S-04 or US-05 Dry Yeast for English IPA?

[davidgrace]

I’m about to brew an English IPA from a recipe that recommends US-05 dry yeast. I have used US-05 for American IPA’s with success, but would an S-04 dry yeast be better for an English IPA?

 

[MyQul]

Yes

 

[Linalmeemow]

Both will be fine, S-04 is more suited to the style but my unrefined palate has never been able to tell much of a difference!

 

[Cwrw666]

Both will be fine, S-04 is more suited to the style but my unrefined palate has never been able to tell much of a difference!

Me neither. Only difference is that SO4 sticks to the bottom of the bottle a bit better than US-05, but only a bit. I prefer Gervin - sticks like glue!

 

[the_quick]

For me S-04 always left behind quite yeasty flavour in beer. Nottingham yeast(Gervin supposed to be that) is cleaner for me for all English styles. But if you want hops to really shine, than I would say US05

 

[lancon]

just made a lovely English IPA single hopped with EKG running at 7%, S-04

 

[Slid]

My house yeast is US 05 because the females in the house tend to ensure that the ambient temps in my brewing space vary between 20C and 22C in Winter and 20C plus anything in summer.

 

[dwhite60]

US-05 would be good for an American IPA.

S-04 probably your best choice. I find this leaves my beers a touch fruity, which I like. It's also FAST and reliable. I like how it sticks to the bottom of the bottle too! US-05 is a little too clean for the style, I think, and it's "fluffy" in the bottom of the bottle.

I have saved the slurry from the bottom of my fermenter and re-pitched with no issues.
Yes, dry yeast is cheap but I'm currently unemployed so every penny counts.

All the Best,
D. White

 

[MrRook]

Split the batch and do half with 04 and half with 05?

 

[DavidDetroit]

I would say either S-04 or US-05.

 

[Cwrw666]

I have saved the slurry from the bottom of my fermenter and re-pitched with no issues.
Yes, dry yeast is cheap but I'm currently unemployed so every penny counts.

Me too on occasion, but I wouldn't consider yeast to be cheap - it's a significant part of the cost of a brew.

 

[MonkeyMick]

Me too on occasion, but I wouldn't consider yeast to be cheap - it's a significant part of the cost of a brew.

How much of the slurry would you save to use on the next brew, and how do you preserve it between batches? Is it frozen in a sterilised bottle?

 

[Linalmeemow]

How much of the slurry would you save to use on the next brew, and how do you preserve it between batches? Is it frozen in a sterilised bottle?

I give the FV a swirl until there's nothing left stuck to the bottom then decant into the biggest (sanitised) jar I can find. Put it in the fridge until needed and dump the whole lot into the next batch of wort. If it goes over a month or so I'll try to do a starter, but I've used this method with 6-8 month old yeast without a starter with excellent results. It's not terribly scientific and I've probably overpitched a good few times but I've never noticed any off flavours as a result.

 

[dwhite60]

How much of the slurry would you save to use on the next brew, and how do you preserve it between batches? Is it frozen in a sterilised bottle?

I use a sanitized spoon and dig about a cup and a half of the yeast cake out from the bottom of the fermenter and place it in a sanitized glass jar. I then store it in the fridge. About a cup of this goes in the next batch.

I usually do a batch size of two to three gallons, once a month. It's getting used pretty quickly.

All the Best,
D. White

 

[davidgrace]

Thanks for all these helpful responses. Following all your advice I think I should go with S-04 for this one.

 

[dwhite60]

Let us know how it turns out.

Happy brewing!

All the Best,
D. White

 

[Sandimas]

A bit late to this one. I've always used S-04 or Gervin for my British ales and US-05 for American hoppy beers. I just tried an experiment with US-05 in a hoppy British ale and I can tell the difference, the hops seem to come through more, so don't dismiss it for British brews.

 

[Horners]

If you take Darkstars Hophead, they use combo of 04/ 05 and Notty
Apparently