://grimmales.com/rollcan/