Cloudy first brew

[Kyle90]

My first brew (Mexican cerveza) had been in my fermenter now for 8 days and as my fermenter (coopers DIY kit) is see through I can see that my brew looks very cloudy an not like the beer you get in a pub that I've saw some people on YouTube making (mainly Craig from craigtube). I was wondering if the cloudiness will go away through time or have I done something wrong?

Kyle

 

[basilchef]

yeah let it sit for awhile. there are other ways of making it clear up too. Like Irish moss (during boil) or prob a better solution would be gelatin. but there is debate on weather it knocks too much yeast out of suspension to bottle with. read into it and decide.

 

[SledgeH]

Your beer is all of 8 days old. The stuff at the pub is months old. You can't rush it. Plus cloudiness isn't a bad thing either. But time will do wonders.

 

[TopherM]

2-3 weeks at fridge temps and the beer will clear.

 

[unionrdr]

Mine stay in primary for an average of 3 weeks, sometimes more depending on gravity &/or how dark it is. I leave it in there till it's clear,or slightly misty,then bottle. In the first 3-7 days in bottles they usually clear up. When conditioned for an average of 4 weeks at room temp,they go into the fridge for 2 weeks. It gives a chance for any chill haze to clear,& get the co2 well into solution for thicker head & longer lasting carbonation.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

My first brew (Mexican cerveza) had been in my fermenter now for 8 days and as my fermenter (coopers DIY kit) is see through I can see that my brew looks very cloudy an not like the beer you get in a pub that I've saw some people on YouTube making (mainly Craig from craigtube). I was wondering if the cloudiness will go away through time or have I done something wrong?

Kyle

Give it another week, or better yet two in the fermenter and it should be pretty clear at bottling time. Then, after a few weeks in bottles and a couple days in the fridge, you'll have a clear beer.

 

[Maddoghoek]

At 8 days you will still have a ton of yeast in suspension. Give it more time and a good cold crash a few days before bottling and it should clear up nicely.
I'm lazy and keep mine in primary at least a month, then crash it in my basement for 3/2 days before bottling.

 

[Kyle90]

Thanks for the help fellow brewers! So as a very vague rule of thumb, primary for about 3 weeks from the start, in the bottles for two weeks and 1 in the fridge? 3,2,1? Another question I have is because I only have 1 fermenter and enough bottles to take 23l I can only brew one at a time so I have to wait until my mexican cerveza is in the bottles before starting again, so if I started another brew while the first is in ye bottle and I haven't drank them by the time bottling comes around can I just keep the second one in the fermenter for as long as it takes for me to drink the first one or is there an easier way of storing beer between fermenting and bottling? Sorry for the noob questions in advance.

 

[jmprdood]

Get more bottles so you can develop a pipeline

 

[unionrdr]

That's why some use a secondary,just to open up the FV for another batch. But bottle condition them for more than 2 weeks. More like 3-4 for an average gravity ale. And 2 weeks fridge time gives better quality of head & carbonation on average.

 

[SledgeH]

Yes, you can leave it in for longer if you need. But more bottles would be a better choice.

 

[solbes]

Racking to secondary is a very effective way of clearing beer. Especially if the beer had the better part of 2.5-3 weeks in primary. You'd be surprised at how much yeast falls out into the bottom of the carboy after only 12 hours post-racking.

Another technique I use is to cool primary to 35 degrees (cold crash), add gelatin thats been hydrated and dissolved, and rack to bottling after 4 or 5 days at 35 degrees. You need a large enough fridge for this obviously.

As for the pipeline conundrum, you will obviously need more bottles (so go buy some beer!). And you will likely want a 5 gallon carboy (glass or plastic better bottle). More bottles and a secondary fermenter will give you more brewing flexibility.

 

[unionrdr]

Yeah. I've got enough bottles for 5 or 6 batches ready to go cleaned & stored in covered 12 pack boxes from ceaft brews I bought for the beer & bottles. The Lienenkugel's boxes have separators as well.

 

[grimzella]

At 8 days you will still have a ton of yeast in suspension. Give it more time and a good cold crash a few days before bottling and it should clear up nicely.
I'm lazy and keep mine in primary at least a month, then crash it in my basement for 3/2 days before bottling.

rgr the LaZy.. i have two still in primary.. Caribou Slobber.. 4 weeks.. and BB Summer Ale 3 weeks. maybe in a few more weeks.. lol

 

[billl]

Just as a point of clarification - we should differentiate between cloudy beer in a fermenter and cloudy beer after chilling. If you have cloudy beer in the fermenter, you just need to let it sit longer and it will settle out. The beer should be pretty clear by the time you bottle or keg it.

Beer that is clear when you bottle but cloudy when cold has "chill haze". That doesn't impact flavor, but it also doesn't go away just by letting it sit in the fridge for a week. You can minimize/eliminate chill haze with irish moss in the boil or other clarifiers as well as by cooling the wort rapidly after boiling.

 

[unionrdr]

Most of my beers that get chill haze have it settle out by the 3rd or 4th day. So it usually isn't permanent. But my last one was. Weird for me. Could've been not getting to a decent boil. Chilled fast enough in BK...

 

[Kyle90]

Thanks again. So once a beer is in a carboye how long can it stay there before bottling? Might have to settle for more plastic bottles because my funds are limited waiting is the hardest part!

 

[unionrdr]

If it's a hoppy beer,you don't want to leave it in there more than a couple weeks. Otherwise,some have left big beers in one up to a year. But after a few months,more yeast may need to be added to carbonate.

 

[Kyle90]

I'm just using malt extract kits so I'm not sure how long I could keep them in a carbuoy for. Would just need it to be a while until I finish of ye beer in ye bottles

 

[jaybrown]

I'm having the same problem. The first lager batch I did 8 days was clear bottled and sitting till next sunday then it's going in the fridge. Second batch is a pilsner and cloudy after 8 days. I bottled 3 beers and stopped and found this forum. Would it go clear in the bottle if sat for 3 weeks? Also it smelt skunky but I think that is because it's not done yet?

 

[heckler73]

Beer should be in a bucket or carboy for at least three weeks before bottling.

my mantra: 1 week in the bucket, 2 weeks in the secondary (glass carboy) and then 3 weeks in a sealed bottle before even tasting one.

if you're trying to make a lager, then it's even longer. You might want to read up on lagering, and then make an ale.

 

[jaybrown]

Won't be making any ale as of now but I don't have a carboy so I'm just gonna leave in bucket for another week and see what happens. Thanks guys for the help.

 

[shortyz]

yeah let it sit for awhile. there are other ways of making it clear up too. Like Irish moss (during boil) or prob a better solution would be gelatin. but there is debate on weather it knocks too much yeast out of suspension to bottle with. read into it and decide.

god damit NO. i have done the exact same brew without gelatin and a cold crash and one with. carbonation was exactly the same.

Now of course i admit diff yeasts can do different thing but this was with a standard ale yeast.

 

[jaybrown]

I stired the bucket and today it looks clear but still smells skunky?