I had a chance to use this yeast for a few batches this summer and I have to say im blown away and surprised its not more popular. The temp range on this stuff is crazy and I pushed it to see if this was true. I fermented in 80 degree temps with no off flavors in fact one batch stalled so I checked gravity and knew it wasn’t done so I threw it on the deck in the sun and it started chugging away within a half hour- stuff is amazing- just my 2 cents. This yeast is a game changer for guys like me in the summer. Anybody else using this stuff?
I’ve used it for a blonde and an IPA. Both fermented at ambient, so between 75-80. I thought it was very clean too, especially in the blonde where I might expect off flavors to be more easily identified. I’m probably using it in my next brew as well. I control temps with a swamp cooler so it’s nice to not have to switch out frozen bottles all the time.
What other styles have people brewed successfully?
I used it for an IPA that turned out well. Ferment temp was approx 74°F. Then I used some of the yeast cake to ferment a barleywine. Ferment temp was also approx 74°F. Clean, no fusels with a tropical fruit flavor and aroma from the Topaz hops used late in the boil. I really like the hothead ale yeast for warm weather brewing!
I thought about trying this yeast sometime. Especially since my LHBS only carries Omega Labs Yeast.
I have several packs on order and can’t wait to try it in place of the WY1056 I would normally use for American IPA’s. I am thinking about using it for my Modern Times Blazing World clone I will brew next week. My LHBS doesn’t carry it, so I got ordered it from Northern Brewer.
Is this strain only available from Omega Labs?
Is this one of those Kveck (sp?) yeasts?
This is an isolate from Stein Langlo’s Stranda Kveik. As far as I know, Omega is the only lab culturing this isolate.
This really sounds to me like the lazy man’s treasure. I built a MOFC (Mother of Fermentation Chiller) years ago, and it has worked great for ales and even lagers. Life is getting busier now with three sons and a hobby farm in the works, so Hot Head sounds really tempting to me. I’m headed to NB this weekend and may pick up a pack if I can find a freshie. Thanks for sharing your impressions.
The Yeast Bay also has the Sigmund’s Voss Kviek which is very similar, if not the same
-Josh Peanasky
Omega also have a strain called Voss Kviek: http://www.omegayeast.com/portfolio/voss-kveik/
My experience hs been really positive with this yeast. Its relly odd but it prefers to be warmer and no off flavors at all. I turned my neighbor on to it and he loves it too. You need to monitor the gravity a little closer cause it wil stop prematurely if its to chilly like 65 to 68!!! Once last sumer it wasnt done only around 50% attenution so i threw it on the deck in the sun and withing 15 min the bubbler was going. So far i love this stuff but only use it in the summer.
I did in fact brew the Blazing World clone using the Hot Head yeast. It started fast and kept going strong for 3 days with this recipe (OG = 1.067). I have it in a temperature-stable area at 68F - 70F. This brew was a 3-gallon brew using 1 yeast pack, no starter, 6 hours warm-up time.
I plan on checking the gravity on Friday. It’s going to be a warm sunny weekend, so if it needs a little finishing time, I may do what others have done and let this one heat up a while!
Not to be rude, but putting a carboy full of beer in the sun would be the LAST thing I would do. I did a skunking experiment once, with cream ale in Corona bottles. They were noticeably skunked after about 7 minutes, and it got considerably worse with samples exposed in various amounts up to about 45 min. I wish I could post you the pictures of this trial, but the NB forum has purged a ton of its core content. 
[quote=“el_capitan, post:14, topic:24066, username:el_capitan”]
Not to be rude, but putting a carboy full of beer in the sun would be the LAST thing I would do. I did a skunking experiment once, with cream ale in Corona bottles. They were noticeably skunked after about 7 minutes, and it got considerably worse with samples exposed in various amounts up to about 45 min. I wish I could post you the pictures of this trial, but the NB forum has purged a ton of its core content.
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I ferment in white plastic buckets. I know what your saying though- good point! Not recomended to throw glas carboy in the sun. Im not a fan of glass anyhow.]
I have now used the Hot Head Ale yeast on two batches, both of which fermented heavy and fast. I got both from NB, and they had production dates of less than one month before I pitched them.
The first was a Blazing World clone, which fermented from OG=1.066 to FG=1.010 in 4 days. The other was a Pliny the Elder clone, with almost the same fermentation rate. Both were fermented at 68-72F.
This is now my #1 yeast choice.
My grandfather used to brew with this sort of yeast back in the 50, 60 and 70ties. He was from Voss/Norway. He even malted his own grains. Often they started to consume the beer the same week as they pitched the yeast/kveik. Since it can ferment so fast they could start to make beer for a funeral when a person died, or was dying and be able to serve it after the funeral. He would rose a stick in the fermenting worth at high Krausen and hang it to dry. When he brewed again, he would swirl the stick in the wort and fermentation would start again. I never actually tasted he’s beer because I was to young at the time, now I could have the possibility to try something in the ballpark of what he was making. That’s cool.
That stick sounds like what I have heard (not sure of accuracy) about people brewing before they understood the existence of yeast. A family would have a mash paddle that was used in every batch and fermentation started. The paddles were often handed down from generation to generation to enable the family to keep brewing even after the brewer had passed on.
I have now brewed 4 batches of beer with the Omega Hot-Head Ale yeast, and they all finished FG<1.012 and all were fantastic IPA’s. Each had a OG of <1.07. I have also gotten similar results in 3 other batches using the Omega DIPA Ale yeast.
These are the only 2 liquid yeasts I use now since they perform so well. For dry yeasts, I have not found anything better than Safale US-05 or Safale S-04.