| Yeast FAQs |
Can I use the yeast I buy in the supermarket
or health food
store to make beer or wine? |
| No. Bread yeast is
specifically cultured to make bread, beer yeast cultured for beer
and wine yeast for wine. If you try to use one for the other, you
will be disappointed with the results, and you most likely will
not get what you wanted. In the worst case, you will have to throw
out the whole batch. The brewer's yeast available in health food
stores is a nutritional product, and will not ferment. |
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What's the difference between dry and
liquid yeast? |
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The advantages of dried beer yeast are that it is simple to use,
usually very active and foolproof. One can significantly improve
the performance of dried yeasts (and consequently the flavor of
your beer) by properly rehydrating it. Do this by adding the dried
yeast to a sanitized glass jar filled with 1-1.5 cups of 90-100 F
tap water. Cover with clean foil and let rehydrate for 15-30
minutes, then bring the temperature of the rehydrated yeast close
to that of the wort and pitch. One of the premier advantages of
liquid yeast is the selection one encounters. Nowadays and
especially to the novice, there is an overwhelming selection to
choose from. Many of the liquid strains of yeast have been
obtained from breweries in brewing centers from around the world
and therefore afford the home brewer the greatest possible chance
to replicate the beers styles, which made these cities famous.
Yeast is arguably the most important ingredient in beer and indeed
certain styles of beer cannot even be approximated without the use
of the correct yeast strain.
Liquid yeast is found in two forms, either slap-pack or
Activator. The slap-packs have a smaller yeast culture in
them and are best utilized in conjunction with a yeast starter.
The Activators, generally, have a large enough culture
starting out that they can be pitched directly into 5 gallons of
wort with a specific gravity up to 1.050 without the use of a
yeast starter. All they require is removal from the refrigerator
to a room temperature environment for 4-5 hours prior to their
use. |
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What is the difference between ale and
lager yeast? |
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Brewers yeast is categorized into two main varieties. They are classified as
ale yeast (top-fermenting type, Saccharomyces cerevisiae) or lager yeast
(bottom-fermenting type, Saccharomyces uvarum). These two varieties are
further broken down into categories of specific strains. There are hundreds
of strains of both ale and lager yeasts.
Ale yeast is a variety of yeast that is best used at temperatures ranging
from 65-75 degrees F with certain ale strains performing well and indeed
optimally as low as 55 degrees F. Lower temperatures tend to inhibit
fermentation; some strains will not ferment below 50 degrees F. Some strains
of ale yeast exhibit a tendency to flocculate at the surface of the
fermenting beer during the first few days of fermentation, hence the term
"top-fermenting."
Lager yeast is a variety of yeast that is best used at temperatures ranging
from 45-55 degrees F with certain lager strains performing well at
temperatures as low as 32 degrees F. The desired "smoothness" of lager beers
is best achieved from fermentations carried out at the lower end of this
temperature range for anywhere from three weeks to many months. All strains
of lager yeast will flocculate and then settle to the bottom of the
fermenting vessel, hence the term "bottom fermenting." |
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What is a yeast starter and how do I prepare
one? |
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A yeast starter is essentially a "mini-beer." It is used as an intermediary
step whereby one goes from having a small culture of yeast to ending up with
a considerably larger culture. Your aim is to provide your brew with a
sufficient colony of yeast, to reduce lag time, obtain optimum attenuation
from the selected yeast strain, and to prevent "off" or unintended flavors
from ending up in the finished product that can be caused by under-pitching
yeast.
If you are using a 1.75 oz. Wyeast slap-pack you will need to remove it from
refrigeration, slap the pack and allow the yeast to activate and expand the
pack. Allow the pack to swell to at least an inch thick before pitching into
your starter. Mix 16 ounces of water and 1/3 to ½ cup of malt extract
together and bring to a boil for 15 minutes. Cool this mixture to proper
pitching temperature (65-75 for most ales, 45-55 for most lagers) and then
pitch the yeast. A healthy froth on the yeast starter should develop after 1
or 2 days at which point the yeast is ready to be pitched. (Added to the
wort).
Add the yeast starter to your wort after it has been cooled below 80 degrees
F (for ales) and preferably to 75 degrees or below. If you are making a
lager, chill to recommended lager fermentation temperatures before pitching.
Signs of fermentation should be evident within 24 hours if you have treated
the yeast correctly. |
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What type of Yeast do
you carry? |
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With all the time and effort homebrewers put into their
beer recipes sometimes the importance of yeast is overlooked. Yeast can effect the taste
of beer more than malt, hops or specialty grains. There are two forms of yeast’s used
in homebrewing. Dry yeast and Liquid yeast. Wyeast Laboratories and White Labs offer
liquid yeast’s that are cultured strains of a specific yeast. These pure strains
produce consistent results and are highly recommended for many styles of beer. (Notably;
Light Ales, Lagers, Belgian Ales, Wheat , Steam and Specialty Beers) These strains produce
very specific flavors. Fruity, Sweet, Dry, Crisp, Spicy, Nutty, and Tart to name a few.
Wyeast strains are available in 1.75 and Ready-to-use Activators. Making a yeast
starter with the 1.75 oz. packs is recommended for lagers and high gravity beers. White
labs yeast’s with 30-50 billion yeast cells per vial are the equivalent of one pint
of yeast starter. Overall, liquid yeasts allow you to duplicate recipes with consistent
results.
Dry yeast’s have improved in recent years. They are reliable after months of
storage and are very easy to use. The disadvantage of using dry yeast’s are
inconsistent results. You can make the same recipe twice with a dry yeast and have 2
different tasting beers. The will taste good, but not necessarily the same.
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What are my yeast size
options? |
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Midwest Homebrewing Supplies has various yeast options for
our homebrew kits. 1.75 oz Wyeast packs are pure strains of liquid beer yeast in self
contained foil packs. They require activation 24-48 hours before brewing. This is easily
done by holding the yeast pack in your hand and hitting it with your other hand. This
ruptures the yeast culture inside the pack. Within 24-48 your yeast is activated and ready
to use. When you’re ready to add the yeast, simply cut the yeast pack open and add to
your wort/beer. 1.75 oz. packs (000W) are available for an additional $3.00. Wyeast
now offers their yeast strains in Activators. The easy-to-use package contains 150
mls (approx. 6 oz) of pure yeast in a UV light protected tube. These Activators are
ready to use right out of the refrigerator. Wyeast Activators (000ACT) are
available for an additional $4.00. White Labs Yeast vials are ready to use right out of
the refrigerator. No more waiting for incubation. White lab vials also contain 8 times as
much yeast as a small Wyeast pack. White Lab vials (000WL) are available for an
additional $5.00. Brew your favorite recipe kits and compare these yeasts for yourself. |
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