19 brewingbusiness.co.uk Kettle finings are derived from seaweed, the active constituent being carrageenan, which complexes with undesirable proteins in wort that can lead to fermentation difficulties, short filter runs and off-flavours. Kettle finings are added towards the end of the boil. They have a negligible effect on hot break in the kettle or whirlpool, but react with small protein particles in cooled wort, precipitating them out as much larger particles, to be removed with the sediment. Refined and semi-refined kettle finings are available as powder, granules or tablets. Granular kettle finings such as Protafloc G and Koppakleer granules need only be weighed out, or for small breweries perhaps counted out, and then added to the kettle. Isinglass is a by-product of the swim bladders of various types of tropical fish; the active ingredient is the protein collagen which reacts with suspended solids in beer. Positively charged isinglass is attracted to the negatively charged yeast cell walls and adheres, thereby increasing floc radius. The larger aggregates settle faster, enmeshing the much smaller uncharged protein particles and thus, fining out to leave a clarified final beer. Murphys provide Caskleer and Allkleer blends formulated to give brilliant clarity in cask conditioned beer, Tankleer blends to give compact sediments and Kompactikleer blends to provide the best sediment stability. Isinglass finings are available in ready for use, concentrated and paste forms, where longer shelf life is a concern. Many factors The fining of a beer and the propensity of a beer to form hazes is dependent upon many factors, which you should cater into your analysis of the rates and ultimate success of your finings usage. Firstly, liquor composition, as you require an adequate calcium level to precipitate phosphates, proteins and oxalates. Malt quality, as previously mentioned, is also an important factor as high levels of ß-glucan lead to high wort and beer viscosities. Mash pH and temperature, governed in part by liquor composition, should be tracked. Higher and lower pH or temperatures can cause isinglass finings to alter in shape and thus cease to work or the effectiveness of the copper finings regime to decrease. Another thing to consider is that excess sparging will leach undesirables from the mash, leading to subsequent haze forming potential and fining difficulties. Excess trub (nitrogenous compounds) can also cause problems by coating the yeast, leading to poor fermentations, much reduced final beer stability and finings difficulties. The strain or mix strains of yeast you use should also be taken into consider- ation. Like we said, brewing is an art! A live, creative and fully- integrated scientific process and the actions taken at any particular stage have a direct effect on all subsequent stages. Last but not least, the quality of the finings you choose to use should be taken into consideration. There are a number of different types of auxiliary finings available. One particular type may work better on your beer than another. Furthermore, not all isinglass finings are the same. Just as a brewer carefully chooses his malt or hops, so a manufacturer of isinglass selects blends of raw material in order to meet his own quality and cost criteria. Make sure you seek advice from the Murphys team on the best finings for your brew, as well as the recommended rate of their usage. Still think you could do with learning more? The team at Murphy & Son Ltd is always on hand to answer your questions and even come on site to talk through your brewing process and do optimisations on your behalf. Call on 0115 978 5494 or email techsupport@murphyandson.co.uk and start the conversation on how to improve your brew. This article has been collated by Emily Kerrison and the Murphy & Son Technical Team, a team of qualified brewers with over a hundred years combined experience, whose specialisms cover the whole breath of the brewing process – on hand to support and advise breweries of all shapes and sizes, worldwide. 19_Layout 1 12/02/2018 11:29 Page 1