Attenuation? Flocculation?

[OldStyler]

I know I spelled them incorrectly, but can anyone tell me what these things mean, or point me in the right direction.

Rookie...

Thanks!

 

[PantherCity]

http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/homebrew_terms.html

 

[stratslinger]

Attenuation is a measurement of just how much total sugar (in your wort) you yeast is capable of fermenting. Generally speaking, the higher the attenuation, the dryer your beer will be, and the lower the attenuation, the sweeter it'll be.

Floculation is a less exact measurement, and I believe it refers to your yeast's tendency to come out of suspension and form a tightly packed yeast cake at the bottom of your fermenter. Highly floculant yeasts will generally lead to cleaner beers, while less floculant yeasts will tend to be a little more cloudy and probably have more flavor imparted by the yeast itself.

 

[Bensiff]

Attenuation is how much of the sugar is converted based off a theoretical maximum. Such as if a yeast says it will attenuate 70-75% than you can expect it to convert around that much of the sugars into CO2 and alcohol.

Flocculation is the process of yeast cells coming together forming yeast clumps that will settle to the bottom of the fermenter. Highly flocculant yeast makes big clumps and settles rapidly giving a clear beer but can be a problem as they settle so fast you might not get a full fermentation without rousing them some. Low floccing yeast is great for getting good attenuation; however, can take a long time to clear and may need assistance to do so.