Cold Crash Substitute?

[whovous]

I think the answer to this one should be obvious, but want to be sure.

I am new to kegging (second batch kicked last night) and even newer to the Clear Beer float that draws the beer from the top rather than the bottom of the keg. I make only APAs and IPAs and am searching for that mythical peak of freshness. I am also a bit over-obsessed with clear beer.

So, it occurs to me that with the Clear Beer float I can simply skip the cold crash step. Once I reach FG in the fermenter, I can just transfer to the keg and chill to around 35F whilst I carb. Whatever remains in suspension at transfer can drop to the bottom of the keg during the carb up just as easily as it previously dropped to the bottom of the fermenter and I can take 2-3 days off of my total brewing time.

Like I said, this seems obvious. Am I missing something?

 

[kh54s10]

I've never worried about getting clear beer. I have also never cold crashed a beer. I use Irish Moss in the boil. When I keg, drawing from the bottom, most often after a couple of pints drawing off the trub, the beer is pretty clear on it's own. I may look into that Clear Beer Float at some point.

 

[Keith81]

I don't keg yet so take this with a grain of salt. Since you aren't leaving the yeast behind in the fermenter then would it end up in the keg. Without the Clear Beer float the first pint or so would be cloudy. It seems to me that with the float your last pint or so would be cloudy unless it prevents you from emptying the keg.

 

[mongoose33]

If part of cold crashing is to clear the beer, then yes, you should crash it.

However, does it have to be done in the fermenter? Not necessarily, esp. w/ that Clear Float.

I often add finings to my beer in the fermenter as it passes 50 degrees on the way down to 32. The finings aid in clearing the beer as they help haze-causing elements to drop out of solution. Then I rack the clear beer to a keg. This keeps down the sediment to a minimum.

In your case, drawing the beer from the top not the bottom, any sediment will not be drawn into the lines until the very end.

 

[whovous]

I often add finings to my beer in the fermenter as it passes 50 degrees on the way down to 32. The finings aid in clearing the beer as they help haze-causing elements to drop out of solution. Then I rack the clear beer to a keg. This keeps down the sediment to a minimum.

My wort is likely to be around 68F when fermentation completes. Will it do any good for me to add gelatin immediately prior to transferring at that temp?

 

[Dcpcooks]

You have the ability to let the beer clear in your fermentor. That requires only patience. You can also rack off clear beer with a bit of patience. ( I’m assuming your using carboys or buckets)

You can use moss or whirflock in the kettle, fine with gelatin, cold crash, filter, use the float or a combo of all of the above.

I have 12 kegs. To outfit those kegs with this system is the same cost of buying another conical fermentor. Your cost and mileage will vary.

Personally I much prefer the benefits that a conical offers. Trub dumping, yeast harvesting cold crashing and O2 free transfers outweigh the benefit of this product IMHO.

After a transfer I drop cold break, after primary I harvest yeast. At FG I hook up a co2 supply and crash to 32 degrees then transfer to the keg in a closed o2 free system and carb.

The only benefit I see with this product is dry hopping and possibly fermenting in the keg. Those are done to minimize problematic oxidation which can be solved with a closed system fermentation and transfer that a conical offers. That closed system transfer is your best bet to capturing and maintaining the elusive hop aroma you are searching for imo.

It’s your money and I hope the product works well for you. I’m just playing devils advocate. Cheers!

 

[Dcpcooks]

If part of cold crashing is to clear the beer, then yes, you should crash it.

However, does it have to be done in the fermenter? Not necessarily, esp. w/ that Clear Float.

I often add finings to my beer in the fermenter as it passes 50 degrees on the way down to 32. The finings aid in clearing the beer as they help haze-causing elements to drop out of solution. Then I rack the clear beer to a keg. This keeps down the sediment to a minimum.

In your case, drawing the beer from the top not the bottom, any sediment will not be drawn into the lines until the very end.

Ahhh but the last glass or two is always the best beer isn’t it?

 

[whovous]

Ahhh but the last glass or two is always the best beer isn’t it?

No, the terror with a fresh hopped IPA is that it will start to lose aroma and flavor around the same time it reaches final gravity!

You have the ability to let the beer clear in your fermentor. That requires only patience. You can also rack off clear beer with a bit of patience. ( I’m assuming your using carboys or buckets)

You can use moss or whirflock in the kettle, fine with gelatin, cold crash, filter, use the float or a combo of all of the above.

I have 12 kegs. To outfit those kegs with this system is the same cost of buying another conical fermentor. Your cost and mileage will vary.

Personally I much prefer the benefits that a conical offers. Trub dumping, yeast harvesting cold crashing and O2 free transfers outweigh the benefit of this product IMHO.

After a transfer I drop cold break, after primary I harvest yeast. At FG I hook up a co2 supply and crash to 32 degrees then transfer to the keg in a closed o2 free system and carb.

The only benefit I see with this product is dry hopping and possibly fermenting in the keg. Those are done to minimize problematic oxidation which can be solved with a closed system fermentation and transfer that a conical offers. That closed system transfer is your best bet to capturing and maintaining the elusive hop aroma you are searching for imo.

It’s your money and I hope the product works well for you. I’m just playing devils advocate. Cheers!

I think you are playing devil's advocate to a question that was never asked! I already have the Clear Beer float and I only tap one keg at a time, so cost-benefit questions are no longer questions. The money has been spent. I did not mention it because I did not think it important to my question, but I also add Whirlflock with five minutes in the boil, and I also ferment in a Catalyst conical and dump the trub more than once, AND I usually use a Bouncer inline filter when I can remember where I hid it.

Point is, I know there are lots of things I can try to clear my beer, and I know that many people think clear beer just doesn't matter. It matters to me, and my question is this: If I am using a Clear Beer float in my keg, is there any reason not to cold crash in the keg rather than in the fermenter?

 

[parrothead64]

My wort is likely to be around 68F when fermentation completes. Will it do any good for me to add gelatin immediately prior to transferring at that temp?

No, you need to get to below at least 50F and leave it for 24 hours

 

[Dcpcooks]

Clear beers matter to me with regard to style but I don’t get crazy about clarity.

I don’t filter. I did it years ago and gave it away after I tasted the beers and noticed how much flavor and aroma were stripped out by the filter. I definitely wouldn’t add gelatin and send it to my keg. I don’t want that in the bottom of my kegs releasing flavors back into the beer over time.

The only reason to cold crash in the fermentor is that you leave the trub behind and not move it to your keg. This float may limit the trub you pull but not the presence of the trub. That may be enough for you or irrelevant entirely. You will still see yeast settle over time if your not filtering it out.

You’ll have to let us know if the last glass pours as clean as the first and you if have captured your elusive aroma. I do hope it works for you.

 

[whovous]

OK, gelatin is definitely not going to be a part of this experiment. Right now, I am thinking about dry-hopping about two days before transfer to the keg through a Bouncer filter, and then cold crashing in the keg. Some hop debris likely to get past the filter, but a good cold crash whilst carbing will, I hope, keep it far away from my Clear Beer float. I pitched the yeast yesterday, so I probably have a little under two weeks to change my mind.

 

[mongoose33]

Ahhh but the last glass or two is always the best beer isn’t it?

Or in my case the first glass or two.

I've been playing with spunding, which is transferring fermenting beer to a keg w/ about 5 points remaining and allowing the finish to self-carbonate the beer. Sort of like bottle conditioning.

Anyway, that results in the yeast crashing to the bottom of the keg, of course. I ran off the first glass or two in order to clear that, but I still get the occasional spurt of yeast through there. Had a glass last night, got that little jet of yeast right away, so I poured it out then finished refilling.