do i need clear wort?

[wilsoa1111]

hi guys, got a real brewing debate question here, do i need clear wort? and even if i do, why and how do i manage it?

kinda been thinking this through as ive been getting by quite alright with my AG batch sparging recirculating the runnings till the big bits stop appearing but i never manage a really clear runoff from start to finish and i tend to just bung the lot into the fermentor cold break and all
(even if i get a load which is rare)- basically for efficency (well it makes it look better if get 18l bottled from a 20l brew with 72% eff if i say 20l into fermentor).

Also the wort in my kettle never wants to settle even with irish moss and being left for 5 mins so its generally cloudy anyway

so just been wondering if its worth me spending some time "fixing this" i mean the BIAB boys brew some mighty fine beer and supposedly cloudy wort clears better with better head and more yeast nutrients???

 

[Mark1964]

a herms gives clear wort as its recirculated and then dropped through the mash bed. You dont need clear wort though to make beer all the crap usually drops out at the end of fermentation :thumb:

 

[pittsy]

When you've boiled your wort do you give it a big stir ( whirl pool ) then leave it to stand for 20 mins then use your wort chiller . This helps by getting the crap to drop out better/quicker and using a wort chiller can reduce chill haze too (smaller proteins clump together making bigger ones which drop out more ) Even though i brew cloudy wheats at first the runnings etc are quite clear ish

 

[Bignige]

You don't need a clear wort for fermentation, indeed limited trub carryover can be beneficial for yeast metabolism (sterol/fatty acid synthesis) and consequently lower dependence on oxygen.

Re-circing over the mash bed is advisable to help remove large particulates but should need no longer than 5 minutes.

If you're using copper finings (carageenan etc) for cold break formation bear in mind that the chemical bonds (with the proteins/polypeptides) won't actually come into play until the temperature drops to less than 80C.

 

[Mark1964]

not being funny but if i was to recirculate over the mash bed for 5 mins it wouldnt be clear. With a herms we recirc for the whole 90 min mash and its crystal clear before the boil

 

[Bignige]

Perhaps you do with a HERMS, us professionals do things differently as you'll no doubt appreciate. :-)

 

[Mark1964]

ha ha ok so if you recirc for 5 mins are you going to get clear wort or do you get clear wort. I tried your method before we went with the herms and we just recirculated with a solar pump over the mash and it was no means clear after 5 mins. Maybe after half an hour yes

 

[Bignige]

It's not meant to be "crystal clear" in my book, just free of some of the larger particulates i.e. grist particles and anything else that might have dropped through the plates. :-)

 

[Mark1964]

agreed then in that case 5 or 10 mins recirc would be enough for that to happen :thumb:

 

[wilsoa1111]

ahh thats what whirlpoolings about, was trying to chill it then whirlpool, makes sense now :thumb: also looks like to get a proper clear stuff out of the boiler might need a hopstopper and a tap- ive just been siphoning out cos im cheap, explains my intermittant issues with chill haze, guess some proteins reprecipitate out sometimes