yeast substitute

Howdy yall, I'm in a bit of a pinch and need some advice. I am going to brew a Wee Heavy Scotch ale this weekend and dont have the exact yeast that i need. I would like to use Ringwood Ale yeast but its not going to happen. I need something that can handle a fairly high Gravity (1.080 )and not attenuate too low(1.018) and leaves a good amount if diacetyl. This beer is for a comp. and i want it to be perfect, any ideas?

Hmmm, usually high attenuation does not go with high diacetyl.

Have you considering a low attenuating strain like 1968/002, but then adding 10% sugar to increase fermentability?

That is what makes the Ringwood so important, it is infamous for being wierd like that. I hadnt considered the adjunct, Im a bit of a purist I guess.

I am leaning towards wlp005 because I have that and it is similar in profile, but it doesnt have the high tolerance that I think will be necessary, If i remember correctly it doesn't like anything more that about 6.5%

What's wrong with a scottish ale yeast for a wee heavy?

I guess I'm looking for more diacetyl, ( I know that sounds weird) but this recipe benefits greatly from it. The ringwood leaves a lot of diacetyl. The beer peaks out at about 90 days and by that time the diacetyl is perfect.

Strong kettle caramelization is often said to resemble diacetyl in flavor. Maybe you can boil down some first runnings to a thick consistency, then add back into the boil. That lends a consistent flavor which the yeast cannot clean up. It's a possibility to look into, maybe.

Ahhh!!! Great idea. I had'nt even thought of that, thanks!! I'll give it a whirl. Although I always hate to experiment with a competition brew. What do you think, about 1/2 gal boiled down in a 10 gallon batch?

I'd start with more. Maybe 2-3 gallons first runnings boiled down to 1/2 or 1/4 (better) original volume. That said, there are a lot of brewers around here who use this process a lot more than I do. A search or a new thread might get those interested in this technique to chime in more readily. Good luck!

Ok sounds good, I have never really used that techniique either, I'll have a look around. Thanks

I've used it a few times, and the effect is subtle but noticeable. It adds some complexity in flavor that's very nice. To get a diacetyl type butteryness out of it might take learning about some specifics, though. One process a local brewery uses near me is to super heat their boil kettle before they add the wort. Then when it gets hot enough, they add wort for instant caramelization. It makes for a great beer. I wouldn't recommend it in a home setting unless you have a super heavy duty pot, but it's a quicker method to the same end. Alternately, a 3-4 hour boil will do more or less the same thing. That's easy, but it takes long and uses more fuel/electricity.

The first time I ever brewed this it was a partial mash and if I remember correctly I did a 2 hour boil because the gravity wasnt quite where i wanted it. It had a very nice flavor to it and I guess I chocked up the butteriness to the yeast I used. Unfortunately that was close to 6 or 7 years ago and back then I didnt take very good notes, so I don't remember what yeast I used. But the long boil may account for the flavors I was getting. Maybe I'll try the same Safale I used last time and try to duplicate the caramel flavors..