So why filter?

[homebrewdad]

I periodically see posts of people trying various filters out when they funnel/rack/transfer their beer... and the vast maority of the time, these are accompanied by horror stories about clogged filters and/or clogged funnels, if not stories about spilled beer or oxidation worries.

My question is a simple one - why?

When I brew, I throw my pellet hops directly into the boil. No hop sock. No filter.

Naturally, there are a ton of "floaties" in the wort. Meh, who cares?

I don't scoop the final, solid chunks out of my kettle into the carboy, but I do make it a point to get all of the wort itself.

I'm guessing that people go to all of this filter trouble for the purpose of getting clearer beer... but so far, my beers have been extremely clear. I do let them sit for a while before I rack (I'm not a guy who pulls multiple gravity readings... I figure that this process is going to take a while), and I end up with nice, hard yeast cakes that politely stay behind when I rack the beer (even if I bump them with my autosiphon).

Am I missing something? Can I improve my beer with filtering?

 

[gr8shandini]

I generally strain (not filter) the wort coming out of my kettle partially to get rid of some hop sludge and break material, but mostly to help aerate it before pitching the yeast. It's a personal preference with no compelling reasons to do it or not to.

However, the only other point I would consider attempting any sort of filtering is when racking to a keg to remove yeast. I haven't done it yet since cold crashing and using gelatin have been working just fine (no pun intended) for me.

 

[Jayhem]

Other than to keep the hot/cold break in the kettle from getting in the fermenter (which I don't really believe matters much anyway) I don't filter mine.

If you want clear beer, use a highly flocculant yeast strain, cold crash and let the beer sit for a day undisturbed after moving the fermenter before racking to secondary or bottling bucket and the beer will be plenty clear. Clarity is over-rated anyway. Cloudy beers are more healthy, loaded with B-vitamins and polyphenols from the hops.

 

[spokaniac]

I agree, unless doing something with a lot of floaties in the boil, (like the blue clone we just did) it all settles out well enough in the fermenter. I haven't done that many batches, but it seems like more work and risk than it would be worth, at least for me. Then again I don't mind a little cloudiness in a beer as long as it tastes good.

 

[jgerard]

Why? Good question =)

 

[homebrewdad]

Speaking of floaties, I read some information about how the hot break is bad, hurts the beer, etc... but I don't see that mentioned here on the forums much, if ever.

I just figure this is part of what will become the trub, and ignore it. If I'm doing this wrong, let me know - I seek to improve my beer wherever possible.

 

[strambo]

I just have my 7yo daughter hold the strainer as I pour my wort into the bucket. I use whole leaf hops, no bag, so I don't want them in the fermenter 'cause of the mess. Helps it aerate also as a side effect.