Pilsner Haze - BJCP

General Homebrew Discussion
1

I have 3 different German Pilsners. They are all good, but only two can be entered in competition. One of the three has a very, very slight haze. It was kegged about 10 days ago, and is maybe the best of the three.
The other two are brilliant in the clarity department.

How many points will I lose on an otherwise near perfect German Pils, but is not brilliantly clear? Appearance counts for three points, but the competition will be stiff, and we do not want to give up any points.

I suspect the beer will clear out in time. Unusual that it would take this long. I always use gelatin, and normally within 3 to 4 days the beer has fully cleared.

2

Found the answer, and a point certainly will be deducted…

German-Style Pilsener
Color: Straw to pale
Clarity: Appearance should be clear. Chill haze should not be present
Perceived Malt Aroma & Flavor: A malty sweet aroma and flavor should be present at low levels. Bready or light biscuity attributes may be present.
Perceived Hop Aroma & Flavor: Hop aroma and flavor is moderate and pronounced, derived from late hopping (not dry hopping) with noble-type hops.
Perceived Bitterness: Medium to high
Fermentation Characteristics: Fruity-ester and DMS should not be present. These are well attenuated beers.
Body: Low to medium-low

3

The judges will expect crystal clarity.  I would argue that indirectly, appearance is in fact worth more than 3 points.  The judges will claim to detect yeast flavors or something else off, based on the appearance, even if the off-flavor is not actually present.

I say that, and I myself am a judge, Certified #A0511.  If that should mean anything (maybe it doesn’t).

So I guess I’d lean more towards submitting your two that have crystal clarity, unless you are confident that the haze will disappear in time for the comp.

4

I’d go for the 2 that taste best regardless of haze. The most you’d get docked is a point. I’m not as cynical as Dave, and possibly a bit more experienced judging

5

Your comments are right in line with what the “other” Dave told me.
This will be a good comparison anyway. One beer has treated water, the other one untreated. Both of these are very good, and crystal clear.
The one with the very slight haze is young, super fresh. Really wanted to enter this one, but will not now.
My attempt to hit the Holy Grail of beers…Classic German Pils.

6

Well…I have until Friday night to bottle these beers. Until then, we will wait and see.

7

*DEFINITELY!

8

On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being brilliantly/ crystal clear, this would be a 7.5 or an 8.
Even at room temp, 70 degrees, it is not brilliant.

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9

Three things come to mind:

  1. you may lose a point to clarity and some judges will deduct some in overall impression as well.  Dave’s right that judges often look for something that may have caused the haze and find something to deduct.
  2. a lot of competitions let the beers sit out at room temperature during the flight and it may warm up enough to drop chill haze.
  3. since you’re not bottling until the weekend, why not get it really cold until then, 30-32F.
10

Yes, and it is at 30 F right now. The beer actually tastes very good. Of my 3 Pils, this one has the best flavor, and it is very fresh. But if it does not clear out by Friday evening…or perhaps early Saturday morning, I will enter the other two.

I was late, or all three would have been entered. The categories filled up fast.

11

May I ask which competition you are entering?

12

The Bluebonnet Brewoff. They say this is the largest single site competition in the US. The majority of the entries are from Texas, but a large number are from out of state.
Last year there were winning beers from Florida, Oklahoma, Nevada, and other states.

http://bluebonnetbrewoff.org/

13

Drew and I were scheduled to speak there last year, but things didn’t work out.

14

It was scheduled to be at the DFW Sheraton, but the actual event was canceled, and it was done via YouTube instead.
This year it will be held at the Sheraton. My wife and I will be there the entire weekend. We have friends that will be there with us, coming from Florida, and as far away as South Africa.

A full two day event, with many scheduled activities.

03/18/22 1:00 -8:00 Registration Desk Open

2:00 -7:00 Bluebonnet Big Thirsty Hospitality Suite open

4:00-8:00 Cigar Clinic

5:00-6:00 LSC Committee meeting

6:00-7:00 VIP reception and exotic beer tasting

7:00-8:00 Director’s Welcome and Keynote Speaker

8:00-12:00 Professional Brewers Showcase Tasting

9:00-9:30 Stein Hoisting Competition

03/19/22 9:00 – 12:00 Late Registration

9:00 – 11:00 Technical Talk – Kristen England

11:00–2:00 Paired Luncheon

11:00 –5:00 Pub Crawl!

2:00 – 6:00 Bluebonnet Big Thirsty Hospitality Suite open

2:00 – 6:00 Cigar Clinic

2:00 – 2:45 Brewer’s Round Table

3:00 - 3:45 Technical Talk 1

4:00 - 4:45 Technical Talk 2

4:00 – 6:00 Registration Desk open for awards only arrivals

6:00 – 8:00 Awards and Door Prize Drawing

8:00 – 12:00 Homebrew Club Showcase

8:00 – 9:00 People’s Choice Voting

15

You say you just kegged 10 days ago, is this after extended lagering?  How many beers have you poured from keg?  It’s possible it’s just sediment that will clear after a few pours.  Also, I have had lagers occasionally that have a slight haze, but that when I bottle them for comps,  they drop crystal clear in the bottle.    Also if it’s young and hazy, you could always enter it as a kellerbier.

16

This beer was cold crashed at 32F for 5 days, then transferred to the keg. Lagering for the last 12 days or so at 32, now 30. Gelatin was added at keg time. The one thing that is different, the malt was TexMalt. And this does seem to take longer to clear, for some reason.

17

Update:
Pulled a small sample yesterday, and the beer showed significant improvement. If it continues to progress, we will bottle late this evening or early tomorrow morning, and this will be entered.

This particular beer was brewed specifically for the Bluebonnet (brew date - 12-31-21), as a fresh pale lager stands a better chance vs one that is weeks or months old.

Thanks to Jeffy for suggesting dropping the temp to 30F. We are at 29F now.

18

I’ve heard Charlie Bamforth say that chilling the beer to 29F will increase the speed of clearing the beer dramatically compared to lagering at 34-35F. I haven’t tried it yet, but I plan to in the future.

19

I would agree. Before it was sitting at a balmy 32F. Dropping to 29F really seems to have made a difference. I think this beer will be brilliant by the end of today.
It’s at 5.5% ABV, so it won’t freeze until 28F.

20

Update:
This beer was bottled late yesterday, and dropped off this morning with the other 30 bottles being entered.
On a diamond clarity rating, this would be judged internally flawless. A perfect rating would be flawless.
In a sample glass, at 42 F, the beer looks to be clear.

This is certainly the best of our 3 pilsners, and is the freshest.

Fingers crossed!