Too Much Sediment In Bottles

[mrgrimm101]

So it looks like I got a lot of hop material in my bottles of my latest IPA. When I look from a higher angle, it looks like it's not this thick throughout..just against the walls of the glass. I cold crashed for 4 days, but I must have kicked up a lot of material when I was transferring to my bottling bucket. Here's to hoping that refrigerating for a couple days will make this more compact on the bottom.

These photos were taken this morning after 2 weeks in bottle. I put it in the fridge this and I will try it tonight or tomorrow. The sample tasted great at bottling.

I guess I'll just have to tell anyone who gets a bottle to refrigerate for a couple days before drinking. Once it's properly carbed and conditioned, I'll probably stick a bunch of bottles in the fridge at once to let it settle more.

Please disregard the dirty bottles. Clearly I didn't wipe it down very well after it was cleaned and sanitized.

 

[FVillatoro]

The first time I racked a beer that had a significant amount of hops I got the same result as you, so don't worry - it happen to us.

What I would suggest is that you look into building a hop spider to minimize the amount of hop trub that you get into the fermenter.
And I will also suggest that you (if you use an auto siphon), start racking from the top of the beer, and slowly lower the cane on the side of the fermenter. When you see small particles being pulled from the bottom, slowly lift up until it runs clear.

Happy brewing!

 

[mrgrimm101]

Thanks. I use a Big Mouth Bubbler, and usually the punted bottom is higher than the trub level. However, I dry hopped 4oz in this brew and I think that the trub + dry hop particles that settled after the cold crash were higher than the punted bottom. I will try the transfer from the top next time and lower as the level goes down.

I've been looking into building a hop spider. A friend recommended I just install a whirlpool setup in my keggle instead..but I guess I don't understand how that will serve the same purpose as a hop spider.

 

[Aristotelian]

You can also discretely pour through a strainer into the glass. What they don't see can't hurt them.

 

[mrgrimm101]

You can also discretely pour through a strainer into the glass. What they don't see can't hurt them.

I've always been told that that will oxidize the crap out of a beer and kill the head. However, I suppose it's an IPA so they'll be drinking it fast anyway.

 

[Aristotelian]

I've always been told that that will oxidize the crap out of a beer and kill the head. However, I suppose it's an IPA so they'll be drinking it fast anyway.

You wouldn't want to do that during bottling, but oxidation is a process that takes weeks or months. Straining gunk out of the beer as it goes into the glass is not going to kill anything.

 

[mrgrimm101]

You wouldn't want to do that during bottling, but oxidation is a process that takes weeks or months. Straining gunk out of the beer as it goes into the glass is not going to kill anything.

Good to know, thanks.

 

[unionrdr]

I pour the chilled wort through a dual layer, fine mesh strainer into primary. This not only gets a lot of hop/grain gunk out, but aerates the wort as well. Then topping off to recipe volume with spring water chilled a couple days before brew day to get it down to temp & add more o2. This makes for less trub & yeast settling & compacting on the bottom by bottling day.
Which in turn makes it easier to get more clear beer & less gunk in the bottles on bottling day. The point being to let the beer settle out clear or slightly misty before dry hopping &/or bottling. And using hop socks or a spider in primary to keep the hop debris separated from the beer to prevent all that gunk build up. Then you get less gunk in the bottles...maybe a light dusting on the bottom by fridge time. And you need to fridge them at least 5-7 days to get longer lasting carbonation & head. Also to compact the trub on the bottom to be able to pour out more clear beer.

 

[kh54s10]

I use a 5 gallon paint strainer bag clipped to the lip of my kettle during the boil. It does the same as a hop spider. I just add each hop addition to the bag at the appropriate time.

When I dry hop I use 1 gallon paint strainer bags. One ounce in each bag to allow for expansion. The most I have done so far is 3 ounces, so 3 bags.

I then siphon carefully to keep as much sediment as possible out of the bottling bucket or keg.

I get very little into the bottles.

If you are using a ported fermentation vessel you will need to cold crash to get the sediment below the spigot, or accept that you will have sediment transferred.

 

[Chrisbrewbeers]

I had some that looked exactly like that once and I determined with a powerful flashlight that it was a thin layer only running up the side of bottle above the normal amount of yeast.

 

[mrgrimm101]

I had some that looked exactly like that once and I determined with a powerful flashlight that it was a thin layer only running up the side of bottle above the normal amount of yeast.

Yes, it looks like that is exactly what is going on. I was concerned at first, but after inspecting more bottles, it is definitely not that thick going across, just sitting against the wall of the bottle.