Cloudy beer once put in fridge!!!!!

bruvabear

Hi could someone please help me , i have started and well finished brewing my first batch of youngs brew larger kit and everying was going fine fermation was complete and trasfered it into a barrel and left it in the shed , beer was lovely all clear amd tasted fine only trouble was it was warm. I transfered the barrel into the fridge and put the fridge onto full cold to help chill the beer quicker. Next day i poured myself a pint to find that the beer had now gone cloudy and seemed to have gone flat!!!! Could some one please advise me of what to do or what happened as i want to do another batch very shortly and try and make it properly this time.. Many thanks

HBO_Staff

This is called a 'chill haze' and is a cloudiness or haze which develops when stored in a fridge or chilled. It doesn't affect all brews, and does not affect the taste, just the appearance. It is something that happens in the beer, and is due to haze-producing proteins and polyphenols (primarily from the malt) suspended in the beer. When the beer is chilled these react and clump into tiny particles which then reflect the light. These particles remain in suspension and make the beer appear hazy.

This can be reduced or go again once the beer is warmed up, or you can try leaving them undisturbed in the fridge for a few weeks which may allow the haze to settle. This is a problem which the breweries put a lot of effort into stopping, but is not possible at a home brewing level. You will find not all brews do it, but it wont affect the taste and is nothing to worry about.

You sometimes notice a difference in taste and carbonation when it is very cold, just letting it warm up a little or not chilling quite so cold may help. Often if wanting to drink your brews cold it is worth considering bottling, as they can be popped into the fridge easily, and may help with carbonation

bruvabear

Thanks for the reply i thpught i was doing something wrong in the process of it as its my first attempt at brewing. I will try again and maybe use the bottles to cool the beer this time round. Also when the first fermation process begins does it matter if i remove the lid a few times to check how its going or by me doing this also effect the process as its open to the air???does it have to be remained sealed until the time is right to begin the second phase???? Thanks again

HBO_Staff

No, it's usual but wont happen with all brews you make. If you like it fizzy, when bottling just add a little extra priming sugar, 2 carbonation drops per 500ml bottle, or a heaped teaspoon of sugar/enhancer (but if you go too mad any excessive pressure has nowhere to escape!). The haze can affect bottled and kegged beer.

When fermenting in the first vessel, you should try and leave it to it and then towards the end check the hydrometer readings for a couple of days. The more you open it, the more chance of it becoming contaminated. That said, often people ferment with a loosely covered vessel, rather than airtight with a bubbler airlock, as it does not have to be airtight in the primary fermentation stage. As long as it is brewed somewhere out of the way, away from draughts and direct sunlight, and nothing gets in to the brew, it should be fine. When using your hydrometer always check it is cleaned first, as if a brew becomes contaminated it cannot be saved and is frustrating

bruvabear

Ok thanks again for your help much appricated have you got any other tips on brewing beer that you have learnt ???

HBO_Staff

There are a few things you pick up, we would recomend a few things;

- use the best ingredients, this will get the best results and still works out cheaply per pint when compared to the pub! The 3kg kits do tend to be better, as they contain more malt extract
- if making the smaller '1 tin' or 1.7kg kits which then need sugars adding to them (usually 1kg of sugar adding) these can be great kits, but do benefit fom being made with a kg of enhancer rather than sugar - it really does improve the results, better body, better head, etc.
- it's personal preference, often bottles just seem to have less problems, especially good for lagers and ciders which are chilled. Once bottled make sure they are left to get warm for a good few days - ideally on a heater tray in cooler conditions - if the secondary fermentation gets off to a good start the brew will properly develop. Then move it somewhere cooler to condition.
- We find pretty much without exception, that leaving any brew to condition for a couple of months improved the taste no end. A brew that doesn't taste great in the first few weeks can often make a massive improvement after a couple of months and will also properly carbonate.
- If bottling your brew, use a 'little bottler' - you wont believe how easy it is to fill bottles, quick, and no mess (or more importantly no spillage!)
- always make sure everything is cleaned with a steriliser, often easier to fill your fermenting vessel, and leave other things to soak inside it, including bottles, it just uses one lot of steriliser and saves doing a bit at a time
- upgrade your yeast - if you discard the yeast with a cheaper kit, try using something like the Danstar range - they drastically reduce the amount of sediment which gets into the brew as it binds together so well it is harder to disturb.
- it helps with the patience of waiting for brews to have one or two brews ahead of you, then you can leave them longer to condition whilst enjoying the oldest one and stops you drinking them too early

That's a bit to think about anyway....