why isnt my extract brewed beer clear?

[king martin]

Hi.


I have been making extract recipes but am struggling to endbup with a clear beer at the end.  I use a keg. And run off 5 or 6 bottles from each batch.  The keg is out in an outbuilding sobis kept cool.


I have been using Irish moss for the last 15m of the boil.


The recipes use just hops an pale dried malt extract that I have ordered from "the homebrew company" online.


Do you think this is because I haven't boiled all of the dried malt, I usually boil just half of it in about 8l of water and add the rest to the fermenter when I top up with cold?


I have cold crashed a couple of the bottles in the fridge and they remain clousy, like a wheat beer. This leads me to believe that this is protien and not yeast?


Its driving me nuts, can you offer a suggestion? I have made countless tinned kit beers and not had a similar problem at all?

[Jim]

Two questions spring to mind.

1. How long did you boil for
2. What yeast did you use

[king martin]

Hi. Thanks.

Boil was for an hour. I only added maybe 1/3 of the malt. Tried 3 different yeasts, 1 was ditches, 1 was safale s33 I think, the other was a us04 I believe...

In the keg I've waited some 5 weeks. All my tinned kits are crystal after that time. Last batch I even used Kwik clear finings with no joy.

All I can think of, is perhaps next batch boil all the DME? But should that do this? I've used spray malt with kits, and beer kit enhancer and never seen a problem like I keep experiencing.

[king martin]

What is the hot break all about? I don't recall seeing the malt foam up on any of the brews? My boil was full rolling, and there is plenty of hop bitterness and flavour. Does the foaming break up the proteins?

My understanding is the Irish moss disperses the proteins. So if I add most the malt after the boil then is this the logical fault in my process?

Any info or advice is greatly welcomed.

[bigvalen]

The moss gives the wee bits of protein something to stick to, rather than breaking it up. It should take up the bottom inch or so of your boiler, if you can chill it fast enough (cold break proteins can cause haze too).