I remove hot break as it forms....

[bobtheUKbrewer2]

.....skimming it off before boil starts, then boil 10 minutes before starting the hop additions. I get startlingly clear beers using only irish hops for the last 20 minutes. Anybody else do this ?

I brew mainly pale coloured SMASH beers.

 

[kev211]

I dont, but I dont think it really matters. The point of using whirlfloc or irish moss is to help the hot break drop out of suspension. So you're kinda doubling up on the clearing. I dont skim the hot break cuz I dont think its worth the time or effort. I actually dont even use irish moss or whirlfloc. Just a small squirt of clarity ferm when I pitch the yeast I it clears up any chill haze I may end up with. Cold crash my beers in a keg and Im good to go. But skimming the foam off shouldnt cause any issues if thats why you're inquiring

 

[kh54s10]

I've never bothered. I use Irish Moss or Super Moss and almost all of my beers are clear. Maybe a little chill haze, but that doesn't bother me.

 

[BassElement]

Have never skimmed, will never skim (unless I read some compelling reason to on this forum...). Real men drink cloudy beer! Cheers!

 

[dpeters]

I skim but I guess I do it just for something to do while it starts to boil and stabilize at a consistent boil. I never thought it made a difference though. I do use Whirlfloc however.

 

[FatDragon]

I skim if there's a ton of hot break or it's particularly nasty, but it's mostly for something to do and probably 2/3 of my brews involve zero skimming. I grind fine and BIAB so I have hazier wort in the kettle than most people. I use no finings, dump the kettle into the fermenter, don't cold crash or secondary. My bottled beer still tends to be pretty clear after a few days in the fridge.

Beer's gonna do what beer's gonna do.

 

[Chesterbelloc]

Skimming is like picking your nose. Do it if you like it but don't wipe it on your sleeve.

 

[JLeuck64]

I used to skim, before I started adding Irish moss and whirl pooling, but since I've started doing that I don't bother with it any longer. I stopped doing that about the same time I invested in a kettle with a drain port so that piece of equipment upgrade probably precipitated the change because I wasn't dumping the boil kettle into the fermentor any longer.

Also I noticed my beers clear quite nicely if I let them do it naturally in the primary fermentor. So I don't transfer to secondary to let them clear any longer... just leave em be in the primary until they clear AND hit terminal gravity.
HTH

 

[bobtheUKbrewer2]

Thanks for all the replies - I started doing it because I thought the brown scum on the top might affect the taste of my beer. As nobody has referred to that I guess I was wrong....

 

[kev211]

Thanks for all the replies - I started doing it because I thought the brown scum on the top might affect the taste of my beer. As nobody has referred to that I guess I was wrong....

Nah, the brown scum is just proteins in the beer coagulating. Once they do that, they fall out of suspension (why you dont have foam the whole time). Or at least they fall out of suspension during the chill, during the boil they may look like egg drop soup

 

[Homercidal]

I skim sometimes if I'm bored or if the kettle is nearly full. The foam can boil over. Otherwise I don't think clarity is enhanced in my experience. Use Whirfloc, flocculating yeast, enough calcium, a good boil, and ferment well. Most of my beers that I want really clear are really clear fairly quickly. Gelatin can be used for even faster clearing.

 

[Cavpilot2000]

I do it (skim the break just before boil), but mainly because I find it helps reduce boilover by removing the material that forms a "cap" on the wort, which accelerates boilover.

 

[nDub]

I skim if there's a ton of hot break or it's particularly nasty, but it's mostly for something to do and probably 2/3 of my brews involve zero skimming. I grind fine and BIAB so I have hazier wort in the kettle than most people. I use no finings, dump the kettle into the fermenter, don't cold crash or secondary. My bottled beer still tends to be pretty clear after a few days in the fridge.

Beer's gonna do what beer's gonna do.

I'm in the same boat. If I bother to cold crash before kegging my cream ale will be crystal clear.

I drink out of a hydroflask shaker pint cup so I don't even see the clarity of the beer...

 

[brewcat]

I only do if I'm headed for a boilover. Otherwise I just wait for it to subside and then add my hop addition.

 

[YeastFeast]

I didn't even know that's what that was. Never touched it.

 

[csurowiec]

Not only do I not skim it, I stir it in. I figure it's proteins from the grain and won't hurt anything, maybe it even has nutrients in it for the yeast (guessing). I also don't use Irish moss. I still make crystal clear beer using the two T's. Time and temperature. I don't rush the beer and I cold crash it before kegging or bottling.

 

[Mikmonken]

Thanks for all the replies - I started doing it because I thought the brown scum on the top might affect the taste of my beer. As nobody has referred to that I guess I was wrong....

Take a listen to the Brulosophy podcast #1 it'll lower your anxiety about the hot and cold breaks and trub making it's way into your FV.