Isinglass, sustainability and alternatives

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Brewnaldo

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Upon searching I found a few topics on isinglass but nothing about its sustainability. I am not a veggie or a vegan, and having not sampled the only brew I have used this is yet, I am not sure of its effectiveness but I am generally interested in fish sustainability. So is this stuff just a by product or does it harm fish stocks?

I realise that a popular clearing method on here is just time and gravity and that's fine, I will likely experiment with that method as well as others, so what other clearing products do folk use? It seems most from what I have read use irish moss in the boil, I have read about gelatin also being effective... What else is out there now, especially as the food and drink industry moves further towards catering for totally vegan alternatives?
 
IMO it is generally a bi-product and fish are not generally caught just to get their swim bladders to produce the product.
 
Upon searching I found a few topics on isinglass but nothing about its sustainability. I am not a veggie or a vegan, and having not sampled the only brew I have used this is yet, I am not sure of its effectiveness but I am generally interested in fish sustainability. So is this stuff just a by product or does it harm fish stocks?

I realise that a popular clearing method on here is just time and gravity and that's fine, I will likely experiment with that method as well as others, so what other clearing products do folk use? It seems most from what I have read use irish moss in the boil, I have read about gelatin also being effective... What else is out there now, especially as the food and drink industry moves further towards catering for totally vegan alternatives?
It is a bi product of the fish, it is made from the swim bladder. Isinglass is probably the best of what is on the market, (if you really feel the need to use a fining agent). Doesn't strip colour or flavour as others can do, there are plenty on the market. Irish Moss is for the boil only.
Clarity starts with mastering the mashing, boiling and water treatment process, something to learn down the track. Or you can wait for the finished beer to clear.
 
As Foxy says the AG process is part of the clearing in the beer, I never use finings and never have a problem except maybe once in a blue moon with clarity. It is strange but the longer you brew the easier it becomes and you may not think it but you are probably change little things over time which is what helps in perfecting your brewing process. I have over time shortened my mash to 45 mins and re-circ with the pump on my system and have just got around to sorting out my PH to a consistent level in the mash I also only use 1/2 a tablet of protofloc instead of a full one which I think does help but thats only my opinion. In general finings are a last resort and look at your process first
 
Ps do you use your own recipes or are they kit based? as I also think the recipes can sometimes be the issue as a balance grainbill with the correct additions to aid a clearer beer may also be adding to the problem
 
You haven't told us why you are trying different methods of fining to clear your beer. Have you had limited success with the time and gravity method, which should really be your start point? The reason many brewers including me use it is because, quite simply, it works in nearly all cases. So if you are a kit or extract brewer in my view there really is no need to look any further, and if you are using grain and experiencing clarity problems maybe for example its a starch problem from the mash which you should be addressing.
FYI I do stove top based partial mashes and since I use clear PET bottles in a majority of cases I can see that my most of my beers are carbed and clear within a week of bottling and pretty much bright after another week, and the only variables that affect this are the yeast load at bottling time and the yeast type itself.
Finally if you are uneasy about using isinglass, whether its a byproduct or not, why not just avoid it since there are other methods out there?
 
Most isinglass is made from cod these days, it's just a by-product of your fish-and-chips. It's never going to be economic to catch fish just for isinglass.

Some cod fisheries are certified as sustainable by the MSC, but not all, the North Sea fishery got its certification back in 2017-19 but had it withdrawn after the latest population estimate :
https://fisheries.msc.org/en/fisheries/@@search?q=cod
 
Sorry folks but I'm not sure that I approve of the "It's a by-product." argument being put forward in this Thread!

When a sentient being is killed it is dead; and the fact that the killer then uses some other part of the body to make even more money is immaterial.

I still stand by "Time + Gravity = Clear"!
 
I dont have a problem with it tbh, I just wondered about how it comes about.... As far as why use finings, honestly, as I said I have only did one AG brew so far, but I am experimenting and have no issue with using finings to get the best results I can. Just wanted to check what the options are really. Of course I will try without also in time.
 
When a sentient being is killed it is dead; and the fact that the killer then uses some other part of the body to make even more money is immaterial.

The by-product thing is material because it means that whether you buy isinglass or not will not affect how many fish are killed.

And if you are killing things then surely the most respectful thing you can do is to use maximum use of it, rather than throwing most of it away?

And why stop at sentient beings....?
 
Just use Irish Moss (or Protofloc which is a derivative of it) in the boil. BTW don't use too much protofloc, stick to the instructions, otherwise you get huge gobs of floating yeast blobs in your FV.
 
Just use Irish Moss (or Protofloc which is a derivative of it) in the boil. BTW don't use too much protofloc, stick to the instructions, otherwise you get huge gobs of floating yeast blobs in your FV.
Plus one on the protofloc I only use 1/2 a tablet in a 23ltr brew as if you use more its like jellyfish chunks in the wort, half is enough and it saves money too one of my main objects being a yorkshireman
 
he by-product thing is material because it means that whether you buy isinglass or not will not affect how many fish are killed.
Yep. I read on a hipster brewing site that lots of vegetarians are fine with beer using isinglass because it has zero impact.

I use gelatine but I'm going to get some keiselsol/chitosan Kwik Klear type stuff when I do an order even though I mostly don't need it. But if it's not clear after a few days crashing, eff hanging about, if it's fermented I want it kegged or bottled.
 
It has been said above, but just to add my agreement, I've not used any finings in my last few brews and they have been as clear, if not clearer than the the brews I used them in (I only used them as I thought I was supposed to)

I do use half an Irish Moss tablet in the boil, but it feels like I can see the impact that has. Maybe I should try without it...
 
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