What to do with the sludge at the bottom of your wort? Hops, we all love them. But when I started the homebrewing process I was told to take great care to avoid getting the hops sludge at the bottom of your wort into the fermentation carboy. A sentiment I have heard several times over the years.
I have found that including the sludge does not harm, and in some cases has actually improved the flavor of my beer, especially those extra hoppy IPAs. Now this may be my bias as I am partial to hoppines, in fact I have yet to meet a hop I don't like.
PCSOBs is curious about your opinion in the matter, post a comment or e-mail us and let us know what you think.
Hey Joe! I posted a link to your blog over on my blog and according to my blog stats a few people have clicked on it!
ReplyDeleteI have no opinion about sludge!
Take Care!
A post from the website forum of Charlottesville Area Masters of Real Ale: "The overall consensus with keeping the trub material out of the fermenter is that it is only most necessary when doing lager style or other very pale beers, as the off-flavors from fusel alcohols can be noticed. Also, it is interesting to note that more off-flavors can result from excess trub in the fermenter if the wort is not adequately aerated prior to fermentation. I have pasted some exerts about this topic from familiar beer books below:"
ReplyDeleteNew Brewing Lager Beer, Noonan (1996) pgs 170-171
“…trub carried into the ferment taints the beer with objectionable flavors and aromas.
Proteinaceous precipitate from the hot and cold breaks forms the greatest part of the trub…yeast react to an excess of simple protein by generating aromatic fusel alcohols. Fusel alcohols are subject to esterization, which produces fruity and solventlike odors that are inappropriate in a lager beer, and to oxidation, forming ‘stale’- tasting aldehydes.
Trub also contains polyphenols, ketones, and sulfur compounds…Polyphenols give astringent-tasting, mouth-puckering flavors. Volatile sulfur compounds produce rotten-egg, skunky, onionlike, rubbery, and burnt-match flavors and odors”
Dave Miller’s Homebrewing Guide, Miller (1995) pg 171
“…trub (hot and cold break material) contains a large proportion of [sterols and unsaturated fatty compounds]…Unfortunately, high trub levels in the wort lead to high levels of fusel alcohols in the finished beer. For this reason, it is important to separate as much of the trub from the wort as possible.”
Dave Miller’s Homebrewing Guide, Miller (1995) pg 181
“…trub leads to off flavors and can actually harm the fermentation in later stages…However, cold trub is not nearly as damaging to beer flavor as is hot trub, and many ale breweries do not bother with it.”
The Complete Joy of Homebrewing, 3rd Edition, Papazian (2003) pg 126
“The presence of trub in the fermenting wort does affect fermentation and flavor, but for a homebrewer its overall significance is slight…Relax. Don’t worry. Have a homebrew.”
How to Brew, 3rd Edition, Palmer (2006) pgs 94-95
“There will be a considerable amount of hot break, cold break and hops in the bottom of the boiling pot after cooling. It is a good idea to remove the hot break (or the break in general) from the wort before fermenting. The hot break consists of various proteins and fatty acids which can cause off-flavors, although a moderate amount of hot break can go unnoticed in most beers. The cold break is not considered to be much of a problem, in fact a small amount of cold break in the fermenter is good because it can provide the yeast with needed nutrients. The hops do not matter at all except that they take up room.
In general however, removal of most of the break, either by careful pouring from the pot or by racking to another fermenter, is necessary to achieve the cleanest tasting beer. If you are trying to make a very pale beer such as Pilsener style lager, the removal of most of the hot and cold break can make a significant difference.”