A few beginner questions about finings

[wylie233]

I recently had my first successful brew, in other words, it tasted decent.
I used these finings

https://www.brewbitz.com/finings-cl...finings-.html?search_query=finings&results=28

and put two tea spoons of each bottle into my 25L fermenter.

1.My beer was still, after 4 weeks conditioning and 7 days primary fermentation, very cloudy. Do I just put more in? How do I get this right?

2. I want to minimise bottle sediment, so try to force out the yeast while still in fermenter. If I over do this, will there not be enough yeast in second fermentation/conditions for co2 production (from sugar)?

3. It seems finings need to be used within a month of purchase, even though I only need to use a fraction of the bottle in one month...how important is this shelf life?

4. Can finings affect taste at all?

Many thanks!

 

[jalc6927]

What kind of beer is it

 

[MagicMatt]

2. I want to minimise bottle sediment, so try to force out the yeast while still in fermenter. If I over do this, will there not be enough yeast in second fermentation/conditions for co2 production (from sugar)?

I think you're misunderstanding what's going on. You can get the beer as clear as you want in the carboy, but if you're bottle conditioning the beer, more yeast is going to be produced inside of the bottle by definition. That's how the CO2 is produced to carbonate the beer in the bottle. There's nothing you can do about that. I've cold crashed a carboy for over a month and still had viable yeast left for bottle conditioning, so it's pretty hard to over-do that aspect. I don't even using finings any more, as cold conditioning gets my beer just as clear.

The best way to get clear beer when bottle conditioning is to cold condition for an extended period (2-4 weeks) in the bottles, then very gently pop and pour into a glass without disturbing the sediment too much, and leave the last swig or two in the bottle with the dregs.

If you want perfectly clear beer from a bottle, you'll need to invest in a kegging system and a bottling wand of some type.

 

[jalc6927]

Also there are many types of finings

Irish moss and whirfloc tablets are the two most popular finings that are added during the boil to help clarify your brew and they do an adequate job.

Some beer is designed to be hazy. IPA, hefeweizen, and some others.


The others are post boil and I have not used them yet, so no opinion either way.

 

[Calder]

I am not familiar with hat stuff. Finings drops to the bottom, and pulls particles with it. You can add another dose if you want to.

Many people use Irish Moss in the boil. I have never figured out if it works or not. Seemed to make no difference of I missed using it. I don't use it any more as my Daughter is allergic to it.

I use gelatin (cheap and can be bought in any supermarket). I use about a teaspoon per 5 gallons and seems to work well for me.

 

[jalc6927]

I am not familiar with hat stuff. Finings drops to the bottom, and pulls particles with it. You can add another dose if you want to.

Many people use Irish Moss in the boil. I have never figured out if it works or not. Seemed to make no difference of I missed using it. I don't use it any more as my Daughter is allergic to it.

I use gelatin (cheap and can be bought in any supermarket). I use about a teaspoon per 5 gallons and seems to work well for me.

Does gelatin require cold crashing? Or will it work at room temps, 70 or so?

 

[Calder]

Does gelatin require cold crashing?

Yes and No.

Gelatin will remove whatever particles are present at whatever temperature you use it at. I don't cold crash, and find it works well for me.

But ....... it will not remove chill haze when used at room temperature. Chill haze is starch proteins that only appear at low temps (appears about 40 F when cooling, and disapears about 50 F when warming). You need to have the chill haze present to remove it with gelatin, which would require cold crashing the beer. Same with any finings you may use, it needs to be cold to remove chill haze.

I don't know why, but I don't seem to get chill haze anymore. I used to get it a lot, but rarely see it any more. Probably something to do with my brewing process. I'm not complaining.

A problem you may find if you try to use Gelatin, is trying to find the right way to use it. I have searched all over to find a definitive description of how it should be used and find everyone seems to use it differently. How I use it (not saying this is right or wrong, but works for me):

- Put a level teaspoon of gelatin in 1 ozs of room temp water.
- Let bloom for 20+ minutes.
- Heat about 4 to 6 ozs of water in microwave to boiling (covered with clingfilm)
- Let cool to about 170 F (160 - 180 F)
- Add 'bloomed' gelatin and mix. Add to beer at least 3 days before bottling.

If dry hopping a beer, I will add gelatin a couple of days before the dry hops. While this will leave hop particles in the beer, gelatin supposedly removes some hop goodness if used after dry hopping.