Skipping the boil

[Piotrsko]

There's a concept called dry hopping where you add hops after the yeast more or less, but I add mine when the wort is at 150f and time that. Supposedly less bitterness or alpha acids since my lhbs guru said bitter happens above 155f and 150f for 4 minutes kills most bacteria

 

[Mrcloc]

I dry hopped a few beers when I started. I dry hopped with Saaz, and the second time with Vic Secret. That turned out really nice!

 

[Hawkbox]

You can add hops at almost any point and get a change in outcome. Boiling definitely gives you more bitterness vs dry hopping, but again that's entirely preference and what you enjoy.
I personally throw dry hops in at the same time I pitch the yeast so I don't have to open the fermenter multiple times.

 

[Mark Farrall]

There's a concept called dry hopping where you add hops after the yeast more or less, but I add mine when the wort is at 150f and time that. Supposedly less bitterness or alpha acids since my lhbs guru said bitter happens above 155f and 150f for 4 minutes kills most bacteria

Sort of right. Bitter happens at any temperature, it just that is starts slowing down a lot at those temps. You can get alpha acid isomerisation at room temperature, though you may not want to wait long enough for it to make a difference. Nice idea about pasteurising the hops though.

 

[NorthWest Small Batch Brewing]

Nice thread. I have a hibiscus pale ale fermenting atm and already have a super chocolate stout planned after that, but I was already thinking of doing a raw grapefruit pale ale to experiment with no boil. As I use an all in one system indoors, no boil would be a huge advantage. I was going to just boil the hops and make a hop tea the day before and then add after the mash. My understanding as you all pointed out is no boil will mean a hazy beer, which I am fine with, and a thicker mouth feel as the proteins don't coagulate out. I hear you get a more malt forward beer with no boil. It will be a fun experiment anyway.

 

[Mrcloc]

So this beer has aged for two months now. Age has transformed it tremendously! I'm not going to say it's the perfect blend of malt, but it's absolutely delicious. When it was young, it was quite pungent. I've never had a beer age this well, even my lagers I tried. I love how it makes a thick brown head now, and it has no metallic taste at all. Sometimes these pop and lift a lot of what has settled out, but the taste isn't affected by this. This recipe has definitely taught me a lot.

The hops bill on this is excellent for my taste. My next brew will be soon, and it's going to be a quick lager with very pale colour, and the exact same process and hops bill as this brown recipe.

 

[Mrcloc]

I would like to report that I tried a pure Pilsner with the same boil method, and it did work, but it's still not clear (2 or 3 months now). I don't think the boil was the cause though, rather that I used too much grain, and I didn't cold-crash properly. It's clearing very slowly, but I've almost finished it. Unfortunately is hazes a bit when it cools (I don't have patience to lager this one, which is what it needs).

I have learnt a few things though, one being that the metallic taste came from the biscuit malt. It must have been a fairly old batch when I bought it. The other very important thing I learnt is about attenuation, which is so important it's just ridiculous.

I'll build on these recipes (which I would say are related). Next I'll use much less grain, add a little gold with some 12L crystal, keep to the exact same hops, but add a little more Hallertau Hercules for that extra bite, and use Safale US-05, which I think will give a crisper result (which is what I'm looking for). I might even be adventurous and add in some Vic Secret for a little passion-fruit aroma. I'm considering boiling the whole batch this time because I've found the cause of the metallic taste.

 

[GFHomebrew]

I would like to report that I tried a pure Pilsner with the same boil method, and it did work, but it's still not clear (2 or 3 months now). I don't think the boil was the cause though, rather that I used too much grain, and I didn't cold-crash properly. It's clearing very slowly, but I've almost finished it. Unfortunately is hazes a bit when it cools (I don't have patience to lager this one, which is what it needs).

I have learnt a few things though, one being that the metallic taste came from the biscuit malt. It must have been a fairly old batch when I bought it. The other very important thing I learnt is about attenuation, which is so important it's just ridiculous.

I'll build on these recipes (which I would say are related). Next I'll use much less grain, add a little gold with some 12L crystal, keep to the exact same hops, but add a little more Hallertau Hercules for that extra bite, and use Safale US-05, which I think will give a crisper result (which is what I'm looking for). I might even be adventurous and add in some Vic Secret for a little passion-fruit aroma. I'm considering boiling the whole batch this time because I've found the cause of the metallic taste.

Yeast strain?
No boil?
No chill?
No cold crash I've found doesn't matter with clarity.
Finnings I've found help as in Whirlflock in the boil or Irish Moss then a geletin addition once cold either in the ferm chamber or once in the serving keg it doesn't matter.
Try 34/70 before going S05

 

[Mrcloc]

Thanks. I'll stick to the US-05 because it's cheap and available. I have no reason to use something else.

I've found cold crashing with gelatin is my winner - it works for me. The beer is usually clear once it has carb'd, and cold crashing resulted in clearer (and tastier) beers, and the one big advantage is less trub in each bottle.

I've used S-04 a lot, different recipes yield different results.

 

[HighVoltageMan!]

but it's still not clear (2 or 3 months now). I don't think the boil was the cause though, rather that I used too much grain

The boil is very important to clear beer. A lot of proteins and polyphenols (tannins) precipitate from the wort during and after the boil (chilling process). The amount of grain has less to do with this than the boil and may not be a major factor in clearing the beer. Excessive proteins, polyphenols and yeast are the majority causes of hazy beers. You can get fairly clear beer without a boil, but not as clear as it could be and probably won't be polished.

I agree with Ben on the yeast, 34/70 is crisper than US05. The finish pH is lower on 34/70.

 

[Mrcloc]

Yes, this is why I've done the experiment. My first beer without a full boil (as written further up) cleared completely crystal clear. I'm going to skip the boil again, except not entirely. I'll just bring the wort to a boil rather than just pasteurization temp, and still do a separate hops boil. I find it much easier to separate out the hops like that with the equipment I have.

I'll stick to US-05 because it's cheaper and available.

 

[Nosybear]

Boiling precipitates the proteins that cause haze... It also drives off DMS, usually perceived as vegetal and a signature flavor in Miller beer. I think you're spot on with the old malt as the cause for metallic flavor.

Maybe the boil is important after all.