I remember reading here that US-05 is surprisingly cold tolerate - like down to 50F or so. I’ve been wondering since if it would make a good yeast for hybrid styles like cream ale. Has anyone tried it?
I’ve done US-05 down to 58 with no problems. Slightly slower than normal but still churns through. Some people may have gone lower but 58 is what I’ve done. I think it makes an incredibly clean beer at and under 60.
+1
I had it cold crash accidentally down to 45 and it was still working, this was after several days (I was on a trip). Managed to raise temp back up to 60s and had no problems with attenuation or off flavors.
You may be thinking lower than this but I’m fermenting right now with it at 62. It is happily going about it’s business. First time for me this low. Put it in the fermentor at 62 degrees last night at 6pm. This morning it was doing it’s thing. I usually use it at 65 to 68 but read it would make my APA get nice and crisp and clean. So what the heck, let’s see what happens!
I made a mistake of under pitching (I think) this weekend into an Altbier. Chilled the wort in the fridge over night down to 55F. Rehyrdrated one packet of US-05, aerated for a minute with pure O2. 36 hours, no activity, raised temp to 60, nothing. Ended up pitching another packet last night and have a krausen forming this morning. I probably should’ve pitched 2 packs. Gravity was 1.050 for 4 gallons (that’s the batch size I brew these days). Plus I rehydrated at 95F for 15 minutes, then pitched right into the wort, that probably wasn’t the best idea either…
Thoughts, anyone?
An 11 gram packet should be plenty for 4G of a 1.050 beer. They are twice the size of Red Star packets.
+1 it sounds like you maybe got a dead packet of yeast. properly rehydrated 1 packet of us=05 should have been more than enough for that batch. 95 for 15 minutes sounds good. did it get kind of creamy and goopy?
Do you mean you aerated the yeast that was rehydrating for 1 minutes of pure o2? cause it’s possible you killed the yeast with that.
Oh, no I didn’t aerate the yeast; the wort, then pitched the yeast. The yeast didn’t build up the foam on top when rehydrated, but I don’t think I gave it enough time. But it was milky looking. Mr Malty says 12 grams if I put the yeast as a few months old and a hybrid beer setting. Half a gram is nothing, yeast could’ve been dead or I shocked it pitching 95F yeast into 55F wort?
Just my 2 cents in on this. (NOT PREACHING!) I have been messing with yeast for over 40 years (mostly as a baker). Heat is the demise of yeast. You can keep it for a very long time (years) frozen or cold with just a little love. Heat above 100 degrees can be a killer. I have always curled my brow when I see anyone instructing people to rehydrate or activate yeast at anywhere near 100 degrees (sorry John Palmer!). Rehydrate dry yeast at 80 degrees AND USE A THERMOMETER. You CAN go higher then that but it is at your own risk. You can’t just guess though, go too high and you will kill the yeast.
FERMENTIS STATES: rehydration instructions
Sprinkle the yeast in minimum 10 times its weight of sterile water or wort at 27°C ± 3°C (80°F ± 6°F). Leave to rest 15 to 30 minutes.
Gently stir for 30 minutes, and pitch the resultant cream into the fermentation vessel.
Thanks for your input, Three. I will do this the next time I brew and see how much better I fare.
I guess I’ll follow this thread around the corner it’s taking…
I have been brewing about a year. Only once have I used dry yeast (S-05), and as in everything else I do, I researched rehydrating exhaustively and followed what I learned to the best of my ability. It was a bust. Nothing. I ran down to the LHBS and picked up some wet yeast and off it went.
I have been hearing about a peachy flavor that one can get if one ferments with S-05 at low temps, so I want to try again on an IPA I will be brewing this weekend. I am seriously thinking about following some of the advice I read which is to just pour 2 packets straight into the wort without rehydrating at all.
Thoughts?
The Alt that we served during club night was fermented with US05. Fairly clean fermenting, although I pickup on a fruity ester (peach or pear-like) that’s in the background flavor, even when fermented cold. It still makes a good beer, especially a hoppy American Ale style, but I’m uncertain about the effects on a Cream Ale style. There’s only one way to find out…
I never rehydrate 05 and I get great performance from a single pack on beers even in the 70s gravity range.
Thanks Denny!
This is just crazy to me. You’re some kind of anomaly, Denny.
Really? It doesn’t work for you?
I don’t know…not as well as you purport it does, I don’t think. Maybe I should try it again. I usually just rehydrate by boiling 8oz of water in a mason jar for 3 minutes in the microwave at the beginning of the brew session, wait for it to come down to 95F, dump the yeast in, and let it rehydrate for the rest of the brew session. It’s pretty easy. My last lager, I did that with 34/70, and stuck it in the fridge over night with my wort while it cooled to pitching temp. That worked out pretty well also.
I do what Denny says.
+1
Using it dry in a fermenting bucket has always worked for me as well. It may be an extra step but I find it easier to hydrate before I pour it into a carboy…