Scum Skimming

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Pumpy

Pumpy's Brewery.
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Are you a Scum Skimmer , Do you remove that froth at the boil ,I do it now before adding the hops ,It is supposed to help make the brew smoother!!!!! .

Anyone boast any merits of this task ????


Pumpy
 
Pumpy said:
Are you a Scum Skimmer , Do you remove that froth at the boil ,I do it now before adding the hops ,It is supposed to help make the brew smoother!!!!! .

Anyone boast any merits of this task ????


Pumpy
[post="73300"][/post]​

Hi Pumpy,

An interesting question that I have a different lilt on. I have done it on the few boils that I have done so far however my question is with starters. Do you skim the same crap of the top of your starter wort when boiling or not?
I have done it and the yeast slurry looks alot cleaner at the end but is there beneficial yeast nutrients in the break that are important for starter growth? Something I have wondered for a while.

Cheers

Borret
 
I'm only new to all of this, but from what I understand, skimming can help reduce the likelyhood of boil overs. I tested the theory on the weekend - as soon as I skimmed the top off, the boil "settled down" and seemed more manageable.

Probably not unlike boiling pasta or rice. I'd imagine it has something to do with surface tension etc.
 
Borret,

I pour off my trub from my kettle into a gallon jar put it in the fridge and let it seperate.

I pour off the clear wort from the heavy trub from the gallon jar and aerate the good wort I add harvested yeast from the top of the primary main brew for this starter.

So I have a great starter for my next brew and seems to work well. generally I even bottle the brew from the starter for a couple of extra bottles .

I brew most weekends .

pumpy
 
Ben your right it does that , it works a treat too .

Pumpy
 
Am skimming the boil ATM & can't recall reading any posts on skimming for years so dragging out this old dinosaur of Pumpy's as I'm curious if anyone bothers skimming these days?

I'm a scum skimmer but that's no recommendation. :D
 
I used to skim for the first year or so, then I tried a few brews without. To be honest I can not tell any difference in the final product. I never bother anymore.
 
I think of what they do for craft/commercial brewing scale and how that could relate to or be used for my home brewing...........they dont skim so why would I.
 
I do it for boil over protection if I'm not in a daring move or have a large 60min addition!!!
 
QldKev said:
I used to skim for the first year or so, then I tried a few brews without. To be honest I can not tell any difference in the final product. I never bother anymore.
Per QldKevs response
 
I too, am a reformed skimmer. Originally done it as I didn't like the look of the crud forming on top of the boil. After a while decided I was taking too much of the good stuff with it, so I stopped. Haven't noticed any taste difference, and am getting greater volumes, therefore better efficiency, into the cube. By the end of the boil the crud is greatly reduced anyway, as I found out.
 
it gives me something to do whilst im waiting for it to come to the boil.
I generally get heaps of trub from my system so i figure why not remove it while its readily available.
 
Most of my hops float about on top so I figured if i'm skimming then I'm throwing out the hops
 
I'm with most of the others who don't bother.

I did it for a while about 5 or 6 years ago. Then stopped and have noticed no difference.
 
I'd go as far as saying that my beers are clearer when I am not skimming. Like alot of others, I did it when I first started but havn't skimmed for years.
 
Always have and always will, if I don't on my system I get a second foam up about 1/2 way through the boil and I usually have my back turned when it happens.
When I skim I don't get any foam up.
 
I am a skimmer for a couple of reasons.
1. I brew double batches in a 71L kettle so headspace is at a premium and as mentioned previously it seems to reduce the chance of a boilover.
2. On the one occasion that I did have a boilover I noticed that the crud solidified into an unpleasant looking grey rubbery substance that I figured my beer would be better off without.
 
I put this question to a brewing consultant, (ex-head brewer for Tooheys and was teaching at Ballarat Uni, IBD Master Brewer) so someone I would not argue with.
His opinion was that there is a finite amount of head building ingredients in a wort - so why would you remove any.
A portion of what people call scum is in fact very good for head building and retention in the finished beer. The parts that aren't wind up in the trub.
I suppose you can guess which way I swing on this one.
Mark
 
MHB said:
I put this question to a brewing consultant, (ex-head brewer for Tooheys and was teaching at Ballarat Uni, IBD Master Brewer) so someone I would not argue with.
His opinion was that there is a finite amount of head building ingredients in a wort - so why would you remove any.
A portion of what people call scum is in fact very good for head building and retention in the finished beer. The parts that aren't wind up in the trub.
I suppose you can guess which way I swing on this one.
Mark
This is similar to what I have been lead to believe, I was told it is mostly proteins and very beneficial for both yeast health and head building. This may or may not be the case, but I have never been a skimmer, and I do believe my beers are no worse because of it.

Batz
 
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