Head Retention

[windy]

Hi Fellow Brewers
What are good malts and hops for head retention,. My brews are good, around the 5.5% which is enough for me. Its just Im struggling to get the foam.,im told cleaning is an issue, but I use Starsan all the time .
Regards
Windy

 

[Mark Farrall]

Cleaning the glass is also important.

Hops are generally good when added to the boil, but dry hopping will generally be bad for foam. Some hops are OK for dry hopping, but you probably want to keep it under 3-4 days if you're worried about foam. Cascade is particularly bad for head/foam when used as a dry hop.

Malts, I don't pay a enough attention to really recommend. I'll have beers that are largely pilsner malt with great head and others with more traditional foam positive malts with an underwhelming head.

Probably because a lot of it is down to the process, not just the ingredients.

 

[Minbari]

I have found that 5% of carapils helps

 

[GFHomebrew]

Wheat malt and maybe can't confirm it but adding a dextrine step in your mash schedule before full conversion is gained e.g. 70c

 

[HighVoltageMan!]

Here's an interview with the "Pope of Foam", Dr. Charlie Bamforth, about his favorite subject, foam. I think you will find that head retention isn't a simple subject. If you haven't heard about Dr. Bamforth or heard any of his talks on beer, you be surprise how approachable his talks are and yet they can get very technical.

https://beersmith.com/blog/2021/02/28/beer-foam-with-dr-charlie-bamforth-beersmith-podcast-231/

 

[Bubba Wade]

Wheat, carapils, and flaked barley are all good in improving head retention. Some crystal malts like caravienne can also help. I use 5-10% wheat in nearly every recipe.

Note that the extra proteins, while providing good head retention, can also contribute to chill haze. It seems there is always a trade-off.

 

[dmtaylor]

Carapils is worthless.

Try about 10-15% rye, either flaked or malted, doesn't matter which.

 

[HighVoltageMan!]

Carapils is worthless.

Try about 10-15% rye, either flaked or malted, doesn't matter which.

I think Carapils is worthless as well. Bamforth doesn’t believe dextrins play a huge role in foam stability, the key is in proteins. That’s why wheat works better. Head retention seems deceptively simple, it much more complicated than one would believe.

 

[Megary]

If you're not getting any foam at all, there is a huge issue with your process. Could be a million reasons why this is happening from recipe development to mashing issues to poor fermentation management to bad priming/carbonating to dirty beer glasses...

So while they won't make foam where there is none already, wheat malt and/or flaked barley always helps (me) boost and retain the foam that's already there.

 

[Over The Cliff Brewing]

I agree with adding a bit of wheat for head retention. I would also say that some beers (styles), will not be big on foam. So it is as others have stated there are a few thing you may need to change to get the foam you are looking for.

 

[GFHomebrew]

What about forced carbonation vs natural carbonation e.g. from priming sugar source or via spunding?

I've found some beers I spund have taken on a great tight rock solid head.

 

[Donoroto]

.,im told cleaning is an issue, but I use Starsan all the time .

Ah, but StarSan is a sanitizer, not a cleaner. You cannot sanitize anything if it isn't completely clean, so get some sort of a sponge or a scrubby or something and scrub it real well with soap and water at least or perhaps PBW cleaner. Once you have cleaned it thoroughly, including all the little seals and cracks and crevices, then you can try to sanitize it.

 

[Zambi]

I think Mark has a very valid point with looking at your glass as well.
Try and put salt and water in yr glass, let it sit for a while and then rinse with water.
Don't use soap.
It may just make a difference

 

[RoadRoach]

A habit I've gotten into is if I scrub my beer glasses with dishwashing liquid, I boil them afterward to remove the soap/parafin film inevitably left by that stuff, and towel dry them to remove some of the calcium deposits from our very hard water. The primary reason I might use any soap when I wash them is if I use them for a beer that has highly oily grains, such as oatmeal, or any adjunct with oils (citrus peel). Oil and foam don't play well together, and the oils will stick to the glass. Nothing to be done for that. That's exactly the way "spot-free" and "Sparkling Clean" technologies work. If you have a brew that's got a lotta oily flavorings, you're going to have to compensate with something. That something will largely depend on who you ask, and some personal experimentation.

Now that I've seen the comment about dry-hopping, I'm a little concerned about my last batch that I dropped some Galaxy in trying to duplicate Kona Big Wave. But, it had a ton of wheat malt in it (American Pale class), so I may be worried about nothing. It's my first dry-hop batch, so it may turn into pig swill anyway.

 

[Steve SPF]

A very Northern English subject is head retention

I fit home bars and operate my own venue. Far and away the most common cause that I come across for flat beer is glassware, as suggested by @RoadRoach . In commercial settings we 'renovate' them which removes the film that builds up over time.

I also swear by 'head keeper' glasses with the etching in the bottom; those things are a miracle.

In brewing terms we've always used 5% torrefied wheat. This beer kept is head really well and that was nothing other than 95% Maris Otter and 5% torrefied wheat.

Should also say that as others hae said, if it's flat out of the tap that's a different problem.

My 2 cents