The Yeast Zone -- Yeast Strains
This page summarizes my experiences with various yeast strains. The list is currently limited to strains with which I have personal experience; it is not meant to be a comprehensive list of yeast strains available to the homebrewer. Where the manufacturer has provided a description of the strain, I give the manufacturer's description first, followed by my own comments.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me (uchima@pobox.com).
For some of the strains, I've also included comments made by other home brewers (as indicated).
Wyeast
Wyeast "Brewer's Choice" is still my preferred yeast. While not as convenient as dry yeast or the White Labs "pitchable" yeast, Wyeast still has the best selection of yeast strains, in the easy-to-use "smack pack" packaging.
For best results, you should make a starter when using Wyeast.
A comprehensive list of available Wyeast strains is located on their Web site, here.
1007 German Ale
Wyeast says: Ferments dry and crisp, leaving a complex but mild flavor. Produces an extremely rocky head and ferments well down to 55°F. Flocculation - low; apparent attenuation - 73-77%. (55-66°F).
Of the ale strains I've used, this one seems to be the most "lager-like", especially if fermented in the lower half of its temperature range. It tends to produce a noticeable sulfury or rotten egg odor during fermentation; do not panic -- the odor typically dissipates after a couple of weeks. You may also notice a slight sulfury odor if you bottle condition, and open a bottle before conditioning is complete.
This is rumored to be an Alt strain, from a German Alt brewery. I have used it in my own Alt (Apocalypse Alt), with very pleasing results.
1028 London Ale
Wyeast says: Rich with a dry finish, minerally profile, bold and crisp, with some fruitiness. Flocculation medium; apparent attenuation 73-77%. (60-72o F).
This is one of my "workhorse" strains. I've used it for pretty much the entire spectrum of British styles, from Milds to Barleywines, with good results. Has a lot more character than the American Ale strains, with a signature "British" flavor which many people (myself included) seem to like, while others seem to find it objectionable. Can produce a bit of diacetyl. More predictable than the 1098 British Ale strain. Alcohol tolerance is good -- it took a 1.096 OG Barleywine down to a FG of 1.022.
Rumored to be the Bass strain.
1056 American Ale
Wyeast says: Used commercially for several classic American ales. This strain ferments dry, finishes soft, smooth and clean, and is very well balanced. Flocculation - low to medium; apparent attenuation - 73-77%. (60-72°F).
One of the most neutral of the ale strains. A good yeast to use if you want the yeast to simply stay out of the way, leaving the focus on the malt and hops. Can be very slow to settle out, so you may want to use finings (e.g. gelatin) if you don't want to wait a long time for clear beer. Other brewers I trust have indicated that this is a good yeast for Barleywines, though I have never personally used it for one. Also not a bad choice for "pseudo-lagers".
This strain is also know as "Chico Ale", and is supposedly the Sierra Nevada strain.
Other brewers' comments:
Drew Avis (andrew_avis@hotmail.com) says: [Wyeast 1056] is extremely temperature hardy, and ferments clean at higher temps (75-80F), or at least much cleaner than most other yeasts.
1084 Irish Ale Yeast
Wyeast says: Slight residual diacetyl and fruitiness; great for stouts. Clean, smooth, soft and full-bodied. Flocculation - medium; apparent attenuation - 71-75%. (62-72°F).
Sort of like a slightly cleaner version of 1028, but with a touch more diacetyl. If fermented warm (>70°F), seems to produce a pronounced tart fruitiness.
Claimed to be the Guinness strain. It is worth noting that Guinness supposedly allows their fermentation temperature to rise into the mid-70s. I wonder how much of the signature Guinness "tang" is actually due to the high fermentation temperature, and not to the (rumored) procedure of blending it with soured beer?
1098 British Ale Yeast
Wyeast says: From Whitbread. Ferments dry and crisp, slightly tart, fruity and well-balanced. Ferments well down to 65°F. Flocculation - medium; apparent attenuation - 73-75%. (64-72°F).
When it's good, it is very good. But (for me at least) this strain has been somewhat unpredictable. I have had batches with over-the-top esters, as well as a stuck fermentation with this yeast. Haven't used it in several years; maybe I should give it another chance.
I have heard that this may be a mixed culture (multiple different strains of yeast), though the Wyeast literature makes no mention of that fact. If true, then perhaps this explains the variability I have experienced with this yeast -- it is certainly plausible that the fermentation characteristics could vary widely, depending on which strain(s) from the mixed culture ultimately dominate the fermentation.
1214 Belgian Ale
Wyeast says: Abbey-style top-fermenting yeast, suitable for high-gravity beers. Estery. Flocculation - medium; apparent attenuation 72-76%. (58-68oF).
To say that this yeast has "a lot of character" would be an understatement. Fruity esters in abundance, and a touch of spiciness (phenolics) put this yeast in the "not for the faint of heart" category.
In general, I think you want to ferment this yeast in the lower part of its temperature range. However, I did have trouble with diacetyl on one batch that was fermented at around 60F.
This is supposedly the Chimay strain. I would tend to agree; if not identical, it is at least similar.
1272 American Ale II
Wyeast says: Fruitier and more flocculent than 1056, slightly nutty, soft, clean, slightly tart finish. Flocculation - high; apparent attenuation - 72-76%. (60-72°F).
This is probably my second most frequently used yeast, after Wyeast 1028. (My local shop finally started stocking it, after I had them special-order it multiple times.) It lacks the diacetyl and "British" character of 1028/1084, but has a crisp, slightly fruity tartness that is lacking in the cleaner Wyeast strains (e.g. 1007/1056). Flavor-wise, this is a terrific "middle of the road" ale yeast, in my opinion.
This is the yeast I use for my Dragon's Breath IPA.
This yeast can be somewhat scary looking during fermentation if you're not used to it, and requires some special handling for best results. As fermentation activity starts to slow down, it typically produces a thick layer of yeast and large, slimy looking bubbles on top of the fermenting wort (it's a true top cropper). The first time I used it, it looked so weird, I was sure I had infected the batch somehow. What you want to do at this point is give the fermenter a gentle shake (i.e. slosh it back and forth a couple of times), to get all that yeast floating on top of the wort back into suspension. Keep doing this once every 1-2 days, until the layer of yeast that forms on top of the beer is significantly smaller than on previous days; now you are ready to rack to your secondary. If you don't rouse the yeast this way, it will take forever to ferment out, and may also foul the airlock on your secondary (the agitation of racking will cause it to take off again).
Unlike the other high flocculation yeasts I've used (e.g. Wyeast 1728/2112, White Labs WLP002), it actually takes quite a long time for beer brewed with this yeast to "fall clear". This is probably the result of this yeast's tendency to float up to the top of the beer when it flocculates, rather than settling to the bottom of the fermenter.
I'm really tempted to try doing an open fermentation with this yeast sometime, so I can try harvesting yeast off the top by skimming...
I have heard rumors that this may be the Rogue "Pacman" strain. My personal opinion (based on taste) is that it is similar to the Anchor Liberty yeast.
For a picture of what a true top-cropping yeast strain looks like during fermentation, click here.
1728 Scottish Ale
Wyeast says: Ideally suited for Scottish-style ales, and high-gravity ales of all types. Flocculation - high; apparent attenuation - 69-73%. (55-70°F).
Another personal favorite. In addition to Scottish-style ales, I like to use this yeast for Porters (e.g. Kitchen Sink Porter). Quite clean if fermented cool, with some residual sweetness.
Wyeast's description used to indicate that this strain produces a smoky character. For what it's worth, I have never gotten a smoky character from this yeast. The current description on Wyeast's Web site (quoted above) no longer mentions a smoky character either.
2112 California Lager
Wyeast says: Particularly suited for producing 19th century-style West Coast beers. Retains lager characteristics at temperatures up to 65°F, and produces malty, brilliantly-clear beers. Flocculation high; apparent attenuation 67-71 %. (58-68°F).
Oddly enough, I have never actually used this yeast to brew a California Common (a.k.a. Steam Beer), which is the style that it is intended for. I have used it to brew a couple of "pseudo-lagers", at somewhat elevated (for lager) temperatures -- fermentation was carried out at around 60°F. I was happy with the results.
Tends to drop out before fermentation is complete; you'll need to rouse it periodically, if you want fermentation to finish in a reasonable amount of time.
2565 Kolsch
Wyeast says: A hybrid of ale and lager characteristics. This strain develops excellent maltiness with subdued fruitiness, and a crisp finish. Ferments well at moderate temperatures. Flocculation low; apparent attenuation 73-77%. (56-64°F).
I've only used this strain once, so you can take these comments with a grain of salt. (Or would that be a grain of priming sugar?)
On someone else's advice, I tried using this yeast for an Alt. Now, I'm not gonna claim that I've tasted a lot of commercial examples of Alt (or Kolsch, for that matter). However, to my palate, the resulting beer really did taste kind of like a Dark Kolsch -- or at least, what I imagine a Dark Kolsch would taste like, if such a thing existed. Even though it was fermented cool, there was a more noticeable fruity character than with the Wyeast 1007.
I've never actually tried to brew a Kolsch, and would like to attempt one sometime soon... I think I will be giving this yeast another go-round, this time in the style of beer it is intended for.
3068 Weihenstephan Weizen
Wyeast says: Unique top-fermenting yeast which produces the unique and spicy weizen character, rich with clove, vanilla and banana. Best results are achieved when fermentations are held around 68°F. Flocculation low; apparent attenuation 73-77%. (64-75°F).
This yeast can make an exceptionally good German-style Weizen. However, getting the right balance between the spiciness (clove) and fruitiness (banana) seems to be tricky. Fermentation temperature, pitching rate, and amount of aeration all supposedly have a significant effect on the final flavor. While not nearly as off-the-wall unpredictable as a Schneider Weisse bottle culture, I would have to say that this strain is not as consistent as I'd like.
If you have any personal insights on how to achieve consistent results with this yeast, I'd like to hear from you!
White Labs
White Labs has an interesting concept: provide a "ready to pitch" quantity of yeast, equivalent to a 1 pint starter. Provided that you get it reasonably fresh, and use it soon after you purchase it, the concept works. You can get more control and variety than is available with dry yeast, without the inconvenience of always having to make a starter.
Note: If the vial is more than a few weeks old, or if you are planning to use it in a high-gravity beer, you should make a starter culture anyway, to ensure that there are enough viable yeast cells to give you a healthy fermentation.
I haven't been using White Labs for anywhere near as long as Wyeast; hence I don't have the volume of experience with their strains as I have with Wyeast's. I'll continue to update this section as I become more familiar with their offerings.
A comprehensive list of available White Labs yeast strains is located on their Web site, here.
WLP002 English Ale
White Labs says: A classic ESB strain from one of England's largest breweries. This yeast is best suited for English style ales including milds, bitters, porters, and English style stouts. This leaves behind some residual sweetness. Attenuation: 63-70%. Flocculation: Very High. Optimum Fermentation Temperature: 65-68°F.
Seems pretty clean. This has got to be the most flocculent yeast I have ever used -- this yeast settles out into a dense, sticky layer on the bottom of the fermenter, leaving an exceptionally clear beer. Attempts to rouse the yeast (via mechanical agitation) resulted in large chunks of flocculated yeast -- resembling cottage cheese in appearance -- floating in the beer. Needless to say, within an hour or two, the yeast had settled out again.
Can take a very long time (4+ weeks) to carbonate in the bottle. This is not unexpected, given how flocculent this yeast is; there likely wasn't much of it carried over into the bottles to ferment the priming sugar. This yeast is probably more suited to beers which will be kegged and force carbonated (as opposed to bottle conditioned), or for "Real Ale".
WLP028 Edinburgh Ale
White Labs says: Scotland is famous for its malty, strong ales. This yeast can reproduce complex, flavorful Scottish style ales. Attenuation: 70-75%. Flocculation: Medium. Optimum Fermentation Temperature: 65-70°F. Does not ferment well under 62°F.
Seems to be slightly more estery (fruitier) than the Wyeast Scottish (1728), and perhaps a touch less malty.
WLP500 Trappist Ale Yeast
White Labs says: From one of the six Trappist breweries remaining in the world, this yeast produces the distinctive fruitiness and plum characteristics. Excellent yeast for high gravity beers, Belgian Ales, dubbels, and trippels [sic]. Attenuation: 73-78%. Flocculation: Medium to low. Optimum Temperature: should be held below 65°F for best results.
Seems to be similar to Wyeast 1214. Estery, and slightly phenolic. Makes an execllent Tripel.
Dry Yeast
You can't beat the convenience of dry yeast; it is always ready, and will literally keep for months in the refrigerator. The price you pay for this convenience is lack of variety.
Coopers
Crisp and slightly fruity. Very flocculent.
Danstar Nottingham
One of the cleanest (if not the cleanest) dry yeast currently on the market.
Also known to be fairly alcohol tolerant; a lot of people use it for Barleywines.
Edme
I have had reasonably good results with this dry yeast in the past. Almost as clean as the Danstar Nottingham. I believe it may no longer be on the market.
Muntons
This is the yeast I used for my first few batches of homebrew, and occasionally thereafter. It is very reliable, and a fast fermenter -- the legendary volcanic, "2 day flash ferment" is not uncommon with this yeast.
Not as clean as Danstar Nottingham; lots of banana ester if fermented too warm.
Bottle Cultures
It is possible to ferment homebrew using yeast grown from a bottle of commercial beer. This is only practical if the commercial beer is unfiltered and bottle conditioned; if there is a layer of sediment on the bottom of the bottle, then there is a chance you may be able to salvage some viable yeast.
Be aware that some bottle conditioned commercial beers actually have a different yeast added at bottling time, so the results may not be what you'd expect.
To culture yeast from a bottle of commercial beer, carefully decant (and drink) most of the beer. Then swirl up the dregs, and dump them into a starter (alternatively, the cooled, aerated starter wort can be added directly to the bottle after the beer has been decanted, and a small stopper and airlock placed on the beer bottle). If the starter ferments out, taste a little of the fermented out starter wort; if there are no off flavors, step the starter up again before using the yeast.
Chimay
I've brewed some very nice Trappist-style beers using Chimay yeast. The resulting beers do seem to have a bit of a rough edge when young though. This roughness ages out, and after a few months, the resulting beer is very good, with an unmistakable Chimay character.
Wyeast 1214 is allegedly the Chimay strain; however, my results using an actual Chimay bottle culture were somewhat more "Chimay-like" than what I obtained from Wyeast 1214.
Schneider Weisse
This is supposedly one of the few commercial Weizens which is actually bottled with the original fermentation yeast. I have brewed a couple of excellent Weizens with this yeast (one of them even took a ribbon in a competition). I have also brewed a couple of truly horrific beers with it -- two of the only three batches of beer I've ever dumped, to be precise.
If you're in an adventurous mood, give it a try. But you have been warned!
If you can figure out how to get consistent results from this yeast, I'd like to hear from you!
Copyright © 2000 by Michael Uchima, All Rights Reserved
(Posted to Web February 2, 2000; last updated February 4, 2000)