What You Need To Know About The Beer Filtration System

The design, selection, configuration, and operation of a beer filtration system have a decisive impact on the filtration effect, directly related to the final quality, stability, flavor, production cost, and efficiency of beer. The system design varies depending on the different purposes and scales of filtration. In this post, Yuwei Filtration will explore what you need to know about the beer filtration system.

Purposes of Beer Filtration

• Clarity:

Remove visible suspended solids to meet the expected clarity standards.

• Biological stability:

Remove most yeast cells (reduced to <5 cells/100ml) and potential spoilage bacteria to prevent in-bottle re-fermentation or deterioration.

• Non-biological stability (colloidal stability):

Reduce high-molecular-weight proteins, polyphenols, and their complexes that may cause cold turbidity or permanent turbidity.

• Flavor and taste:

Remove particulate matter that affects flavor, improve the purity of taste, and avoid introducing bad flavors or excessively losing beneficial substances.

• Carbon dioxide content:

Minimize CO₂ loss to maintain the beer's bite.

Differences Between Different Commercial Beer Filtration Systems

Mainstream commercial beer filtration systems are divided into two categories: standard processes for large breweries (focusing on cost and stability) and draft beer processes （The core requirements are flavor retention and biological stability.).

Standard Filtration Process for Large Breweries

1. Process chain

Membrane filter press (wort filtration) → Diatomaceous earth filtration (main filtration) → Bag filter (security filtration) → Sheet filter (precision filtration/stabilization) → Pasteurization (biological stability guarantee)

2. Functions

Diatomaceous earth filtration reduces turbidity to 1-2 EBC; plate filtration performs precision filtration to below 0.5 EBC and adsorbs polyphenol/protein complexes; pasteurization provides 6-12 months of biological stability.

3. Applicable

Popular lagers and ales (such as industrial light beers, Pilsners), with typical users including Budweiser, Carlsberg, Tsingtao Beer, etc.

Beer Filtration Process

1. Process chain

Membrane filter press (wort filtration) → Diatomaceous earth filtration (main filtration) → Bag filter (security filtration) → Sheet filter → membrane filtration (sterile filtration)

2. Improvements

Remove pasteurization from the standard process and add membrane filtration.

3. Core advantages

Achieve absolute sterilization through membrane filtration (0.45μm) or depth plate filtration (0.6-1μm); full cold (0-1℃) oxygen-isolated operation, maximizing the retention of volatile flavor substances (such as hop aroma, esters) and delaying oxidative deterioration.

4. Applicable

Draft beer, high-hop IPAs, fresh beer, barrel-aged craft beers, etc., with typical users such as Asahi Super Dry, Pearl River Draft, BrewDog, Goose Island, etc.

The purposes of beer filtration cover five aspects: clarity, biological/non-biological stability, flavor retention, and CO₂ control. The mainstream processes are divided into two categories: the standard process for large breweries adopts the combination of "diatomaceous earth + plate filtration + pasteurization", which is good at cost-effectiveness and long shelf life (6-12 months) and is suitable for popular beers; the draft beer process replaces pasteurization with "membrane filtration/depth plate filtration", retains the original flavor (such as hop aroma) through cold sterilization and oxygen-isolated operation, and meets the needs of high-end craft beers and draft beers. The two types of processes have significant differences in equipment configuration, stability realization methods, and product positioning, highlighting the core impact of filtration systems on beer quality and flavor.