Irish Moss

[dresselbrew]

I don't use anything to clarify most of the time. If I remember I will though. Time will clarify most things and slightly cloudy beer doesn't taste better or worse than crystal clear beer. I've had many "clear" beers without any additives by the way. Then again I've had some cloudy ones with additives so that doesn't make sense does it?

[Crut]

Crashing in the fridge, then letting it condition will clear just about anything. If all else fails, try the gelatin.
-Crut

[Bugeater]

Hey, this is a barleywine. You are going to have to let this thing sit for 6-8 months before its ready to drink anyway. That is plenty of time for the junk to settle out. Most BW's are pretty dark anyway, so it will be hard to tell whether it is crystal clear anyway. When folks taste it, the strength and intense flavor will distract folks from noticing clarity anyway. If you bottle, just make sure you don't shake it up when you pour.

Wayne
Bugeater Brewing Company

[acr4]

acr4 - forget any clarifying agents. If you want a clear barleywine you need to let it sit for a few years. Time should take most anything out of suspension. I've found that barleywines are best aged anyways.

I'm sold. No clarification for this beer. This is my wedding brew, the "Ball-and-Chain Barleywine", and I plan on sampling a small portion in September and aging the rest for a year (or two or three...)

For general knowledge, can pectin be used as a gelatin substitute for brewing (and in what proportions)? I'm not too keen on introducing animal proteins/by-products to my tasty tasty beverage. I prefer to eat my steak and drink my grain, not the other way around!

Also, is a "brite tank" just a keg with a shorter drain tube (to allow more clearance at the bottom of the tank for ugly crud to settle)?

Sorry for all the questions. I've been brewing for a while now but this is my first lesson in brewing jargon, and the beginning of my technical brewing education.

[Bugeater]

For general knowledge, can pectin be used as a gelatin substitute for brewing (and in what proportions)? I'm not too keen on introducing animal proteins/by-products to my tasty tasty beverage. I prefer to eat my steak and drink my grain, not the other way around! Smile

Also, is a "brite tank" just a keg with a shorter drain tube (to allow more clearance at the bottom of the tank for ugly crud to settle)?

Pectin will cause a haze in your beer. That's why you don't heat sanitize fruit or fruit juice you plan to add to your beer. There are quite a few other clarifiers you can use. Each works on different things. The more common ones are Irish Moss, Whirlfloc, and Polyclar.

A bright tank is basically any container in which you let your beer sit while it clarifies itself. Some folks cut the dip tube on a keg for this. Cutting the tube will always leave a couple pints of beer in the keg. If you don't cut, you will want to dump out the first half pint or so due to the sediment drawn up. When you stop and figure it out, you lose less drinkable beer if you don't cut.

Wayne
Bugeater Brewing Company

[acr4]

A bright tank is basically any container in which you let your beer sit while it clarifies itself. Some folks cut the dip tube on a keg for this. Cutting the tube will always leave a couple pints of beer in the keg. If you don't cut, you will want to dump out the first half pint or so due to the sediment drawn up. When you stop and figure it out, you lose less drinkable beer if you don't cut.

Okay, so any vessel used post-fermentation for the purpose of allowing particulate matter to fall from suspension is a "brite tank"? I could put my beer in a toilet bowl and flush a few times and that would be a "brite tank"? (No I won't actually try that one!) Wouldn't a centrifugal filter work well too?

[meisterofpuppets]

A bright tank is basically any container in which you let your beer sit while it clarifies itself. Some folks cut the dip tube on a keg for this. Cutting the tube will always leave a couple pints of beer in the keg. If you don't cut, you will want to dump out the first half pint or so due to the sediment drawn up. When you stop and figure it out, you lose less drinkable beer if you don't cut.

Okay, so any vessel used post-fermentation for the purpose of allowing particulate matter to fall from suspension is a "brite tank"? I could put my beer in a toilet bowl and flush a few times and that would be a "brite tank"? (No I won't actually try that one!) Wouldn't a centrifugal filter work well too?

DON'T FILTER HOMEBREW!

Seriously, filtering beer can take a lot of the complex flavor compunds out and take a lot of character out of the beer. Just let it sit.

[Happy Smurf]

DON'T FILTER HOMEBREW!

Seriously, filtering beer can take a lot of the complex flavor compunds out and take a lot of character out of the beer. Just let it sit.

I think Doc might disagree with you on that one, but to each his/her own.