My next brew will be a Saison. It will be light, at 5%. I am trying to highlight the yeast. According to Wyeast, this yeast’s temperature range is 65-77F. Those of you that are familiar with it, what temperature to you recommend?
Personally, I like to hold 65-66F for 48 hrs, then ramp a couple dF/day up to upper 70s.
Thanks Jon. Do you get good ester production at that temp? I was thinking hotter was the way to go.
I’d keep in the 60s for a whole week before ramping up. Then give it time. It can take up to a full month before the last few sugars are eaten up by this yeast. You’ll still get your Belgiany esters.
Yeah, holding the first couple days @ 65ish keeps the esters from being over the top, but slow ramping after a couple days gives me the nice ester level I’m after. I know people ferment saison strains all over the map. Just me.
Thanks guys, that’s what I wanted to know!
I avoid the higher temps. I have found that high temps lead to faster ferments, but the beer isn’t drinkable for a couple of months due to higher alcohols. The beers are great after a few months, so I guess it depends on what you are going for
I’ve noticed this as well. If you wait them out they can be great but I usually stick with less extreme high temp ranges for saison fermentations these days as it still provides the complexity but waaaay less time conditioning in keg/bottle for things to sort themselves out.
I’m a big fan of just leaving this one at room temperature (74-76F) in my home office for saisons. I wrap in a towel for light protection and let it do its thing.
I like the tart/citrus character of this yeast a lot, and prefer not to push the esters too much. My table saison is about 4.5%, and I keep it in the mid 60’s for the first 2 weeks, then strap on my brew belt for one more week to help it finish out. This tends to enhance the citrus and leaves a background of fruity Belgian esters and a hint of white pepper.
One thing about this strain is that once you think you hit FG, give it another week. It will tend to eat down the final 2-4 gravity points slowly. I plan on 3 weeks in primary, where I give most other ales 2 weeks.
This yeast is a different beast when it comes to attenuation. You should shoot for an original gravity under 1.045 to get close to 5%. I’ve had it get down to 1.002 before.
I usually add body builders like rye or oats and mash around 158 to keep the final gravity up. Never had a problem with a slow or stalled ferment.
My basement is between 64 and 68 throughout the year. I pitch at about 66 and just let it go. Easiest fermentation ever.
I’ve tried 3711 at room temp and cooler at 65F. Worked fine either way but the warmer ferment had a bit more character.
I’ve had it get down to 1.001 and 1.000. It’s basically the only saison yeast I use. It’s such a beast and almost set and forget. The only ‘problem’ I ever had with it was a winter time brew where I kept it in the fermenting freezer in the garage. I was struggling to keep it above 60F since I didn’t have my heat cord in there at the time. Just moved it into the office, and from that point on, I just started using the office for my saisons.
Pitch around 75F and let it free rise to 85F. Hold until fermentation ends and then cut off the heat and let it finish at ambient. Definitely needs a month or two of age to hit its stride at those temps.
I find 3711 too bland at cooler temperatures for my tastes.
Agree on planning for an OG less than you’re used to. I was shooting for 4% when I first brewed my table saison, so I set an OG of 1.040. It ended up finishing at 1.003 and overshot my target ABV by a bit. Flavor-wise the recipe was spot-on for what I wanted though, so I still brew it at that OG now.
As far as adding adjuncts or mashing high to keep the FG up, I don’t think that’s necessary with this strain. It produces some compounds that boost the mouthfeel in the finished beer. Even down at 1.002, I’ve never had a beer that seemed thin or watery at all.
+1. Always has a nice mouthfeel to me @ 1.002ish. I can see building up body slightly but definitely not at the expense of finishing too high. My best saisons finish in the 1.004-1.002 range. Even lower occasionally.
My record low FG is 1.000 with WLP565. Bone dry but no thin/wateriness with that one.
Hmmm. I definitely want the yeast character to be at the forefront with this beer. I may have to go with the warmer ferment and some aging.
Overall really terrific posts here!
I don’t mind waiting when it’s over 6.5%, but when I make low gravity saisons I want them ready quickly.
Another thing to watch out for is bitterness. Because the final beer is so dry, excessive bitterness really sticks out. I wouldn’t go over 25 IBUs.