Adding gelatin finings - the no BS way

[kombat]

That's the fear, yes, although I don't have any data to back that up.

 

[Judochop]

Piggybacking on this gelatin question.

I'm on a quest for clearer beer and tried gelatin for the first time today. I have a Helles in secondary that has been 'lagering' in my garage for about 4 weeks. It started to look very clear in the carboy (I could read fine print held against the other side the carboy) but I've seen VERY clear beer in my carboy before... and then been disappointed once it pours from the keg.

So I decided to try gelatin, using the bertusbrewery method. Heated in increments to 155 degrees. Stirred well. Poured directly into carboy. Did not stir after that.

15 minutes later, the previously clear Helles has totally clouded up. Is this expected results? Am I seeing the gelatin coagulating particles that I couldn't see before and now I just wait another few days for it to drop? (Good news. )

Or did I somehow undo all of the positive effects I gained from lagering? *(Bad news. )

 

[geckholm]

So do you guys think that adding gelatin after a dry hop will result in substantially less hop aroma. Maybe the gelatin will bond with the hop oils and cause them to precipitate out?


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My experience is that, yes, it does impact both the aroma and bitterness of the hops. For the most part, I've been OK with that.

 

[McKnuckle]

The warm gelatin drops into the cold beer thanks to gravity, and then - because it's warmer than the beer - begins to rise. It gradually matches the temp of the beer, and then, because it's heavier, it sinks. When it sinks, it carries particulates with it.

15 minutes is too little time. Give it 2-3 days and hopefully you'll see something good.

 

[Judochop]

The warm gelatin drops into the cold beer thanks to gravity, and then - because it's warmer than the beer - begins to rise. It gradually matches the temp of the beer, and then, because it's heavier, it sinks. When it sinks, it carries particulates with it.

15 minutes is too little time. Give it 2-3 days and hopefully you'll see something good.

I wasn't expecting positive results within 15 min, but I guess I wasn't expecting reverse results either. The beer initially appeared very clear, so what did the gelatin do? It hit the bottom, grabbed yeast from what little sediment there was and dragged it back up (to, hopefully, drop it down again a few days later)?

 

[orangemen5]

Piggybacking on this gelatin question.



I'm on a quest for clearer beer and tried gelatin for the first time today. I have a Helles in secondary that has been 'lagering' in my garage for about 4 weeks. It started to look very clear in the carboy (I could read fine print held against the other side the carboy) but I've seen VERY clear beer in my carboy before... and then been disappointed once it pours from the keg.



So I decided to try gelatin, using the bertusbrewery method. Heated in increments to 155 degrees. Stirred well. Poured directly into carboy. Did not stir after that.



15 minutes later, the previously clear Helles has totally clouded up. Is this expected results? Am I seeing the gelatin coagulating particles that I couldn't see before and now I just wait another few days for it to drop? (Good news. )



Or did I somehow undo all of the positive effects I gained from lagering? *(Bad news. )

Same method I use. Sometime I stir it after dumping it in. Sometimes I don't. If the beers cold. In 2-3 days it will clear.

 

[VegasBrew1]

I have found, to rush things along without harming quality, is get the beer down to just above freezing. +.5C in my case. Then immediately add the gelatin mixture, and let sit at that temp for 48 more hours. Results were even better than I'd hoped. This process definitely increased my bottle carbonation time by a significant amount. However, I did achieve carb and there was very little yeast in the bottom of the bottle at serving time.

 

[BaldApe]

I have also just recently started using gelatin finings. Since I brew 11 gallon batches (10 into the kegs) I find it convenient to use half a packet of Knox in each 5 gallon Corny. I have gotten brilliantly clear Special Bitter and Kölsch.

One thing I noticed with the Kölsch but not with the Bitter is that the last glass of beer carried out all of the sediment the gelatin had removed. About one full pint of beer was very cloudy, then the keg kicked.

The odd thing was that there was no gunky sediment in the keg bottom when I rinsed it. Normally they yeast and other sediment forms a moderately dense cake in the keg, this time, it was mostly gone, and rinsed out effortlessly.

Is this usual? Not complaining or worrying, just wondering.