Mysterious Floating Particles

[mywifehatesmybeer]

Hi all! First time poster, long time lurker.

So about 2 weeks ago, I brewed a SMaSH-ish Saison-ish... something (Maris Otter, Wakatu hops and Warhead Candies whaaaat). I used Danstar Belle Saison yeast at room-ish temperature (south Florida, so around 75F), and I've been noticing that there are these strange particles that seem to be suspended motionless in the fermenter. Like, eerily motionless. Visually, they look similar in color to the yeast cake, and it seems fermentation is complete. I plan on bottling this weekend, but these things seem so strange. Any clues, dudes?

 

[bobeer]

Got a pic?

Could it be part of the warheads you put in there? I know they have that sour coating on them. Who knows what that stuff is made out of. Assuming you added the warheads in the boil that sour coating could have melted into the wort but now that the beer is cool it could have congealed back and that's what you're seeing. Just a guess! If you dryhopped the warheads then it could be the same sort of issue. It'll probably settle out once you bottle and chill them before you drink them.

 

[mywifehatesmybeer]

I tried to snap a pic before I left for work this morning but I was running suuuuper late, so I will later.

I was thinking it could be something to do with the Warheads' malic acid compound or whatever they use, but I was curious if this phenomenon occurred in fermenters that don't have silly things like Warheads in them. To be honest, the particles look pretty cool like some sort of weird lava lamp and I'm psyched to bottle and taste it.

 

[aprichman]

I tried to snap a pic before I left for work this morning but I was running suuuuper late, so I will later.

I was thinking it could be something to do with the Warheads' malic acid compound or whatever they use, but I was curious if this phenomenon occurred in fermenters that don't have silly things like Warheads in them. To be honest, the particles look pretty cool like some sort of weird lava lamp and I'm psyched to bottle and taste it.

My guess would be the malic acid from the warheads denaturing proteins that are sensitive to pH, a bit like liquid egg whites denaturing into a solid.

 

[dsaavedra]

Does it look like this? It's a little hard to see in the pic (crappy phone camera and my water jug fermenter isn't perfectly clear) but there is a layer about 1/3 of the way down from the surface of the beer of clumpy suspended particles. They look just like yeast rafts or bits of krausen like you said, but they stay suspended. If I nudge the fermenter they kind of fall a little bit but they all seem to stay in a layer. I have no idea what it is so I can't help you there, just wondering if it is the same thing you are experiencing. This beer was just a pale ale (2 row, crystal, carapils, Perle & Cascade hops US05 yeast) that ended up with a low OG.

EDIT: The reason it came out with a low OG is because I ended up with more than my intended 1 gallon of wort. What you see in the picture is the wort that was in excess of 1 gallon. There is a full 1 gallon jug sitting right next to this one that doesn't exhibit the same layer of suspended particles.

 

[mywifehatesmybeer]

Does it look like this? It's a little hard to see in the pic (crappy phone camera and my water jug fermenter isn't perfectly clear) but there is a layer about 1/3 of the way down from the surface of the beer of clumpy suspended particles. They look just like yeast rafts or bits of krausen like you said, but they stay suspended. If I nudge the fermenter they kind of fall a little bit but they all seem to stay in a layer. I have no idea what it is so I can't help you there, just wondering if it is the same thing you are experiencing. This beer was just a pale ale (2 row, crystal, carapils, Perle & Cascade hops US05 yeast) that ended up with a low OG.

Yeah, they sound really similar actually, though mine were mostly near the top. When undisturbed they just stayed in suspension, but with a bit of movement they started floating down slowly. Of course, I wound up bottling it last night and forgot to take a pic, but I made a point to taste it, and it was pretty good, even SWMBO liked it! It even retained a bit of that sourness from the Warheads, though that may have been from a bit of the sediment getting into my tasting glass. Really looking forward to when it's ready!

 

[dsaavedra]

Yeah, they sound really similar actually, though mine were mostly near the top. When undisturbed they just stayed in suspension, but with a bit of movement they started floating down slowly. Of course, I wound up bottling it last night and forgot to take a pic, but I made a point to taste it, and it was pretty good, even SWMBO liked it! It even retained a bit of that sourness from the Warheads, though that may have been from a bit of the sediment getting into my tasting glass. Really looking forward to when it's ready!

Yeah mine stayed just below the surface until I moved the fermenter enough to get them to drop to about 1/3 of the way down. Its strange how they all stay together in one layer. I did use Carapils malt for the firs time in this brew, maybe that had something to do with it (unlikely, since this layer only appeared in the partially filled fermenter). I'm just going to chalk it up to yeast acting weird like they tend to do and bottle like normal

 

[watermelon83]

I get that with naughtyham yeast all the time. Yeast clumps to the fermenter wall during peak fermentation. Some clumps fall back in and somehow remain neutrally bouyant. They just hang there suspended ant various depths, kinda creepy. A good stir followed by a cold crash has always settled them out for me.

 

[dsaavedra]

I get that with naughtyham yeast all the time. Yeast clumps to the fermenter wall during peak fermentation. Some clumps fall back in and somehow remain neutrally bouyant. They just hang there suspended ant various depths, kinda creepy. A good stir followed by a cold crash has always settled them out for me.

Yeah I plan on cold crashing this batch. I figured that the commotion of moving the fermenter into the fridge and then cold crashing for a few days should take care of it.