Clearing WLP380 from an apple wine?

Paymygasbill77 · May 12, 2011

Hi there.
I had some WLP380 Hefeweizen IV laying around and pitched it in some apple Juice with some sugar. It is done fermenting and tastes great but it's cloudy from the Hefeweizen yeast. How would I go about clearing it up without a filter?

daugenet · May 12, 2011

Cold temp and time. This is one that takes a while to settle out.

Reno_eNVy · May 12, 2011

daugenet said:
Cold temp and time. This is one that takes a while to settle out.

+1

Unless you have a filter that's going to be your solution.

Paymygasbill77 · May 12, 2011

Does the yeast fall out of suspension if the alcohol level gets so high it kills them?

Reno_eNVy · May 12, 2011

Paymygasbill77 said:
Does the yeast fall out of suspension if the alcohol level gets so high it kills them?

I won't really kill them, per se. There is an ecological niche in which yeast can live and part of that has to do with alcohol concentration. When they start reaching the upper level of their range they will slow down and eventually go dormant, in hopes that they can stay alive (but in a torpor of sorts) until conditions possibly become more favorable.

Same thing happens with cold temperatures... they will go dormant and flocculate when pushed to the lower limits of their ecological niche.

Saccharomyces · May 13, 2011

Fining with gelatin or similar helps to drop the yeast out quicker. It's rare these days that I don't fine and/or filter, because it really helps with the finished brew IMO (I don't have fridge space to cold condition for months at a time -- my goal is to get to keg in 2-3 weeks). A pack of Knox gelatin dissolved in 1/2 cup of water just off a boil and added to the fermenter should clear it up in 2-3 days.