Another Newbie ?

[mark1765]

Ok I have in my opinion been successful in brewing, fermenting, and bottling 3 brews so far. All of the beer has been very tasty, but my last brew which was a German Weizenbier that I filtered with a paint strainer and used a homemade hops spider all in an attempt to have a cleaner, clearer finished product. I left it in the primary for 3 weeks, and when I bottled it I was impressed with the clarity. I kept it covered and at room temperature for 10 days and even through the brown bottle you could tell that it was clear. Problem is when I put it in the refrigerator for a couple days to chill before drinking it becomes cloudy. I know a lot of people add things to their beer to make sure it is clear and I am not opposed to doing that, but just trying to understand why it would be clear before it is chilled and cloudy after. Thanks for any help.

 

[chickypad]

It's chill haze. It won't affect flavor. Letting it condition in the fridge a couple wks usually helps.

preventing chill haze

chill haze

 

[TheHappyHopper]

+1 to chill haze mentioned above. Storing the beers in a cold fridge will clear that up over time.

 

[JimRausch]

Both posts above sound absolutely true. And you can prevent chillhaze by chilling the beer before packaging. It's called coldcrashing. After fermentation is finished you chill it down to anywhere from 32-45* and leave it there for a couple days. The cold haze proteins will settle out. You can speed the process by adding gelatin 24-48 hours after starting the coldcrash process.

 

[okbecker]

Leave in fridge for couple weeks and it will be clear.

 

[unionrdr]

Not even that long. If it's just chill haze & not protein haze, it'll clear up in about 5-7 days or less. I like to give my beers at least 5 days fridge time. This also gives better, longer lasting carbonation. 2 weeks is even better & gives thicker head as well.

 

[mark1765]

Thanks guys. I have been just putting beer in the fridge as needed and not storing it in there. I will now add more to my as needed shelf.

 

[Calder]

I like to give my beers at least 5 days fridge time. This also gives better, longer lasting carbonation. 2 weeks is even better & gives thicker head as well.

Does it? Not sure I fully buy that. Agreed, at cold temperatures, beer can hold more CO2, but if it is at equilibrium in the bottle, I'm not sure it makes any difference what temperature it is at provided you haven't gone past any kind of saturation point.

Earlier this evening I poured myself a Rye Pale ale; 2 weeks in the bottle, 2 hours in the fridge. It was a 22 oz bomber. A nice half inch head at the start, and it kept head right to the finish an hour later, leaving froth in the glass after the beer was gone. Poured a second one about 20 minutes ago, and head is looking great, with plenty of bubbles rising from the bottom.

I've heard and read this same thing many times in the past, and believed it. However, I suspect it is another of the many myths that surround this hobby. To me, the physics says that beer should have higher carbonation at higher temperatures because the gas expands and has no-where else to go except into the liquid (assumes gas and liquid reach equilibrium).

 

[unionrdr]

No, the carbonation won't increase in solution at higher temps. But while the bottled beer is carbonating & conditioning, if temps fluctuate down to cooler ones, then rise, they can give more carbonation. I've had beers stored at room temps in fall through early spring do as you described. It's much like storing bottled beers in a cool basement. The ber will carbonate to an equilibrium at cooler temps. It doesn't know or care if it's in a fridge or other cool spot.
But I've noticed more carbonation that lasts longer at the higher level after 5-7 days fridge time. Even AE beers got thicker head @ 2 weeks in the fridge. The fridge just helps give a higher level of this equilibrium in my observations since I started this.