Windsor yeast??

[Tombo]

Hi, I am brewing a Caribou slobber today and the recipe suggests Windsor as the yeast. Looking at reviews of this yeast it doesn't seem very popular and is prone to stalling. What are your thoughts on this yeast please? I am tempted to substitute with either Nottingham or S-04 with Nottingham being my preference? Thank you

 

[MickDundee]

Windsor has more character than Nottingham.

I don’t think the issue is that Windsor “stalls”, it’s that it’s quite a low attenuator and a lot of people don’t check before they use it then get a surprise when it finishes at 1.016-1.020. Mash low and use some sort of sugar in the recipe and you shouldn’t have major issues.

 

[Tombo]

Windsor has more character than Nottingham.

I don’t think the issue is that Windsor “stalls”, it’s that it’s quite a low attenuator and a lot of people don’t check before they use it then get a surprise when it finishes at 1.016-1.020. Mash low and use some sort of sugar in the recipe and you shouldn’t have major issues.

Thank you, that's what I was thinking. Windsor obviously finishes slightly because of tgat sweeter so it'll more to the style of the beer. I'll go with that

 

[Agentgonzo]

Could you use a blend of yeasts? Windsor + something to get the attenuation (if you want that)? I have a recollection (probably wrong though) from some posts somewhere that people think that one of the MJ yeasts is a blend of windsor (for character) and something else more attenuative to get a lower FG.

 

[Tombo]

Could you use a blend of yeasts? Windsor + something to get the attenuation (if you want that)? I have a recollection (probably wrong though) from some posts somewhere that people think that one of the MJ yeasts is a blend of windsor (for character) and something else more attenuative to get a lower FG.

I could yes. Maybe let Windsor do its thing and see were it ends up and how it finishes. I could always add a little Nottingham then if it's not what I'm after.

 

[MickDundee]

Could you use a blend of yeasts? Windsor + something to get the attenuation (if you want that)? I have a recollection (probably wrong though) from some posts somewhere that people think that one of the MJ yeasts is a blend of windsor (for character) and something else more attenuative to get a lower FG.

It’s Liberty Bell that theory comes from IIRC - speculation that it’s a blend of Windsor and Notty.

 

[Jim Brewster]

What a name for a beer
Had good results with Liberty Bell, did seem a bit Nottingham-like

 

[Tombo]

What a name for a beer
Had good results with Liberty Bell, did seem a bit Nottingham-like

It's an American brown ale. Another one is moose drool. Hope they taste better than they sound .

 

[Northern_Brewer]

It's an American brown ale. Another one is moose drool. Hope they taste better than they sound .

To be more precise, Big Sky's Moose Drool is a popular commercial beer, Caribou Slobber is a homebrew kit intended to clone it. Both have been around for ages, which I guess is one reason why the kit uses Windsor, there wasn't so much choice back in the day.

There's two issues with Windsor - one is that it not so much stalls, it just crawls to a finish, it just needs more time than most. Also it drops well but doesn't flocculate ("stick") very well - a pinch of Notty/Wilko towards the end can help with that.

Verdant might be a better option?

 

[Tombo]

To be more precise, Big Sky's Moose Drool is a popular commercial beer, Caribou Slobber is a homebrew kit intended to clone it. Both have been around for ages, which I guess is one reason why the kit uses Windsor, there wasn't so much choice back in the day.

There's two issues with Windsor - one is that it not so much stalls, it just crawls to a finish, it just needs more time than most. Also it drops well but doesn't flocculate ("stick") very well - a pinch of Notty/Wilko towards the end can help with that.

Verdant might be a better option?

Ah I see, make sense about the names. It's all done and Windsor is in now. How long does Windsor usually take to finish, I'm on no particular rush, I've plenty of other kegs to go at.
I'll maybe give it at least 3 weeks now like I usually do and then decide?