Yeasts

[chub1]

Having got deeper into this brewing lark, now trying extract and possibly having a go at AG in small batches, a question.
Is there really a marked difference in using differing strains/makes of yeast?.
With kits i have been using the supplied yeasts and with extract,so far, have been using Wilko Gervin.
Thanks

 

[Notlaw]

Stick with the Wilko Gervin for a couple of brews; its rock solid, super-reliable, packs down rock-hard and is dirt cheap. After that try a few other dried yeast strains like Safale US-05, Danstar Belle Saison or Mangrove Jacks Workhorse to see if they suit what you like to brew. After that move on to trying liquid yeasts from Wyeast or White Labs... I still haven't tried a liquid yeast myself yet, but thats more down to the dried ones doing what I want so far. I will try a liquid soon though to see what extra they bring to the party.

 

[Covrich]

I know people will get fed up of me saying this but like John Palmer says 'why agonise over your choice of malts and hops to throw in a generic yeast.

Wilko yeast in my opinion is a decent cheap yeast, however I much prefer US05.. its not as flocculant but for hop forward brews lets the hops sing better.. Gervin nottingham yeast I think flattens the hop flavours a bit. But I still use gervin on cheap smaller brews

For certain styles like witbiers saisons ect it is worth looking into liquid yeasts, and even then look at certain liquid yeasts for types you like for English ales, there is a much wider range and they all just like hops and malts bring their own unique character..

 

[chub1]

Ok thanks.
Going a tad off tandem, if doing smaller brews, ie around 5/6 litres or so, would you use a whole packet of yeast at a time?. With the Gervin yeast i have re-hydrated it on three brews, 5 and 6 odd litres and used the whole lot!

 

[Notlaw]

Ok thanks.
Going a tad off tandem, if doing smaller brews, ie around 5/6 litres or so, would you use a whole packet of yeast at a time?. With the Gervin yeast i have re-hydrated it on three brews, 5 and 6 odd litres and used the whole lot!

Just use half the pack. Technically, you only need about 3g for that size batch, but unless you've got some accurate scales you'll be fine just using half the sachet. Using a full sachet could give you a bit of a twang.... I know, as I found that one out myself. I do 10l batches and still just use half a pack. Tape the sachet back up and stick it in the fridge. As long as you use it within about 6 weeks, it'll be fine.

 

[Simonh82]

One reason not to pitch vastly too much yeast can be if you want to get some proper yeast character in your brew. Someone mentioned recently that it is during the growth phase where yeast are multiplying that the character of they yeast is imparted in the beer. If you pitch a whole packet of yeast in a small brew they may not need to multiply very much, meaning less yeast character.

I guess this works both ways, in the sense that you could over pitch if you wanted a very clean neutral flavour from the yeast.

 

[chub1]

Ok thanks lads:thumb::thumb:

 

[Covrich]

One reason not to pitch vastly too much yeast can be if you want to get some proper yeast character in your brew. Someone mentioned recently that it is during the growth phase where yeast are multiplying that the character of they yeast is imparted in the beer. If you pitch a whole packet of yeast in a small brew they may not need to multiply very much, meaning less yeast character.

I guess this works both ways, in the sense that you could over pitch if you wanted a very clean neutral flavour from the yeast.

Yes that is true, over pitching can lead to less yeast character, although I think as long as you're sensible it is hard to overpitch too easily in home brew.

Under pitching is considered worse because not only can you stress the yeast causing off flavours you can get stuck brews , you also may get longer lag times which means other bacteria has a greater chance of fighting your yeast and also stressed yeast may be weaker less harvestable.

 

[trueblue]

Yeast is the most important ingredient we use so the yeast we use should be the most important choice we make. Dried yeast are convenient and easy but a certain amount of the "character" of the yeast will be lost in drying process and some strains are not suitable for drying. Don't be afraid of liquid yeast, yes they need a bit more handling but providing your sterilization is 100% the extra time is worth it you will also have a far wider range to try. A friend recently split the same wort into 2 batches and fermented 1 with liquid and 1 dried. Everyone drank them blind and everyone chose the liquid one as the best. As for price I get 6 23lt brews from each vial so it's probably cheaper than dried. If you can get live yeast from a local brewery that is even better.

 

[MyQul]

Just to add to trueblue's post there are ways and mean to get a lot more than 6 uses out of a liquid yeast. You also don't need to go to a brewery to get hold of a proprietary yeast. You can culture it up from a bottle conditioned beer. Also if you want to be tight you dont even need to use DME you can just use the wort from your beer, so it would cost about the same as a dried packet of yeast, tSo you can get hold of a nice characterful yeast strain for 2-3 quid. The same as it would cost for a dried strain. It would only take a bit of extra time and effort. But that's what HBing is all about. Right?