I racked my Belgian ale to a secondary yesterday after about a month in the primary. ABV came in around 9%. I forgot to use Irish Moss during the boil, but decided to use gelatin finings when I transferred to a secondary, to clear it up. But it struck me that those finings could take the remaining yeast out of suspension, thus negating their ability to allow for a good bottle conditioning when the time comes. The taste is good, but I now fear the beer will be flat regarless of how long I leave it in the bottles. To compensate I think I may need to get some new yeast in there. Am I worrying over nothing? Thanks for any information you can provide. Best, M
Everything I've read indicates that you would want to add more yeast at bottling if you are using gelatin to clear.
I like this idea. And you could give the secondary a really gently swirl before racking. Not enough to swirl up the sediment really bad, but just enough to get some of the yeast back into suspension. May result in more sediment than you wish in the bottles, but over/under carbed bottles really ruin a good beer. eidt: Actually on second thought I would just rack a small amount of sediment instead of swirling the secondary, then swirl well in your bottling bucket.
You can always get a $2 pack of dry yeast and add it at bottling time if you feel the existing yeast will not bottle condition. Bottle conditioning leaves a bit of sediment so I wouldn't worry too much about clearing it up. For years I have been dumping almost everything from my kettle into the primary then rack to a secondary after 2 weeks and by the time I rack into the bottling bucket the beer is as clear as could be (and I never use Irish Moss or anything else). Just try not to stir up the trub with the racking cane, I use a clip on the cane to hold it up just over the trub.
