Cloudy/Murky IPA

[BeerBeginnerBrewer]

First time brewer and first time posting here:

1. I used Brewers best home breeding kit for their IPA and I let it ferment over about 5 days. I measured OG and FG, FG was at the recommended range so I decided to bottle it.

During my bottling process I siphoned from fermenter to bottling bucket... twice (due to some misunderstanding in the directions)

After doing this my beer is very cloudy/murky.

Can someone explain why this is so? Will it clear up after sitting conditioning in bottles for 2 weeks?

2. During my measurement of the FG, I used a test tube to record my measurement, without even thinking I took a sip and after sipping dumped it back into my fermenter. Rookie mistake, i understand but is this something I should worry about?

Thanks for the help with a new brewer

 

[Moriaty32]

You will likely have an IPA that has a number of flavors you weren’t expecting given that you fermented for a short period of time. While all of the maltose may have converted to alcohol and your gravity reading was stable your beer needs much longer to clean up off flavors and let yeast settle to the bottom out of suspension.

For new brewers, I would recommend three weeks between pitching yeast and bottling. Yes, you don’t want to drink out of a sample and return it to the fermenter as you are risking infection. I wouldn’t overly weigh that factor when you taste what you have though as the premature fermentation will primarily be the culprit.

Your cloudy sample could have been caused by:

Incomplete fermentation with heavy amounts of yeast still in suspension.

Unintentionally siphoning the trub and yeast from the bottom of the primary.

Infection (unlikely in this case)

The beer will slowly condition while it is in the bottle given that there is a very small fermentation going on with the priming sugar you put in there (you did that part right?). It will likely have a noticeable haze to it and it is unlikely that all the undesirable flavors will clean up completely but it will improve once it sits for two weeks warm in the bottle and then it’ll smooth out the longer it sits cold in a fridge.

Good luck and keep at it!

 

[BeerBeginnerBrewer]

Awesome, I appreciate the quick response!

 

[Braufessor]

+1 to the above:

Definitely give your beer more time before trying to bottle it. Cloudiness was likely you just getting yeast and trub in it while siphoning and moving it.

Also, moving it back and forth multiple times is probably not going to do it any favors - any moving of beer will expose it to oxygen. Move it as few times as possible and move it gently (no splashing, etc.).

You will have beer when it is all said and done and some experience to learn from.