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Better Beer Through Filtration

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Beer filtration is a fundamental process in modern brewing, ensuring the production of beer that meets the high standards of today’s discerning consumers. This step help achieve the clarity and consistency that not only enhance the beer’s appearance but also contribute to its overall quality. According to industry reports, the global craft beer market alone is projected to reach $502 billion by 2028, with clarity and flavor consistency among the top factors influencing consumer choice.

Filtration removes yeast, sediment, and unwanted particulates. More critically, effective microbial control during filtration safeguards against spoilage and extends shelf life.Beer filtration is an essential process for breweries looking to scale their distribution while maintaining the consistent quality and flavor that consumers expect.In this article, we explore the science behind beer filtration and how advanced systems like Sanitek Filters elevate the brewing process to meet these exacting standards.

Better Beer Through Filtration

The Importance of Beer Filtration

Beer is a low-alcohol, carbonated beverage made primarily from malt, rice, hops, and water, fermented with brewer’s yeast. During the brewing process, beer can produce sediment, and these impurities and microorganisms may affect the beer’s taste and quality. Therefore, the main purpose of beer filtration is to remove these impurities, ensuring the beer remains clear and retains its desired taste. Unfiltered beer tends to become cloudy, and its flavor may be compromised. For this reason, consumers generally prefer clean, clear beer, and unfiltered beer is not suitable for sale.

Also, more important than the appearance and taste of the beer is the quality of the beer. Beer filtration removes yeast and other microorganisms, preventing contamination of the beer. We all know that yeast is essential for beer brewing. However, if yeast remains in the beer sold to consumers, it can cause the beer to spoil and may lead to health issues. Filtered beer has no ff-flavors from bacteria, and has a long shelf life.

  1. Remove impurities that have settled in the beer, such as hop resin, proteins, polyphenolic compounds, glucans, calcium oxalate particles, and yeast.
  2. Reduce or eliminate substances that may cause cloudiness, such as high molecular weight proteins, polyphenols, glucans, and effectively remove yeast and other microorganisms, including lactobacilli, pediococci, pectobacterium, and bacillus species.
  3. Improve the beer’s taste, making it clear, transparent, and shiny. Filtered beer will have more vivid color and clearer liquid, perfectly meeting consumer expectations for beer.

The Importance of Beer Filtration

Beer Filtration Process

Beer filtration is a critical step in ensuring the quality and stability of beer, involving several key stages from brewing to bottling. Each step requires precise filtration solutions to remove impurities, microorganisms, and haze, ensuring the beer’s flavor and shelf life.

Bulk Beer Filtration

After fermentation and maturation, beer needs to be filtered to remove solids and yeast to ensure clarity. This step typically uses pressure leaf filters for bulk filtration, removing most solids and suspended particles.

Beer Clarification

The next stage is clarification, aimed at further removing fine solids and haze. Depending on the beer’s composition, we recommend using pleated microglass filters (Polymempure® GFG and (Polymempure® GFS series) and pleated polypropylene filters, with pore sizes ranging from 1 to 3 microns. The Polymempure® GFG series filters offer low pressure drop and high load capacity, effectively removing haze and improving filtration efficiency.

Fermentation Tank Gas Filtration

During fermentation, it is necessary to filter the gases in the fermentation tank to prevent contaminants from entering the beer, ensuring the cleanliness of the brewing process.

Fermentation Tank Gas Filtration

Beer Bottling Filtration

Before bottling, the beer must undergo fine filtration to remove any remaining yeast, haze, and microbial contaminants. This step is necessary to prevent fermentation or haze formation inside the bottles.

Beer Preservation

Finally, the beer needs to be filtered to remove microbial contaminants to ensure stability and extended shelf life. We recommend using PES membrane filters with pore sizes of 0.45 microns or 0.8 microns to maintain beer stability during storage and transportation, ensuring its optimal taste.

Filtration Precision and Beer Quality

Filtration precision in beer production directly affects its overall quality and stability. The appropriate selection of filter pore size is determined by the beer’s viscosity, suspended solids, and turbidity levels. This process helps in separating unwanted particles, ensuring that the beer is visually appealing and free from impurities.

While higher filtration precision improves the beer’s non-biological and biological stability by removing microorganisms and yeast, it does not solely define the beer’s quality. It is important to consider other aspects such as flavor, mouthfeel, and foam retention, as overly fine filtration can impact these characteristics. For example, excessive filtration might strip some of the beer’s natural flavors or affect the texture and carbonation.

Therefore, filtration should be optimized based on the specific type of beer being brewed and the expectations of the target market. A balance between filtration precision and flavor preservation is required to ensure both stability and the desired sensory qualities. Adjusting filtration methods to suit the beer style, market preferences, and desired shelf life will help achieve the best overall quality.

Filtration Precision and Beer Quality

Sanitek’s Filters for Industrial Brewing

We are dedicated to providing filtration solutions for the food and beverage industry. We offer specialized filtration products and technologies to meet the specific needs of breweries.

Membrane Pleated Filters

Pleated membrane cartridges are known for their fine filtration capabilities, capable of removing even the smallest impurities. This ensures superior beer quality and taste by providing a high level of microbial control and clarity. Pleated membrane filtration are commonly used in post-fermentation stages to ensure that no yeast or unwanted microorganisms remain in the final product.

Pleated membrane cartridges

Lenticular Filters

Lenticular filters are a popular choice for beer filtration due to their excellent ability to remove both solids and microorganisms. These filters offer high filtration efficiency with minimal product loss, ensuring the beer remains pure and free from contaminants. They are particularly effective for larger-scale filtration applications, including bulk beer filtration.

Filter Housing for Cartridges

Filter housings provide a robust framework for cartridge filters, ensuring proper installation and optimal performance. They play a critical role in protecting beer from contamination by holding the filter elements securely in place. High-quality filter housings also help to maintain the filtration efficiency of each brewing stage, preventing clogging and ensuring consistent beer quality throughout the brewing process.

Filter Housing for Cartridges

Choosing the Right Membrane Size in Beer Filtration

The membrane Pleated filters used at different stages have varying membrane sizes. To achieve optimal contaminant removal, refer to the following application scenarios and their corresponding membrane size requirements, in microns(um).

  • Air (CO2, N2): <0.2 µm
  • Water: 5 µm for particle-free water; <0.2 µm for sterile water
  • Steam: 5 µm for particle-free steam
  • CIP Chemicals: 5 µm for particle-free solutions
  • Beer: 0.45-0.6 µm for microorganism-free beer

Conclusion

Sanitek Filter provides professional food and beverage filtration solutions for your brewery. With a wide range of filtration and separation technologies, we deliver unique and efficient solutions to address your industrial process challenges. Contact us now for a quote!

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