MJ Liberty Bell yeast

[sifty]

I've not liked my brews using S-04, they haven't been bad, but have a weird taste until they have conditioned a month or so.
Liberty a good alternative then...?

 

[marshbrewer]

Liberty a good alternative then...?

It's worth a try; I am very sensitive to the taste that S04 gives a beer. As you say, it eventually conditions out to some extent, but I really don't like it. Liberty Bell, in the other hand, is lovely.

 

[sifty]

Sweet. It's readily available here too. Will give it a try next time the recipe calls for S-04...

 

[dad_of_jon]

M25 is Hell.

especially the clockwise section from 5 to 9 pm

 

[Braufather]

I’ve got Liberty bell in an English pale ale but it’s still a bit green after 5 weeks. I’ve also got it lined up for an American amber and an American pale so definitely a candidate for a house yeast if all goes well. I’m giving liquid yeast a break to see how I get on with LB.

 

[Sadfield]

I didn't realise the MJ yeasts have been sequenced, struggling find any evidence of it. If true, I'm quite surprised as I find LB doesn't mute hops like I found SO4 to, although I've not used it in a long time. Then again I'm genetically related to my brother, and he drinks Carling, so anything is possible.

 

[peebee]

I've still to try that Liberty Bell yeast, the old "Burton Union" yeast I think? I'll get around to it one day.

I don't dismiss that S-04 yeast, it's just a bit boring (doesn't add much) and quite fashionable to knock it these days. But the most vocal opposition to S-04 often comes from people who think US-05 is just great (selected to add nothing at all - or especially "clean" in craft-brewer-speak - or really, really dull in my language).

As for US-05, I use "Nottingham Ale" yeast in place of it now. Also really, really dull ("clean"), but at least it clears much, much faster. Perhaps this LB will be a better half-way house?

 

[dmtaylor]

I didn't realise the MJ yeasts have been sequenced, struggling find any evidence of it. If true, I'm quite surprised as I find LB doesn't mute hops like I found SO4 to, although I've not used it in a long time. Then again I'm genetically related to my brother, and he drinks Carling, so anything is possible.

I don't think MJ yeasts are sequenced. If anyone is familiar with my spreadsheet, it might have been misleading by the shading of purple. I have unshaded the M36 LB field, and will re-review things later this week based on this thread. And if you have no idea what I'm talking about, don't worry about it, it's nothing.

 

[moto748]

So nobody else has found LB reluctant to clear in bitters as I have?

On recent experience, I'd be tempted to go with Verdant as a dry yeast in bitters; I've found that has given me good results in the past, better than LB.

 

[Arrakus]

I‘ve used LB in my last 2 bitters. Stayed cloudier in the bottle for longer than 04, but by the 4th week it was clear. Recipe was simple in both - Maris otter and 5% medium crystal…only difference between the two was hops.

l’ve got the same recipe fermenting now with the Verdant yeast, aiming to get it bottled on Sunday.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

So nobody else has found LB reluctant to clear in bitters as I have?

On recent experience, I'd be tempted to go with Verdant as a dry yeast in bitters; I've found that has given me good results in the past, better than LB.

Liberty Bell is my adopted house yeast. I don’t see any issues with clarity and most often the beers I brew with it are clear out of the fermenter. It’s worth saying though that the ales I use LB for are not highly hopped (English bitter, English pales, Mild, Stout) so you might expect them to clear more quickly.

 

[Sadfield]

Has anyone got experience of using both Liberty Bell and Gale's yeast? I've a convoluted theory that LB is a blend to mimic Gale's and wonder how closely they behave.

 

[dmtaylor]

I forgot to mention above...... I am wondering if it's possible if perhaps M36 LB is equivalent to Cooper's Ale Yeast a.k.a., Mauribrew 514. Thoughts??

 

[marshbrewer]

Doubt it; smells different when it's fermenting. I'm minded to agree with those who say it's a blend of a Windsor type yeast and something like Notty.

 

[dmtaylor]

Oh yeah, it could be a blend. Is M36 LB one of those where the dry yeast granules are two different colors? I've heard that reported for one or two of the MJ yeasts.

 

[marshbrewer]

Yes, I think it does have two colours of granules, thinking about it.

 

[AlDaviz]

I’ve been using mostly MJ yeasts for consistency, most of my brews seem to be fermented quite quickly within 5-7 days. Except M25 empire ale which took around 10x days in a red ale.

Oh ! As per another thread I do also add White Labs Servomyces to all my brews

 

[dmtaylor]

Okay..... after looking into this for another 4 or 5 hours this morning..... I am thinking *maybe* M36 Liberty Bell is......... US-05. Ponder that.

 

[marshbrewer]

*maybe* M36 Liberty Bell is......... US-05. Ponder that.

Na. When is ferments, it gives off lovely fruity aromas, that carry through into the resulting beer. Not as much as S-33 / Windsor / Empire, but more than a neutral strain like US05.

 

[Sadfield]

Oh yeah, it could be a blend. Is M36 LB one of those where the dry yeast granules are two different colors? I've heard that reported for one or two of the MJ yeasts.

Now here's my (most probably erroneous) theory.

Liberty Bell, possibly a reference to Anchor Liberty Ale or a wider reference to America liberating from the British. In the words of Michael Jackson the Beer hunter, Anchor use 'a British style Ale yeast' and many say WY1272 American Ale II is the anchor strain. This is closely linked in the Yeast Family Tree to WY1332 Northwest Ale, reputedly from Hale's Brewery, Seatle, and said to be obtained from Gale's in the UK.

If that isn't tenuous enough. There's and excellent brewer by the name of James Kemp who's brewed at Fuller's, Thornbridge, Buxton, Marble, Yeasty Boys and now works as a technical advisor to Brewdog, who in between brewing at Buxton and Marble, was employed by the manufacturers of Mangrove Jacks, then SPL Ltd (Ellesmere Port, CH66 1ST). And used to blog for them on the now obsolete www.port66.co.uk, where he stated his love for Gale's yeast for hoppy craft ales, and that where possible he took it with him when moving breweries.

All of which, has me wondering, however far fetched. When at MJ, did he use his time to develop a blend to replicate his favourite Gale's yeast? US05 or BRY97 with S-33/Windsor?