It should be noted that 71B has some Malic acid converting properties. Not as much as malolactic bacteria or anything, but some. This will produce a dry, but less acidic or slightly less tart cider.
It's good for reducing the acid level in "high acid" musts. But cider needs a bit of malic acid bite, along with tannins, for balance. The one time I used it in cider I was left with a flabby bland product that needed to have some acid put back in at bottling time. Kinda counter productive. I won't use it again unless my juice has a TA of 0.7 gm/ltr or more.
MLF however is different - that's a conversion to lactic acid. 71B and Scott Labs SVG just lower the acid level (convert it to alcohol and CO2).
I've tried a bunch of different yeast for cider over the last 20 years. Ale yeasts, wine yeasts, cider yeasts...my favorite after all of that is WY1450. Makes a very dry cider but leaves a bit of apple flavor behind.
Thanks for sharing that link.I would love to hear from more people who have used 002 English Ale. I am surprised that the one person who tried it got such a dry and yeasty result since it was the "winner" of a pretty comprehensive blind test. Admittedly this test was only with White Labs yeast, but still.
https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/attachments/0001/5982/Cider_Yeast_Comparison__final_.pdf
I am going to give it a shot in the new year and will report back.
Thanks for sharing that link.
From the article: "All of the strains except WLP002 English Ale were able to fully attenuate the apple juice."
This seems really suspicious. Why couldn't an ale yeast fully attenuate apple juice?
Thanks for sharing that link.
From the article: "All of the strains except WLP002 English Ale were able to fully attenuate the apple juice."
This seems really suspicious. Why couldn't an ale yeast fully attenuate apple juice?
This is an exciting blend of two ale strains and one wine strain. Unlike a lot of ale strains that typically dry out most ciders, this unique blend of Saccharomyces strains will leave some residual sweetness for a smooth mouthfeel. This strain is perfect for those looking for a still cider with some lingering apple characteristic or a dryer sparkling cider.
In 12 Plato apple juice: 80% attenuation
I still think I like wine yeast cider better than beer yeast.
Next 5gal batch will be with WLP775.....
Though I'm gonna order a couple of the 773....sounds very interesting & limited nature is kinda cool.
Any tips for yeast harvesting/propagating?Nice! Looking forward to that 773 as well. If you build a stir plate you can just keep growing the stuff and store in the fridge. I have a shelf on the door of my fridge dedicated to yeast.
Okay, so is this a "cider for dummies" yeast then ? Pitch into store bought generic apple juice and in a week have perfect still cider ? I really don't see that as the case or it would be making headlines all over the forum. I want to finish around 6-8% abv and still have some decent apple flavor then of course I'll want to carb some. Any more more detailed info from anyone that has used it would be GREATLY appreciated.
Reusing 773 is going to be difficult as it's a blend - two ale strains and a wine strain. The proportions will almost certainly drift as you reuse them.
The Premier Cuvee I've been using does exactly this, depending on the juice. For example Costco juice finishes clear in like 3 weeks and carbs fast (however I don't really care for the Costco Kirkland juice myself). Probably pectinase would help other juices clear this fast as well.I don't think any yeast will give you clear 7% cider in less than a month, then it has to carb for a couple of weeks.
Regular batch finished primary fermentation today after 8days....SG 1.008 -- pretty darn clear & lees had compacted down. Sample was nicely semi-sweet & appley. Racked into secondary with couple cinnamon sticks.Trying S-04 for my first "cheaters" Ice Cider....it was a robust fermenter taking my 1gal batch from 1.12 to 1.036 in a week. Racked it and letting it sit in high 50s for awhile...very very little activity.
I took the other half of the S-04 (11.5g) packet and pinched it in 1gal of Sam's AJ...it seems to be fermenting nicely so far...will take an SG at the 1week point.
Just finished 6gal batch using WLP775....went from 1.05 to 1.001 in 2weeks...racked into 1gal secondaries for conditioning. Very clear...bit drier than I like so back sweetening with different amounts of FAJC & 1gal w/pure maple syrup. Adding tart cherry, wild blueberry concentrates and cinnamon sticks. Early feedback...prefer the Wyeast1272 & S-04. Time will tell...Next 5gal batch will be with WLP775.....
Though I'm gonna order a couple of the 773....sounds very interesting & limited nature is kinda cool.
Based on that White Labs testing results....WLP002 is one I'm looking at trying too. [emoji111]Currently doing 1 gallon with 775 and one with 002. Will update in a few weeks!
Based on that White Labs testing results....WLP002 is one I'm looking at trying too. [emoji111]
The general thing to do is try different yeasts and see which one(s) you like and work well with your process.
Which yeasts are "must try"? Is there a repository of information somewhere I'm missing that explains different flavors and other characteristics?
https://byo.com/stories/issue/item/3479-yeast-selection-for-cider - this article is great but pretty limited. The yeast I use isn't even mentioned. Think we can do better?
Kevin has an extreme wealth of info up in the sticky but 1. it's not exactly organized (sorry Kevin) and 2. he's specifically looking for yeasts that fit his process (not too fast, cold crash easily, sweet cider only).
Currently I fully ferment my juice and then bottle carb. Is that what most people do?
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