Chill haze or "chill haze"?

[guldalian]

Real chill haze, as I understand it, is permanent. All of my beers however, go through a period of haziness right after I put em in the fridge, then they get crystal clear after a week or 2.
Does this happen to anyone else?
Is it avoidable?
Would cold crashing the fermentor help?


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[masskrug]

Cold crashing will help, but I still get haze when I pop them in the fridge. In a couple of days the yeast has dropped out and they are crystal clear.

 

[Beernik]

There is a protein haze that you can get whether your beer is warm or cold. That haze is harder to get rid of than chill haze.

When the beer is cold, the proteins coagulate and can flock out over time or be cold filtered out.

If your beer is clearing up after a week, it's just as likely to be yeast settling and anything else.

 

[guldalian]

The yeast is a theory, but the beer starts out clear when it's warm, at the end of conditioning, then just becomes hazy when it cools. Then clears again.


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[Beernik]

If you are bottling, you get another yeast bloom during bottle carbing. I find that most of my bottles are carbed in a week but stay yeasty for another week or two, depending on the yeast's ability to flocc. Of course, if they are looking clear in the bottle, it's probably not that.

If you are kegging and it's only hazy when cold, then it's definitly chill haze and it's settling out during cold storage.

You can combat it with Irish moss in the boil or gelatin and cold crashing.

 

[guldalian]

Yes I do bottle and use whirfloc. The beer is clear going in the fermentor, at bottling and after carbing. Just clouds up when it goes in the fridge then clears up again. I guess I'll try cold crashing.


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[boydster]

Real chill haze, as I understand it, is permanent. All of my beers however, go through a period of haziness right after I put em in the fridge, then they get crystal clear after a week or 2.
Does this happen to anyone else?
Is it avoidable?
Would cold crashing the fermentor help?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

Chill haze isn't permanent. Starch haze is, but chill haze is from proteins that were in suspension at room temperature coagulating and falling out of suspension at fridge temps. Normally, a few days to a week in the fridge will take care of it, so your scenario sounds completely normal.

Cold crashing in the fermenter will help, since it will encourage the chill haze for form and drop out before you bottle.

 

[skeaterbait]

I thought I understood chill haze but after reading this I guess I don't. My beers typically do clear in the fridge after a few days, they are nice and clear in the bottle. But I get a haze when I pour them in a glass, that's what I thought a chill haze was.

I am guessing this is incorrect?

 

[Beernik]

Wait... Are you saying the cold bottles appear to be clear but when, poured the beer is cloudy?

If it's chill haze, both should be hazy.

That only means you need to work on your pouring technique. If you pour too aggressively or pour too much, you disturb the yeast and sediment in the bottom of the bottle that settled out.

After time that yeast-sediment layer compacts and gets harder to pour out.

 

[FarmerTed]

Clarity Ferm does a great job on chill haze.

 

[skeaterbait]

Wait... Are you saying the cold bottles appear to be clear but when, poured the beer is cloudy?

If it's chill haze, both should be hazy.

That only means you need to work on your pouring technique. If you pour too aggressively or pour too much, you disturb the yeast and sediment in the bottom of the bottle that settled out.

After time that yeast-sediment layer compacts and gets harder to pour out.

I get what you are saying and certainly understand, however, not sure I fully agree. I am 50 years old and truth be told have probably poured more than my fair share of beers. I don't get this issue with any commercial beers, even after a car ride home to shake up the yeast.