Danstar Nottingham Pro Tips

[gbx]

In the last couple years I've used liquid yeast exclusively (The LHBS store carries wyeast packs that are less than a week old) but I had a pack of Nottingham in the fridge to use as back up if something went wrong. Now it is about to expire and I'd like to make something with it.

What styles work well with Nottingham?
Its a very clean fermenter, is there anything I can do to give it more character?
What fermentation schedule should be followed?
Should I rehydrate before pitching?
Do I need to aerate?
When should I rack to secondary?
Whats the biggest beer you've done with only one pack of yeast?
etc?

I have some pretty good ideas on what to do but I'd love to hear people's secrets. I'm especially interested to hear from people who have used nottingham in an award winning beer or have tried the liquid product but swear by dry yeast.

 

[BWN]

I really like it in porters. I have used it in pale ales as well with pretty good results.

 

[stpug]

I used nottingham on stone's ruination ipa with homegrown centennial and the result was fantastic. I fermented low 60s and it went fairly fast (3-4 days max).Keg was my secondary after 10 days; dry hopped in the keg. This was on a second generation notty yeastcake; no aeration at all. SG was around ~1.073 (IIRC).

 

[Toga]

I use it in a brown ale recipe that comes out perfect every time. Ferment in the mid to low 60's. I don't rehydrate. I just sprinkle the dry yest right on top of the foam you get after aeration and walk away. I always see signs of active fermentation very quickly. It is a solid yeast.

 

[zachattack]

What styles work well with Nottingham?

It's an English yeast, but it is rather clean, especially at low temperatures. So English styles if you ferment warmer (above 65), American styles if you ferment cooler (down to 55). For an American dry yeast, I actually prefer it over its cousin US-05 since it floccs so much better.

Its a very clean fermenter, is there anything I can do to give it more character?

Ferment warmer

What fermentation schedule should be followed?

Nothing special. You can ferment warm or cool with Notty. I rarely secondary, and I haven't with Notty. It's pretty fast as well. I usually do 3 weeks in primary then bottle/keg, but that's entirely up to you.

Should I rehydrate before pitching?

You lose ~50% of the active cell count if you don't, that's a fact. Whether or not you'll notice the effects of underpitching is really the issue. I try to follow proper pitch rates so I always rehydrate.

Do I need to aerate?

Danstar says it's not necessary, but I would

When should I rack to secondary?

That's a dicey question. I'll say "never" unless you're adding fruit or you want to bulk age for longer than a couple months. I've added oak, dry hops, etc. right in primary. Nottingham floccs very well so it should clarify nicely as long as you have a good hot/cold break. Irish moss doesn't hurt either.

Whats the biggest beer you've done with only one pack of yeast?

http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html

 

[Darwin18]

Rehydrate yeast. Follow pitching instructions and keep to recommended temperature range on packet during fermentation. Produce award winning beers.

 

[gbx]

It's an English yeast, but it is rather clean, especially at low temperatures. So English styles if you ferment warmer (above 65), American styles if you ferment cooler (down to 55). For an American dry yeast, I actually prefer it over its cousin US-05 since it floccs so much better.

Granted I've only had beginner beers brewed with Nottingham (my own and then at club meetings recently) and a lot of them seem a bit fusel which I assumed was from fermenting too warm. But maybe that is in the 70+ range.

Nothing special. You can ferment warm or cool with Notty. I rarely secondary, and I haven't with Notty. It's pretty fast as well. I usually do 3 weeks in primary then bottle/keg, but that's entirely up to you.

Nottingham has a bad rep in my town because the only people who use it are beginners so most of the beers have other problems. I haven't used it in at least 40 batches as the lhbs has 4 day old wyeast for $8, nottingham is $5. One of the main off flavours I taste in nottingham beers is acetaldehyde which i assume is from following old school beginner instructions that tell people to rack to a carboy on day 3.

http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html

yeah I guess I agree with the principle of the calculator but I don't think it is the magic bullet for all yeasts. Some yeasts need a huge pitch some yeasts don't and the flavour profile can be dependent on it. My hope was that someone has advanced tips for nottingham yeast along the lines of this thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/b...on-temps-profiles-cybi-other-thoughts-221817/ Enough people use Notty that there should be some strain specific advice, rather than generic yeast handling best practices.

 

[Sheldon]

2 packs worked quite well in a RIS.

 

[BigFloyd]

I like Notty myself. I've run it at 55*F for the first week (it was quite active), brought it into the low 60's after krausen fell, and finished it up at 70* the last few days. It gave a pleasant lager-like result (in a Munich Dunkel) with no off-flavors.

I don't think I'd use it if I couldn't keep my fermentation temps below 68*F for the first 5-7 days. Too many reports of off-flavors out there when it's run that high.

 

[zachattack]

Granted I've only had beginner beers brewed with Nottingham (my own and then at club meetings recently) and a lot of them seem a bit fusel which I assumed was from fermenting too warm. But maybe that is in the 70+ range.

Yeah I agree. A lot of beginners ferment too warm. I've run Notty at 55 and it's very very clean. To avoid fusels in general you can start cooler then slowly warm up. So maybe start at 60 then bump up a few degrees after it takes off. As BigFloyd suggested.

Nottingham has a bad rep in my town because the only people who use it are beginners so most of the beers have other problems. I haven't used it in at least 40 batches as the lhbs has 4 day old wyeast for $8, nottingham is $5. One of the main off flavours I taste in nottingham beers is acetaldehyde which i assume is from following old school beginner instructions that tell people to rack to a carboy on day 3.

I think you're probably right. Dried yeast is generally cheaper, but for me the real advantage is higher active cell count and the much greater shelf life. I can keep a couple packs in my fridge and not worry too much, and one pack provides enough cells for medium gravity ales. A regular retail pack of liquid yeast loses viability fast and essentially always requires a starter unless you're making <5 gallon batches or very low gravity beers. I wish more strains were available dry...

yeah I guess I agree with the principle of the calculator but I don't think it is the magic bullet for all yeasts. Some yeasts need a huge pitch some yeasts don't and the flavour profile can be dependent on it. My hope was that someone has advanced tips for nottingham yeast along the lines of this thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/b...on-temps-profiles-cybi-other-thoughts-221817/ Enough people use Notty that there should be some strain specific advice, rather than generic yeast handling best practices.

Fair enough. I'm only looking for a clean ferment with Notty so I always follow proper pitch rates and ferment low. Underpitching can certainly affect phenols/esters, but it has so many potentially negative effects that I always follow the calculator, even for a hefe or Belgian. And I'm very happy with the way they turn out, I think fermentation temperature is a much safer and consistent way to control yeast-derived flavors. From reading Jamil's recipes it seems like he thinks this as well.