Using fining gelatin for wheat beer

Why do you think a Grodziskie 'requires' gelatin? I brewed a Grodziskie last year, I did not use any finings and the beer turned out clear:

 

@billandsuz is the resident expert on using gelatin. I'm sure he will chime in soon.

 

Well, that was my Grodziskie in the foreground. That beer was clear at the point of completing bottle conditioning.

I brewed my Grodziskie based upon a recipe in the Nov./Dec. 2012 Zymurgy. I just re-read that article and to my surprise the recipe did make mention of fining: "16-25 ml Biofine or 1 gram of powdered isinglass".

I am not a fan of fining since I have a concern that they may strip flavor from the beer. It would appear that I just ignored that aspect from the recipe. The best I can say is that I thought my Grodziskie was clear from the 'get go'.

If you desire to add finings to your beer you have options beyond Gelatin as detailed above.

Good luck with your Grodziskie! It is a great beer style IMO.

Cheers!

 

well thanks for the designation. i think using gelatin is very easy, to the point you become an expert the second time around. i'll take the moniker anyway though.

Grodsizkie! good one to brew. nobody can say you didn't hit the target classic.

technique varies a bit but basically the unflavored knox gelatin is cheap. buy a box pf packets from the grocery. use half a package for 5 gallons. the gelatin is supposed to "bloom" in warm water, like 90 or 100 F. there is some debate that you can't use boiling water (jell-o beer) but i have also read that it makes no difference. it is not a bad idea to boil the water, 2 or 3 ounces, and then allow it to cool as it will reduce the oxygen in the water. i

so you bloom the gelatin. then you dump it into the carboy, or keg. gently swirl. the most important thing is to cold crash the beer. in fact, cold crashing any beer before packaging will greatly reduce haze gelatin or otherwise. allow the gelatin to do its work. it falls and pulls haze with it to the bottom, like soap is attracted to dirt or a balloon to your furry head.

the gelatin will settle to the bottom of the vessel in a nice ball of gummy residue. hot water will melt that away when you clean up.

downside- some folks claim that gelatin is too effective. it may strip away some character, aroma in particular. and there is really nothing wrong with a clouded brew. some craft brewers proudly show off their haze in fact. but it is quite satisfying to pour a bright commercial quality beer.

bottom line, if you want bright beer gelatin is a super effective and an easy fining agent for the homebrewer. in terms of cost and ease of use it is typical. gelatin is proven to be very effective and is only surpassed by a few specialty fining agents (i think poly clar is more effective, but it is not something a homebrewer can easily employ).

@mikehartigan , among others can also give some technique.
Cheers.

 

Here's a couple of good videos.

 

Terry Foster of BYO fame advises 1) add hydrated gelatin at the packaging stage and 2) use 1 level tsp in 150 ml water / 5G.

 

Not a consideration for most people, but something to keep in mind if serving your gelatin-fined beer to others: gelatin is not vegetarian friendly. Other fining agents are however.

 

Isinglass. Made from fish bladders.

 

good call.

 

I wonder if anyone has tried Agar Agar? I see no mention on it in the searches except for making petri dish plates.

 

http://www.morebeer.com/products/biofine-clear-clarifier-1-oz.html

Vegan approved. Works very well.

 

Since billandsuz used my name, I'll add my $.02

I dissolve 1 tsp (about 1/2 packet) of Knox gelatin in 2/3 cup of 170F water and dump it into the chilled keg. No stirring, shaking, or any other motion related steps. In two days, I pour about a half pint of a murky something or other, followed by insanely clear beer. It's just that easy! After four days, the beer becomes invisible . I suspect that if I move the keg, it'll need to settle again and I'll lose another half pint. I haven't tried, so I can't confirm that.

 

I have pretty resisted using post fermentation finings, for beer anyway. I haven't had many beers that weren't clear in a reasonable amount of time. But I'm curious... has anyone done any split batch tests to compare, say, gelatin fined beer vs. non-fined, in terms of immediate clarity, longer term clarity, and taste?

 

Have done this. You are correct. Someone thought I poured a milkshake, but then it cleared right up after about a pint.

 

not exactly a split batch, but we have gone back and added gelatin to a beer that we decided wasn't clear enough after kegging it. (it was for a kolsch). Gelatin does work, but each one of the fining agents fines a different cause of haze. Gelatin is for yeast.

 

Below is a description from Northern Brewer for Biofine:

“Biofine Clear is a clarifying agent designed to drop yeast and haze-forming particles out of your beer. Highly effective, Biofine Clear will make beer very bright and clear within a day or two of adding. Add between 1/4 tsp and 2 tbls after fermentation is complete, a day or two before packaging. This is a wide range for dosing, but some beers will require a higher dose than others. It is recommended to start with a small amount and add more if needed. This product is a solution of colloidal silicon dioxide and is vegan.”

As you can read above, it states that Biofine is effective in dropping yeast but also “haze-forming particles” which I assume means haze proteins.

If I recall correctly Ward (@Scumbag81) has experience with Biofine. Ward, what is your opinion on the above description?

Cheers!

 

@JackHorzempa its accurate. For the biofine to be most effective you need to get the beer cold to bring out the haze forming particles, and then they'll drop. For yeast, biofine will work fine at room temp (I've watched my yeast drop like a brick just sitting in front of the fermenter for 5 minutes), but cooling speeds up the process.

If you really want to get haze forming particles out of the beer, polyclar works best or polyclar with biofine.

 

Not side by side but similar beers. Generally a gelatin beer will drop completely clear in 7-10 days and non gelatin takes at least 2 weeks at equally cold fridge temps in a keg. That's been my experience.