Hello everyone, I was wondering if I could get some explanations on how I should use gelatin. When should I add it to the carboy as well as how it should be prepared before adding it. Any advice would be great!
I also welcome opinions on gelatin in general, has it worked well for anyone? Would you recommend any different products?
Add it after the fermentation has stopped.
I use a half a 1/4 ounce packet per five gallons. I suspend it in about 3/4 cup of cold water, then heat it to near boiling in the microwave, stopping to stir it every once in a while. If you bring it to a boil, you will get lumps which will be wasted. Then I dilute it with a bit of beer and stir it into the carboy, stirring with a racking cane.
There are people who say not to boil it because it will denature the proteins. That is silly. Gelatin is denatured proteins. It’s prepared by boiling. Further boiling won’t hurt it at all, but it will make lumps that you can’t easily get rid of.
It’s really cool to watch the beer settle out from the top down, hour by hour. A flashlight helps.
How long does it usually take for everything to settle?
Here’s my method for 5 gallons of beer.
Thanks! I’ll give it a shot.
It stems from cooking or, more specifically, baking with gelatin. Boiling reduces the gelatin’s strength and causes a top film to form, which in turn causes lumps in your batter. Lumpy Batter. I think I saw them open up for Deep Purple in 1977.
Gelatin does work very well at lower temps. I have found that it doesn’t work as well at room temperature. YMMV. I thought Lumpy Batter was a Frank Zappa tribute band. 8) :-\ 
As we always bottle…
We will mix a packet of unflavored gelatin into 1 cup water, bring to a gentle boil while constantly stirring until smooth and then dissolve in our priming DME.
Slowly pour it into the bottling tun as the finished ale is siphoned in.
Bottle, cap, wait 2 weeks, enjoy.
This is interesting to me, as I always use gelatin in the keg.
I take it that enough yeast stays in suspension to carbonate the bottles, but the beer drops clear quickly? Is there a lot of sediment in each bottle? Does it stay compacted on the bottom of the bottle better than without finings?
We have never had a problem with our ale or beer properly carbonating. The gelatin helps the bottle lees settle out in a more solid mass; no more than 1/16 - 1/8 inch thick layer at the bottom, clarity is just fine.
Pouring carefully you leave no more than a couple of tablespoons behind with the lees.
Reviving this thread a bit - can one use gelatin in a keg that’s already (or is in the process of being) carbonated?
Yep. As long as it’s cold.
Would you say it’s necessary to hacksaw off a bit of the dip tube, or will it be ok to just suck up a bit? I don’t wanna have gelatin bits in all my pours
Not necessary. You’ll get one beer with sludge, then it’ll be clear pouring.
Cool. Thanks guys!
Are we talking about any special gelatin finings or just plain old unflavoured gelatin packs from the grocery store? I ordered some finings but maybe I should have gone with packets if they work.
Unflavored gelatin from the grocery store works just fine.
I’d already ordered gelatin finings before this thread came up.
Now I have them and there’s no instruction or anything on the package. What is with people selling stuff with no instructions?
So, can anyone suggest to me what I need to do with this? I’m hoping to keg the beer on Thursday in the morning and cool it and then do the finings later and force carb.
Also, good advice on force carbing wouldnt’ hurt either…
Thanks
Heat up about a cup of water in the microwave to 170F or so. Whisk in a 1/2 teaspoon of gelatin. Let it set for a few minutes. Add to the cold beer in the secondary or keg. Wait a few days for it to settle out.
Thanks. Wasn’t sure if this was the same as grocery store gelatin. It seems like a very fine powder but I’ve never bought the store brand either, just JELL-O.
I’ll give it a go.