Clarity matters, especially in craft beer. We drink and eat with our eyes first and while we have all survived and even enjoyed a can or two of chungus (aka colloid formations) in our time, clear and stable is what we are truly looking for.
As a hop forward craft brewery (and a small family owned one) we really care about reducing waste and getting the most out of the quality produce we use. When you consider that 1kg of hops soaks up about 10ltrs of beer liquid, it’s really important that we don’t lose a heap of that tasty beer juice while also ensuring we don’t leave behind any solids left behind by things like oats or dry hops from the mash or yeasts from the ferment.
Colloidal stability is when the proteins and polyphenols in beer are interacting well and creating a balance of texture, clarity or haze and not chungus. Unstable colloids and yeasts left in your beer, can overtime, result in re-fermentation, volatile flavours and degradation of the beer.
