Filtration of Beer/Cider

Hello all,

quick disclaimer:

I have purchased the Kegland 1Micron Filter and am going to use it.
It's not that there is anything wrong with the standard way of not filtering but I personally would like clear beer and my brother has asked for a cider I'm going to make him to be filtered.
Just a preference
I've made a lager before it mostly came out clear without filtering, I could see through the beer in the glass but I still want to filter.

There are three things I have in mind about filtering very soon.

I have a lager that was cold crashed and currently at about 3°C that I'm about to transfer to a keg to lager out.
I'm wondering if I should filter before or after the lagering stage or would it make a difference?

I'm about to make a turbo cider for my brother and he has explicitly said he would like it filtered
See no reason not to pass straight through the filter from the fermenter into the keg. Easy peasy.

The final one that I'm curious about is an Irish Stout that I am going to make. I want to put this on nitro but that'll be a whole other post when I come to that stage lol
I'm wondering what sort of effect that filtering stout to this degree has on it.

Anybody able to shed some light on their experience with filtering?

aero-spaced-out said:

quick disclaimer:
I appreciate that there may be some responses telling me I don't need to filter and I know I don't...I just want to.

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I have a feeling you will be told not to even though you want to

To save you time later and others asking why do you want to?

Genuinely interested as a few members used to filter wine years ago

Chippy_Tea said:

To save you time later and others asking why do you want to?

Genuinely interested as a few members used to filter wine years ago

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I appreciate the curiosity, happy to oblige in explaining
This is gonna be a somewhat long response so buckle in:

Firstly, I've already bought the filter so feel that it'd be a shame to just have it sat there unused and as a virgin filter. May as well get my moneys worth and in the process learn where this tool can be applied to the benefit of the final product

The lager I made previously was good but the friends I specifically want to share beer with, drink with their eyes too. They seen it in the early stages while it was lagering out and they, not knowing much if anything about the brewing process, immediately refused any of it, even when it had cleared. The idea of a hazy lager or something being in the lager that could make it hazy or the presence of yeast just "seems a bit bleugh" to them. (Genuine quoted answer)
I asked them about it even after having had others who had tried it tell them it was good and got a strange but somewhat understandable response
They hear lager they envision a crisp refreshing drink that should be see through and enjoy with your friends out the back at a bbq or at a picnic/party or at least so large commercial breweries have led the masses to envision when we think beer.
So to not be able to enjoy my homebrew with my mates was kind of a bummer.
They said they'd happily drink something if they "knew it was supposed to look like that" such as some of the hazy IPAs that exist.

Didn't stop me drinking it and sharing it with work ones however.
Even after a quick few questions with work ones got a similar vibe of "well why would it be cloudy, surely it shouldn't be" leading to them saying it would just gross them out
The quick inquisition around my friends and work colleagues about it baffled me but heyo ho.
but that's what lead to the purchase

It seems almost like a swear word in brewing
I am seeing posts saying that you don't need to filter and then getting conflicting information about why or sometimes just no explanation and saying it isn't required
I've seen things saying that it affects mouthful and strips the flavour out of it then other things saying that that's not the case
I anticipate that there will be some changes but to what degree?
Will it be beneficial to some things such as lagers and ciders whilst being detrimental to others such as stouts?
So yes I know that with patience I can get a clear beer, but nothing for me that is openly solid in why I shouldn't

I have a couple family who suffer from IBS that I only reallt see at holidays etc and tbh am a little concerned that the yeast being left in the beer could upset them so would like to look at giving them something they can enjoy too

I also would just like to have a play and experiment with bits of kit lol
I am happy to drink it unfiltered and I have
But also would like to create that sort of "picture perfect" beer that also still tastes good and has good mouthfeel and I feel that I can achieve that crisp light refreshing clear beer through filtering my lager

So I do have reasons for wanting to give it a go and just want opinions from folks who do it

Do you use finings?

Larse said:

Do you use finings?

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I do not

Worth trying, especially with lagers. I find gelatine best. Better results in bottles than kegs, so I'd be interested to hear your experiences with the filter. I'd be belt and braces and use both if the filtration works.

Larse said:

Worth trying, especially with lagers. I find gelatine best. Better results in bottles than kegs, so I'd be interested to hear your experiences with the filter. I'd be belt and braces and use both if the filtration works.

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I don't believe I have any vegan or veggie friends so that would certainly be a good call
Have you had a go at doing it with kegs before?

aero-spaced-out said:

I don't believe I have any vegan or veggie friends so that would certainly be a good call
Have you had a go at doing it with kegs before?

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Yes, but just the liquid stuff you buy, Youngs I think. Not brilliant, but I'm now using powdered, but won't know for a week or two how good that is.

For the veggie/vegans you could plausibly say that its job was to get out of the beer along with the tub, so none present.

Larse said:

Yes, but just the liquid stuff you buy, Youngs I think. Not brilliant, but I'm now using powdered, but won't know for a week or two how good that is.

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I used to use this for wine it was the best i tried and i did try a few -

Chippy_Tea said:

I used to use this for wine it was the best i tried and i did try a few -

View attachment 105098

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Ooo noted thank you. I'll be looking at some wine kits next. I'm also a wine lover
Might start with one of the ones from the range at 20ish quid.

Done a beaverdale 6 bottle cab sav and it was delightful

We make The Range Store Red and Rose regularly but it can be a bit hit and miss finding it in stock.

Just for clarification

This is the current state of the lager after pressure fermenting for 7 days at 15psi set at 22°C. Temp Controller hysterisis is tight with no more than +/-0.2°C variation from my set points.
This is after 2 days of cold crashing down to 2.5°C. Currently have the keg on the bucket blaster with PBW going through it so I can transfer tonight.

Previous attempt to make this when pressure fermented without temp control got it clear but it took time like 6/7 weeks kinda time.

My goal is 4 weeks lagering time and then filter to another keg so I can set and forget carb it

Chippy_Tea said:

We make The Range Store Red and Rose regularly but it can be a bit hit and miss finding it in stock.

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Oh yeah?
Over here in NI it is always packed out on the shelves so I've been considering it for a hit

Done their strawberry and lime cider and although it was fairly hit and miss due to my poor bottle priming, the ones that were properly carbed were lovely.
Hoping the wine is just as good.

Considering working my way through all the Range kits to see how they fair

I’ll catch up in a bit on this thread, but a bit of reassurance. I spent 6 weeks learning about beer filtration on the MSc I’m doing at the moment. It most definitely has a place in production but …. It all depends on what sort of filtration as it’s rarely a single step. It’s certainly not required at home brew scale but there are merits to it depending on the filtration media used - and you need some way of back flushing the filter when it starts to slow the flow.

See the filter and housing in question in the link below:

https://kegland.com.au/products/beer-filtering-system-10inch

https://kegland.com.au/products/washable-filter-1-micron-absolute-reinforced

There is a 50 mesh floating dip tube strainer in my fermenter to keep the big uglies out of the 1micron filter. So at a reaaaaaaal push I'm calling that a 2 stage filtering process lol

@DocAnna

Chippy_Tea said:

I used to use this for wine it was the best i tried and i did try a few -

View attachment 105098

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Kieselsol and gelatine apparently. Kieselsol is egg whites.

aero-spaced-out said:

See the filter and housing in question in the link below:

https://kegland.com.au/products/beer-filtering-system-10inch

https://kegland.com.au/products/washable-filter-1-micron-absolute-reinforced

There is a 50 mesh floating dip tube strainer in my fermenter to keep the big uglies out of the 1micron filter. So at a reaaaaaaal push I'm calling that a 2 stage filtering process lol

@DocAnna

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That looks exactly like the filter I have on my well water. Those filters are thick. Not sure beer would even go through them without a LOT of pressure.

Edit: I see they do their own filters. Clever. Using a standard piece of plumbing kit, adding a couple of duotight fittings and a special filter.

aero-spaced-out said:

I don't believe I have any vegan or veggie friends so that would certainly be a good call
Have you had a go at doing it with kegs before?

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Have a look at this: https://brulosophy.com/2015/01/05/the-gelatin-effect-exbeeriment-results/

It worked really well for me when I only had a couple of kegs. Now I have quite a few so I don’t get to drink the stuff I keg for some weeks after I’ve kegged it so don’t bother any more.

I have tried filtering. I think I used the same 1micron filter you have .
Have you checked the instructions? I believe they say the beer should be uncarbonated for transfer?
What I found was a much paler beer leaving the filter and I think it had less taste, also a fair loss of beer in the filter (about a litre size) with loads of foaming.
I just cold crash now for 2 days, transfer to the keg (with floating dip tube outlet) and force carbonate at 5C for a week.
I then bottle some for friends/family. By the time they pour it there is next to nothing in the bottom of the bottle and being careful when pouring means the drink is very clear.
Pouring from the keg it is just clear anyway.
I'd have thought the lagering you do would settle any sediment? I assume your fermenter has a floating dip tube? Is it too long? Again a floating dip tube in the keg and you'll get clear beer until the last litre and even that is not really cloudy.