The Definitive Knock-down, Drag-out Cloudy Beer Debate Thread

I return tomorrow from 2 weeks of drinking real ale in England. The pints have brilliant clarity, do to the flocculant ale yeasts.

If a beer has haze from dry hops, that can be OK, but I do pick up some rough edges from the poly phenols.

Too much yeast in suspension is bad news for my digestive track - my wife can testify to that.

 

I agree, plus an extra yeasty hit can cover over the qualities of the malt and hops, or in part.

But it's a question of taste of course...

 

I do like a Kellerbier, and those don't seem to upset me as much.

 

Well, question of taste again, I prefer clear lager, however I do enjoy weizens and I once had a "kristal" one that wasn't as good as the unfiltered one IMO.

 

Yep, once upon a time. Much the same as flush toilets were once a hangup.

 

Ugh. The next time I drink a cloudy brew I don't think I'll like the metaphors that will come to mind.

 

Haze is not a problems for me. It's all about the nose/flavor/feel, etc... Having said that, a cloud bomb diminshes the visual appeal. Not typically a deal breaker for me.

 

Well if its cloudy from the yeast, you don't want to give too much thought to what the yeast have been up to while the beer is fermenting or finishing off the bottle conditioning.

 

I had three glasses in front of me.

Two contained, respectively, cloudy DDH Congress St. and Father Nelson. Fresh.

The other contained crystal-clear Michelob Ultra. Date unknown.

I drank the DDH CS and FN. I was happy. Very happy.

 

This thread reminded me of how much I enjoy Dirt Wolf.

 

That looks great.

That looks great.

This,


this,


and this are all great.


There seems to be a correlation... They all look amazing to me as well.

 

I prefer cloudy,hazy but i dont enjoy Floaties

 

Clarity became an issue in the 1700s when glassware began to be used. Brewers like John Courage realised that well brewed beers were generally clear despite the massive hopping of the day.In particular with pale ales which predated pils by a couple of hundred years.

 

Those are some good looking "New England" IPAs

 

I think this article was written for you?

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeands...iltered-beer-cloudy-pint-unfined-london-murky

Cheers!

 

Totally get where you're coming from, I think on many days you're right. This day happened to be this past Sunday, and the Father Nelson--while not quite as cloudy as DDH CS I've had in the past--was cloudier than say, HT or SoS. Brewing method, and maybe even bottle by bottle? Don't know.

Can't say it was surprising because it was my first Father Nelson. And delicious it was.

 

Ah good. Even earlier then and a more powerful argument for glassware as a causal factor. Do we have any pointers to that information, etc.?

 

I don't mind a bit of haze, but the solid beers just look ugly. And appearance is an important attribute for me.