I was planning to brew a Belgian Dark Strong tomorrow. I found 2 expired (but just January) packs of yeast at one LHBS, and ordered two more from MoreBeer out of CA. I paid extra for the ‘cool pack’ because even though it is Spring, stuff happens. The packs from CA arrived at ambient temperature. No residual coolness at all.
So four packets… into a 1.038 starter wort. Nothing. Zip. Zero. Nada.
I’ve had it. We have two LHBS’s in Yakima. Last Fall I had the same experience with yeast from the other LHBS, so I went back to the store with a thermometer and stuck it in their yeast ‘fridge.’ 27*!
Yeast costs way too much to be rolling the dice with dead packets. Dry yeast it is.
I use mostly dry yeast. But yeah, certain styles just aren’t the same with dry yeast, so I take the chance every once in a long while to buy some liquid kolsch or biere de garde yeast.
For me in Spokane when ordering from MoreBeer, I’ve found it helps to buy four ice packs for two packs of liquid yeast, and more in summer, and via online delivery notification be sure I can get home within about 15 minutes from time of delivery on my porch. Shipping up here and coming from warm California, in my experience we need thermal protection that only extra ice packs can provide…usually. That’s worked for me without having to pay overnight shipping.
That is true. Nowhere can one find 1450 except in liquid form, and that is a great yeast. But the range is getting greater all the time! I think I’ll go with Mangrove Jack’s M31 Belgian tripel for tomorrow. But that’s assuming what I ordered will be there!
“I was planning to brew a Belgian Dark Strong tomorrow. I found 2 expired (but just January) packs of yeast at one LHBS, and ordered two more from MoreBeer out of CA. I paid extra for the ‘cool pack’ because even though it is Spring, stuff happens. The packs from CA arrived at ambient temperature. No residual coolness at all.”
I live in the Sacramento area and order from MoreBeer all the time, from the Pittsburg, CA location you ordered from. Whenever I order liquid yeast from them I always pay for the cool pack thing. I always get the order the day after it ships because of how close I am, and the yeast and ice pack (even in the insulated envelope) have always been ambient temp. They have never been cold, or even slightly cool, upon receipt. I suspect they just slightly refrigerate the ice packs rather than freeze them, so that they warm up quickly. It’s a bummer. So I try not to order yeast from MoreBeer. On the other hand, I also order a lot from Williams Brewing (in San Leandro, CA, same general area as MoreBeer). And from them, I always receive cold yeast, even if I order just the ice pack and not the warranty yeast-shipper thing. I’d go with Williams over MoreBeer if ordering liquid yeast.
What about the fermentis Abbaye? Reportedly good results if you under pitch it. I have only used it as a re-yeast for bottling but was planning on splitting a batch of patersbier and comparing it to 3787.
This is my approach as well. If there was a solid dry kolsch yeast out there I probably would use 100% dry yeast. It all comes down to what styles you brew. These days mine are mostly lagers, American ales, or some type of hybrid/non-traditional style
I primarily use 05, 34/70, and K97 but will use S04 and Belle Saison once a year or so.
When I do use liquid, I have grown quite fond of Imperial.
Count me in the same camp. I don’t have a LHBS with hours that work for my work and family schedule, plus a lot of my brew days are relatively short notice. I keep enough grain and hops on hand to throw together almost any recipe I’d want on short notice, and dry yeast keeps me covered on the yeast side as well.
I primarily use 34/70, US-05 and Belle Saison, plus 71B for mead and D47 for cider. I’ll occasionally use S-04 and BRY-97. I also need to do more experimenting with Danstar’s London ESB,
If I want to brew with a liquid yeast, I need to plan it out in advance and order onine.
Same here. I am like 95% dry. Now that most all of us would agree the dry is considered as good as liquid, I say it’s just a matter of time before we get more dry strains. Due to life and schedule I was “forced” to dry, boy what surprise! Sure 05 worked fine but I tried with SO4 and had good results so on a whim I decided to try WB06 on a hefe and it was the game changer for me. The key is to review the results of posters and see if the flavor profile matches what you are after. IE WB06 is NOT a banana clove hefe yeast. It is the apricot/vanilla bright type. I did a NGP with 3470 at low 60s and it was fab as well. (I am BJCP btw)
Abbaye all the way on that! I suspect it is Rochefort. I really wish someone would get a dry yeast origin chart going. IE belle saison is 3711, SO4 is Whitbread, WB06 is 3638, etc.
The yeast bay has new packaging that is a huge improvement from past types. Basically a mini Styrofoam cooler that your yeast comes in. Sorry about your dead yeast
“I say it’s just a matter of time before we get more dry strains”…I think it’s more a matter of biology. There are a lot of strains that just don’t dry well I’m told.
I’m working on a couple of equivalency experiments myself this year, but I’m also very busy at the moment and haven’t brewed in months so it’s going to take way longer than I’d like. FWIW, for several years already, I’ve been collecting notes from all over the interwebs about dry yeasts trying to figure out what’s what. If anyone ever wants to ask for my notes for their own experiments, let me know and I might be able to give you a couple ideas of what might be equivalent but that I probably haven’t tested myself yet. If we all work together I think this would go much quicker than if I just try to do it myself – that would probably take 10 or 15 years! I’m always either so busy and/or so lazy, it ain’t funny. But I do have tasting notes collected from all over the place, many of which are tallied with the most common comments rising to a top summary kind of thing. Sources, not recorded, there would be way too many. Just summarized notes. I’m somewhat of an absent minded professor, not the greatest at keeping organized, but hey, it’s a starting point if nothing else. I also might have notes to the effect of such and such yeast is “definitely NOT equivalent” or some such thing. Sometimes half the battle is knowing what NOT to try! But yes… I fully intend that eventually I shall become a >95% dry yeast brewer.
Also, very funny you should mention Abbaye, WB-06, and 3638… those are precisely 3 of the yeasts that I have selected to play with and have in my fridge right now! I intend to underpitch the living heck out of all of these to stress them out big time. No mrmalty.com size pitches, or if I do then it would be as a “control” batch only, not expecting big flavors from a normal size pitch. Trying to confirm whether an underpitch is effective at improving flavors in hefes and Belgians, while also toying with different strains to see what does what. The trouble with all my experiments is that I always seem to want to test 3 or 4 variables at the same time. I can only split a small 2-gallon batch so many different ways before it becomes a few ounces of this batch or the other, and it makes little sense for me to brew bigger batches because I don’t drink much either. I’m truly messed up I guess! ;D
Am I the only one who has had better luck with liquid yeast as opposed to dry yeast?
I’ve tried rehydrating, pitching straight, pitching two packs straight as opposed to one, two hydrated packs, etc…but the beers are never as if they were pitched with liquid yeast.
And I’m talking about US-05 and S-04. I agree, it makes no sense, but I haven’t had much luck with dry yeast.