TANSTAAFB
Well-Known Member
I am just getting into brewing Belgian beers and would like to use one strain to brew several recipes, then repeat with different strains to get a feel for what each yeast contributes. As I am a broke grad student & brewing funds are limited, I plan to brew Saccharomyces' lower grav Belgian Pale Ale recipe and wash the yeast to brew several other recipes. I PMed Sacch and he suggested,
I am looking for similar detailed feedback from your personal experiences. What have you used, in what recipes (please post them, I am collecting recipes as well; especially competition winners or tried and true favorites!), with what results? What worked for you and what didn't? What fermentation schedules did you use? I am not big on Belgian wheats or spiced beers (I want to know what comes from the yeast before spicing), mainly Dubbels, Tripels, Strong Goldens, Blondes, and Strong Darks. I have devoured Brew Like a Monk and it gave me lots of ideas and general direction, now I am coming to my favorite source of information, YOU!!!
Cheers
If you have to pick just one strain to stick with I would go with WLP550. It's a good general purpose Belgian strain. Fermented on the low end of the temp range it will produce a good BPA or Belgian Golden Strong ale. On the warmer end it will produce lots of nice esters and produce a good Belgian dubbel/tripel ale. It's best to pitch around 68*F, and then adjust the temp down/up from there after active fermentation begins to keep the production of higher alcohols in check.
I am looking for similar detailed feedback from your personal experiences. What have you used, in what recipes (please post them, I am collecting recipes as well; especially competition winners or tried and true favorites!), with what results? What worked for you and what didn't? What fermentation schedules did you use? I am not big on Belgian wheats or spiced beers (I want to know what comes from the yeast before spicing), mainly Dubbels, Tripels, Strong Goldens, Blondes, and Strong Darks. I have devoured Brew Like a Monk and it gave me lots of ideas and general direction, now I am coming to my favorite source of information, YOU!!!
Cheers