Planning on brewing a “lager” but don’t yet have the ability to ferment below 60. Anyone know an ale yeast that tastes close to a crisp lager.
Thanks
There are a few of them. WLP029 is a Kolsch yeast. 2565 from Wyeast is another Kolsch yeast. Wyeast 2112 Cal lager is another one. WLP810 also.
I like wlp001 for faux lagers. Very clean and crisp. Keep it as cool as you can 60-62F is great. It doesn’t taste exactly like a lager but it is very close. I personally think it’s better than Kolsch yeast because Kolsch yeast tastes like Kolsch 
PS. Do not try this with US-05. It is NOT the same as wlp001. US-05 imparts a very noticeable peach ester in light lager grain bills.
PS. lager to me is Helles/Dort. If your making something with dark Malts or lots of hops, the Kolsch flavor may be masked by those flavors.
S-189, 1007, and 2565 are your best bets IMO. I haven’t used K-97 yet but it’s next on my list to try. I did use S-189 lager yeast in the 60s not long ago and it turned out great. Won me a silver medal in a BJCP competition. Looked up my notes… 64 F to be precise.
FYI, genetically speaking, WLP029 isn’t a German yeast at all. It’s a very clean British ale yeast, closely related to WLP002 & WLP007. But it’s a decent option.
I agree with tommymorris about US-05 not being the same as standard Chico 1056/WLP001. It’s not the same, and it does produce the peach when cold.
wlp810 San Francisco lager yeast will work. Temperature range from 58 to 65.
Fermentis W-34/70 remains clean and crisp at moderate ale fermentation temperatures.
Dave, OT, but… I haven’t spotted WLP029 on suregork’s trees. Where did you find this?
I’m gonna jump in here and say don’t use 2565 for a lager. It has a distinctive windy flavor that’s great for kitsch and totally out of place in other styles.
Hidden in the little comment details on suregork’s page. Comment from qq dated 5/9/18, almost all the way down the page at:
http://beer.suregork.com/?p=4000
qq provides a link to a smaller study that shows the relationship:
Cheers!
If you can ferment in the mid to low 60s I would recommend this approach.
Wyeast pacman yeast made me a pretty good faux pilsner a while back fermented at 72.
So I looked into WLP810 after reading responses. Lager yeast that is happy up to 65 degrees. Anyone have experience with it? Taste profile? I could definitely kee it at 60-62.
Thanks.
WLP810 makes good beer. I’ve only used it twice so I don’t have strong opinions but it’s good. However I still prefer very much the 1007 which is simply excellent.
Very much agreed.
I’ve brewed a Cream Ale and an Oktoberfest with Wyeast 2112. I was very pleased with the results. It really gave the beers that lager characteristic after properly lagered after fermentation.
STRAIN: 2112
CALIFORNIA LAGER [emoji769]
Species: Saccharomyces pastorianus
This strain is particularly well suited for producing California Common-style beers. It retains lager characteristics at temperatures up to 65°F (18°C) and produces malty, brilliantly clear beers. This strain is not recommended for cold temperature fermentation.
HIGH
FLOCCULATION
67 - 71
ATTENUATION
58 - 68
TEMPERATURE RANGE
9
AB
Fermentis K-97 German Ale yeast should give you lager like results if you can keep fermentation at no higher than 63 degrees F. It’s rated apparent attenuation is a bit higher than some lager yeasts.