Bitter yeasts

[Vossy1]

For those more experienced with liquid yeast.
I intend to make a run of premium bitters, and I would like to know what liquid yeasts you have used, and what you would recommend.

WLP023 seems to be a strong contender, as does WLP026...... to name 2....advice please

 

[Aleman]

I like the Burton Yeast WLP023, and the Essex Yeast (Platinum strain) is very nice . . . Brewlabs High Gravity is also nice in a bitter, but needs something to chew on or it will dry a beer out . . . best way to carry out this is to brew 80L of wort split it 4 ways and pitch 4 different yeasts . . . use the one you prefer

 

[Vossy1]

That's another vote for WLP023, it seems very popular.
At the moment I have no way of fermenting 4 fv's under controlled conditions, so I may have to use one yeast at a time for the moment :x

 

[Vossy1]

Aleman, have you tried either of the Wyeast 1099 or 1098?

 

[Aleman]

I've used 1098, I prefer 023 . . . actually the so called 'Irish ale' makes a damn nice bitter as well

Another route to consider is to give Brewlab a ring, tell then what you are planning on brewing, and want WRT flavour profile and get them to recommend one for your water type

 

[J_P]

I like WLP013 for the advertised Oaky character, WLP007 as it's good and dry and WLP023 as it has a real Brakspear flavour.

If you have the capacity then why not do as Aleman suggests and ferment seperate batches with seperate yeast.

 

[mysterio]

Another vote for 023, agree with J_P about the Brakspear flavour.

 

[Vossy1]

Cheers gents for all the advice
I ordered a WLP 1023 for my next bitter today from the H&G
I also ordered a WLP 004 for my stouts.

 

[Vossy1]

Spraymalt........weigh
Water...add
Boil
Sanitise....everything
Chill
Yeast...add
Shake
Yeast starter.....done :lol:

I got a surprise when paying for the spraymalt, it's bloody expensive.
I could always freeze a batch of wort and use that in future...but...
wouldn't a sugar solution with yeast vit do the same job as spraymalt ?

 

[Wez]

Nice one Gordon err I mean Vossy :grin:

 

[J_P]

wouldn't a sugar solution with yeast vit do the same job as spraymalt ?

Because yeast has a very short lifespan and is pretty prolific reproducing if all you feed them is sucrose then they could quickly "forget" how to metabolise maltose, I wouldn't take the risk.

 

[Vossy1]

Cheers J_P, but now you've got me thinking if I can source maltose cheaply :)

I think the easiest/cheapest way is to do a dummy batch AG and freeze the wort, or collect the runnings you won't use from a brew day and freeze/use that.

 

[Vossy1]

Now the Burton has a friend in an Irish Ale yeast

 

[Wez]

Nice work Voss :

 

[J_P]

Cheers J_P, but now you've got me thinking if I can source maltose cheaply :)

I think the easiest/cheapest way is to do a dummy batch AG and freeze the wort, or collect the runnings you won't use from a brew day and freeze/use that.

An extra handful of malt in the mash and an extra couple of litres of water and freeze the additional wort, simple :party: . If your wort is above 1.020 then dilute it with the following formulae

(Volume*Gravity points)/Desired Gravity = Volume of water to dilute with

 

[Vossy1]

If your wort is above 1.020 then dilute it with the following formulae

Why would you want to dilute the wort J_P ?
Mr Malty suggest a starter in the range of 1030 - 1040

When making starter wort, make sure you keep the OG around 1.030 to 1.040. You do not want to make a high gravity starter to grow yeast. As a ballpark measurement, use about 6 ounces (by weight) of DME to 2 quarts of water. If you're working in metric, it couldn't be easier. Use a 10 to 1 ratio. Add 1 gram of DME for every 10 ml of final volume. (If you're making a 2 liter of starter add 200 grams of DME to the flask, then fill the flask with water until you have 2 liters total.)

 

[Wez]

The wort I used for my wlp007 was 1.040 bang on

 

[Vossy1]

Was it a DME make up Wez?
Just re-read the post and I knew there was something that was botherin me from another post....hold on

 

[Wez]

Yeah DME 200g in 2L

 

[J_P]

Yeah DME 200g in 2L

That would make a solution of 1.020 am I missing something? :hmm: