Murky beer

[Andy44]

Hi,
I have brewed a marris otter 10L batch and its been in the fermenter for 14 days, its stopped fermenting and i poured a drop this morning and its very murky any ideas why.

Thanks in advance

 

[hoppyscotty]

Did you cold crash? I don't add finings and find a good long cold crash clears the beer, so a cold crash for about 4 days, then package into keg and 2 weeks at fridge temps while its carbonating. This will drop out any solids by the time I come to drink it.

 

[Andy44]

Did you cold crash? I don't add finings and find a good long cold crash clears the beer, so a cold crash for about 4 days, then package into keg and 2 weeks at fridge temps while its carbonating. This will drop out any solids by the time I come to drink it.

Hi hoppyscotty, Thanks i will cold crash today.

 

[Agentgonzo]

It could be a number of things.

Different yeasts ferment at different rates and a host of other factors affect the time it takes to ferment (temperature, pitch rate, aeration etc). It's possible it hadn't finished fermenting after 14 days and the yeast is still in suspension. Did you take gravity readings?

Any agitation/moving of the fermenter can swirl the yeast back into suspension.

Different yeasts flocculate differently. Some drop out easily, some stay in suspension for ages

As mentioned, finings, cold temperatures and time will allow more yeast to drop out.

I would probably take a gravity reading, then do one after 24/48 hours to confirm it's finished. Possibly add some finings carefully once done, taking care to get as little oxygen in as possible, but many (including me) skip this step. Then leave it undisturbed in as cool a place as you can for a few days to a week. Bottle when clear

Or learn to not be worried by haze and accept it for what it is! If it's a hefeweizen or witbier, it should look like that!

 

[Andy44]

It could be a number of things.

Different yeasts ferment at different rates and a host of other factors affect the time it takes to ferment (temperature, pitch rate, aeration etc). It's possible it hadn't finished fermenting after 14 days and the yeast is still in suspension. Did you take gravity readings?

Any agitation/moving of the fermenter can swirl the yeast back into suspension.

Different yeasts flocculate differently. Some drop out easily, some stay in suspension for ages

As mentioned, finings, cold temperatures and time will allow more yeast to drop out.

I would probably take a gravity reading, then do one after 24/48 hours to confirm it's finished. Possibly add some finings carefully once done, taking care to get as little oxygen in as possible, but many (including me) skip this step. Then leave it undisturbed in as cool a place as you can for a few days to a week. Bottle when clear

Or learn to not be worried by haze and accept it for what it is! If it's a hefeweizen or witbier, it should look like that!

Thanks , i normally do kits, this is the 2nd attempt of all grain the 1st one was not as murky as this one but tasted ok. I suppose practice makes perfect.

Thanks for your reply agentgonzo

 

[Agentgonzo]

this is the 2nd attempt of all grain the 1st one was not as murky as this one but tasted ok

If it's all grain, then there is a chance that the murkiness is starch haze. If (for whatever reason) the mash didn't completely convert the starches to sugars, this could lead the starch being present in the final beer and it never clearing. A simple iodine test (google is your friend) can confirm this.

 

[AJA]

You could whack that sample in the fridge and see if it clears.

 

[MashBag]

Really hoppy, "cold crash" that's gonna need a centrifuge

@Andy44 What does it taste like? Probably won't kill you just to have a small "amuse bouche".

 

[Andy44]

Really hoppy "cold crash" that's gonna need a centrifuge

@Andy44 What does it taste like? Probably won't kill you just to have a small "amuse bouche".

Tastes ok happy days

 

[Caramel Ox]

It looks a bit like my first all grain where I never specifically worked out what had gone wrong. That batch never cleared but was all drunk.

 

[MashBag]

I have made a few, that don't clear, but still taste good. Market evidence would suggest they are trendy now. Me. I have a ceramic stein fitted such beers.

 

[jof]

If you want a clear product next time you could investigate:
Irish moss (for traditionalists)
Or protofloc.
You add them 15 minutes before the end of the boil

 

[Clarence]

Really hoppy, "cold crash" that's gonna need a centrifuge

@Andy44 What does it taste like? Probably won't kill you just to have a small "amuse bouche".

Amuse bouche ?
Just because @Andy44 speaks Welsh, it doesn't mean we all do!

 

[MashBag]

If you want a clear product next time you could investigate:
Irish moss (for traditionalists)
Or protofloc.

I know I am going to regret this but here goes.

Are they not both Irish moss, packaged & marketted differently?

 

[AJA]

I know I am going to regret this but here goes.

Are they not both Irish moss, packaged & marketted differently?

Pretty much. Protofloc is pelletised Irish moss, adipic acid and bicarb. More convenient to use but otherwise does exactly the same

 

[Sadfield]

If you normally do kits with no issue, and get clarity issues with all grain, it could be a water issue. Specifically a lack of Calcium.

"Calcium promotes clarity, flavor, and stability in the finished beer. It promotes protein coagulation and yeast flocculation. Calcium additions may be necessary to assure sufficient enzyme activity in the mash if the water is low in calcium."

https://brewingforward.com/wiki/Calcium
If your water source is less than 50mg/l (ppm), then something simple like a teaspoon of Gypsum might be the solution.

 

[Andy44]

If you want a clear product next time you could investigate:
Irish moss (for traditionalists)
Or protofloc.
You add them 15 minutes before the end of the boil

Thanks for the info will give it a go next time

 

[Andy44]

If you normally do kits with no issue, and get clarity issues with all grain, it could be a water issue. Specifically a lack of Calcium.

"Calcium promotes clarity, flavor, and stability in the finished beer. It promotes protein coagulation and yeast flocculation. Calcium additions may be necessary to assure sufficient enzyme activity in the mash if the water is low in calcium."

https://brewingforward.com/wiki/Calcium
If your water source is less than 50mg/l (ppm), then something simple like a teaspoon of Gypsum might be the solution.

Thank you

 

[Madhouse]

By 'poured a drop' do you mean from the tap in your fermenter? Could be that it's got full of trub and that's what you've poured out. Of course that's a rubbish theory if you've opened it up and it all looks like that.

I use protafloc in all my brews.

 

[Agentgonzo]

By 'poured a drop' do you mean from the tap in your fermenter? Could be that it's got full of trub and that's what you've poured out.

That's a very good point. The first drawings from my fermenter via the tap always have trub.