Is fancy liquid yeast gonna make a tastier product?

[badbrew]

I don't remember there being wyeast back when I last brewed. It seems pretty pricey. Is it better for perfecting the taste of the beer than dry pitch yeast like coopers yeast? Or is it for another purpose?

Cooper's Ale (7 grams) - Dry Beer Yeast - Beer Yeast - Brewing Ingredients

 

[rycov]

you can get a better variety with the liquid. (not really sure why)

i've made really good beer with both liquid and dry yeasts

 

[badbrew]

you can get a better variety with the liquid. (not really sure why)

i've made really good beer with both liquid and dry yeasts

Thanks, I ordered a shat load of stuff but didn't get any wyeast because I didn't learn about it until about a week ago. I think I'll try it after a couple of dry runs first.

btw: I do plan to make a starter though with the dry packet (if that's o.k.)

 

[2brew1cup]

I honestly think liquid yeast, when used right, gives you a cleaner product. Just a more professional taste. Also yeah.. Can't be that varitey factor. I mean wy3787 westmalle!?
Thats badass!

 

[Yooper]

There are some decent dry strains, but I would throw away any Cooper's or Munton's yeast and buy quality dry yeast like Nottingham, Safale S04 (for English beers) or S05 (for American beers).

 

[rycov]

Thanks, I ordered a shat load of stuff but didn't get any wyeast because I didn't learn about it until about a week ago. I think I'll try it after a couple of dry runs first.

btw: I do plan to make a starter though with the dry packet (if that's o.k.)

most dry yeasts have a high enough cell count that they don't need a starter. see if it has a cell count on the packet

 

[Yooper]

most dry yeasts have a high enough cell count that they don't need a starter. see if it has a cell count on the packet

Not Cooper's. They have a stingy little 7 gram package of poor-quality yeast.

 

[rycov]

didn't notice the yeast type. i've never used coopers, but i have used the notty, so4 and so5 (and some others) and can say that they were all pretty clean.

 

[rycov]

gotta go with what yooper suggests. she always has some sound advice

 

[badbrew]

There are some decent dry strains, but I would throw away any Cooper's or Munton's yeast and buy quality dry yeast like Nottingham, Safale S04 (for English beers) or S05 (for American beers).

I think I may spend 8 bills on this just to start on the right foot then.

Wyeast Activator 1056 - American Ale: Amazon.com: Grocery & Gourmet Food

If I buy this strain, can I store the yeast from my carboy afterward in my fridge in a capped bottle for a few months and then reuse it? Or is it only good for a few days?

 

[Yooper]

I think I may spend 8 bills on this just to start on the right foot then.

Wyeast Activator 1056 - American Ale: Amazon.com: Grocery & Gourmet Food

If I buy this strain, can I store the yeast from my carboy afterward in my fridge in a capped bottle for a few months and then reuse it? Or is it only good for a few days?

You can always wash/rinse/save ANY yeast that works well for you! Check out our "yeast washing illustrated" sticky to see how easy it is to rinse and reuse yeast.

The Wyeast 1056 is a very nice American ale yeast strain; but be aware that it is the same strain as Safale's S05. The Wyeast is about $6 usually, but the S05 is usually about $3.25 and doesn't need a starter, so I'd suggest buying the dry version in this case.

 

[bighorn_brew]

Plus you can cut the price down quite a bit if you learn how to harvest yeast, and always have some yeast on hand for those random brew moments...

I think I may spend 8 bills on this just to start on the right foot then.

Wyeast Activator 1056 - American Ale: Amazon.com: Grocery & Gourmet Food

If I buy this strain, can I store the yeast from my carboy afterward in my fridge in a capped bottle for a few months and then reuse it? Or is it only good for a few days?

 

[badbrew]

You can always wash/rinse/save ANY yeast that works well for you! Check out our "yeast washing illustrated" sticky to see how easy it is to rinse and reuse yeast.

The Wyeast 1056 is a very nice American ale yeast strain; but be aware that it is the same strain as Safale's S05. The Wyeast is about $6 usually, but the S05 is usually about $3.25 and doesn't need a starter, so I'd suggest buying the dry version in this case.

Thanks, I'll buy a few of these instead and then learn what others are good for later.

Plus you can cut the price down quite a bit if you learn how to harvest yeast, and always have some yeast on hand for those random brew moments...

That's what I'm trying to plan, but is there a freshness date on washed yeast in a capped bottle or will it keep like beer does?

 

[daksin]

The reason there are many more strains of liquid yeast is because drying the yeast is a difficult process, and only certain strains of yeast can be made dry (usually due to the hardiness and other properties of the yeast).

S04 is great for basic english beers, and S05 is great for clean american styles, but to really branch out, certain liquid strains. I really prefer an ESB with 1968, and you can't make a kolsch or saison or a tripel without the correct yeast.

That said, you can make a ton of great beers in a huge variety of styles. Just be sure to use a good quality yeast like Safale or Danstar.

If you learn to wash and harvest your liquid yeast, though, you can have the advantage of just buying yeast once and always having it on hand so you don't have to drop $8 extra every time you want to make a belgian.

 

[squirrelly]

I've always used wyeast liquid yeast simply because I'm a firm believer in doing big yeast starters prior to my brew day. However; I know lots of good brewers who swear by the dry yeast strains for one way or another. As far as brand goes, I've never had any experience with dry yeasts, so I'm at a loss there.

 

[h22lude]

I use both liquid and dry and have liked both. As long as you are pitching the right amount of healthy yeast, both will do great.

Typically liquid yeast is more expensive and will need a starter. Dry yeast is cheap and all you need to do is re-hydrate. If the packet you use doesn't have the right cell count then you can add another packet.

 

[badbrew]

Well I went all out and bought a bunch of the wyeast and s05. The shipping was not that bad when combining. I got:

1 x wyeast- 1007, 1056, 1098 and 2112
3 x safale- us-05

all for about $35 or $5/ each.

I think I will use my muntons pilsner kit with the 1007 or 1098 first and toss out the packet that came on top of the can.:rockin:

 

[windbreaker123]

I don't want to hijack this thread. Do you have any experience with cooper yeast ? pm me as I have none but I picked up a couple of packs for less than a $

 

[daksin]

I don't want to hijack this thread. Do you have any experience with cooper yeast ? pm me as I have none but I picked up a couple of packs for less than a $

Toss a packet into your boil for higher gravity brews. It will act as yeast nutrient (that's a good price even for yeast nutrient). I do this all the time, except I use baker's yeast I got in a brick at costco (hated the bread it made, but it makes good yeast nutrient).

The reason the yeast is cheaper is because 1: it's of lower quality than other dry yeasts like Safale and Danstar and 2: they put about half as much yeast in the pack (7g vs 11) when compared to the better yeast brands.

 

[eastoak]

Well I went all out and bought a bunch of the wyeast and s05. The shipping was not that bad when combining. I got:

1 x wyeast- 1007, 1056, 1098 and 2112
3 x safale- us-05

all for about $35 or $5/ each.

I think I will use my muntons pilsner kit with the 1007 or 1098 first and toss out the packet that came on top of the can.:rockin:

you don't have a local homebrew store in los angeles?

 

[Bernie Brewer]

gotta go with what yooper suggests. she always has some sound advice

Suck-up.

 

[badbrew]

you don't have a local homebrew store in los angeles?

About 25-30 miles away, but I assume they will be more expensive than what I paid anyway.

 

[Yooper]

I don't want to hijack this thread. Do you have any experience with cooper yeast ? pm me as I have none but I picked up a couple of packs for less than a $

Yes.

I'd say if you paid $.50 a pack, you got ripped off but you do get what you pay for in this case.

Quality dry yeast are more expensive, but they come in 11 gram packages which is enough to ferment 5-6 gallons of ale. I know that a couple of brewers have used coopers (and Munton's) and been happy. I have not.

Maybe PM UnionRDR (I think that's close to his ID!) and ask him- he seems to look the Cooper's strains and can give you information about his successes.

 

[Yooper]

Suck-up.

You say that like it's a bad thing..................................

 

[rycov]

Suck-up.

: P

Maybe PM UnionRDR (I think that's close to his ID!) and ask him- he seems to look the Cooper's strains and can give you information about his successes.

thats how its spelled, but the rdr isn't capitolized. (not sure if it matters)

 

[tv187u]

That's what I'm trying to plan, but is there a freshness date on washed yeast in a capped bottle or will it keep like beer does?

I just learned how to wash yeast about a year ago and brewed yesterday with a strain from my fist washing. Because you make starters with liquid yeast it's easy to tell if the yeast is still viable.

 

[harrydrez]

The best part about liquid yeast is the variety. There are some styles that you cannot brew with dry yeast- or at least not very well. With other styles you simply have more options for experimentation. For instance: you can make an APA with SO5 and it will come out great, however, you have a bunch of other choices with liquid yeast that allows you to fine tune that recipe.

All yeast impart their character to beers; yes, even "clean" ale yeasts impart character.

 

[badbrew]

I just learned how to wash yeast about a year ago and brewed yesterday with a strain from my fist washing. Because you make starters with liquid yeast it's easy to tell if the yeast is still viable.

Good info thanks.

 

[unionrdr]

First off,I honestly can't understand why folks have so much trouble with cooper's ale yeast? It's quite forgiving temp wise,has a range of 62-72F,& loves being re-hydrated. I've even made starters with it with no ill effects. But I'm finding now that re-hydrating it in 2C of boiled & cooled water with 1tsp dextrose works the best. The dextrose really gets them going like mad in about 15-20 minutes.
We put it up (re-hydrated) against the US-05 sprinkled on dry. The US-05 being like 11.5g against the cooper's 7g. Both seemed to work at the same rate for about the same length of time. But the cooper's made a frutiy ester,where the US-05 was clean. Same temps,as they were right next to one another on our fermenter stand.
Now,having said that & reading/looking around,I wound up at Midwest. They have the cooper's ale yeast in 15g packets. Labeled cooper's & everything. But makebeer.net doesn't carry them,& cooper's doesn't advertise it here that I've ever been aware of. So when I get to brewing version 2 of my Buckeye Burton ale,I'll use 2-15g packets instead of 4-7g packets. I also figure that maybe the 15g cooper's ale yeast packets from Midwest may well be fresher. Just wish I'd not forgotten them when I ordered stuff from them on 12/1. Oh well,need the rest of the ingredients anyway.
We've used cooper's ale yeast in all but one brew,& it works very well when re-hydrated. If you have temp control,try it at 65F. it should be way cleaner,much like the US-05. They do seem quite similar,save for the cooper's ester profile. But I'll tell you,that fruity ester was really good in my IPA,as it gave the citrus flavors from the hops used a bit more depth. Blended quite well in that case. So the cooper's fruity esters can be used to advantage. Just brew it closer to 62F for a cleaner 05 like character.
I almost chose the White Labs Burton ale yeast for my #3 Burton replica,but Midwest says it produces cider flavors,among others. I could def see where judges might misconstrue that part of the flavor profile.
So I went with the cooper's,& got a 1.065 wort down to 1.018,which is close to the Burton's profile for that bit of malty sweetness it was said to have. Kinda fun trying to bring back an ale that hasn't seen the light of day in some 121 years. That beer virtually died out as a style about 1890,when pale ale as we know it came around. So Cooper's ale yeast can do a good job as long as you re-hydrate it,ime. It def needs a blow off to start with in that case. I've also found that 66 to 68F is a good temp for the average brewer to get good results that doesn't have any dedicated temp control. PM me if you guys have further questions. I don't mind helping anyone seeking honest answers. No flamers,please.

 

[Yooper]

First off,I honestly can't understand why folks have so much trouble with cooper's ale yeast?

I don't have "trouble" with it- I just find that it has a poor flavor. If others like it, and it works for them, that's fine. But so many people complain of a "homebrew" taste with that strain, and off-flavors like acetaldehyde and esters, and that was my experience as well.

There are very good quality dry yeast strains out there, with much better results than most people get from Coopers (and Munton's). It just plain tastes "funny".

 

[badbrew]

First off,I honestly can't understand why folks have so much trouble with cooper's ale yeast? It's quite forgiving temp wise,has a range of 62-72F,& loves being re0hydrated. I've even made starters with it with no ill effects. But I'm finding now that re-hydrating it in 2C of boiled & cooled water with 1tsp dextrose works the best. The dextrose really gets them going like mad in about 15-20 minutes.
We put it up (re-hydtrated) against the US-05 sprinkled on dry. The US-05 being like 11.5g against the cooper's 7g. Both seemed to work at the same rate for about the same length of time. But the cooper's made a frutiy ester,where the US-05 was clean. Same temps,as they were right next to one another on our fermenter stand.
Now,having said that & eeading/looking around,I wound up at Midwest. They have the cooper's ale yeast in 15g packets. Labeled cooper's & everything. But makebeer.net doesn't carry them,& cooper's doesn't advertise it here that I've ever been aware of. So when I jget to brewing vwesion 2 of my Buckeye Burton ale,I'll use 2-15g packets instead of 4-7g packets. I also figure that maybe the 15g cooper's ale yeast packets from Midwest may well be fresher. Just wish I'd not forgotten them when I ordered stuff from them on 12/1. Oh well,need the rest of the ingredients anyway.
We've used cooper's ale yeast in all but one brew,& it works very well when re-hydrated. If you have temp control,try it at 65F. it should be way cleaner,much like the US-05. They do seem quite similar,save for the cooper's ester profile. But I'll tell you,that fruity ester was really good in my IPA,as it gave the citrus flavors from the hops used a bit more depth. Blended quite well in that case. So the cooper's fruity esters can be used to advantage. Just brew it closer to 62F for a cleaner 05 like character.
I almost chose the White Labs Burton ale yeast for my #3 Burton replica,but Midwest says it produces cider flavors,amonh others. I could def see where judges might missconstrue that part of the flavor profile.
So I went with the cooper's,& got a 1.065 wort down to 1.018,which is close to the Burton's profile for that bit of malty sweetness it was said to have. Kinda fun trying to bring back an ale that hasn't seen the light of day in some 121 years. That beer virtually died out as a style about 1890,when pale ale as we know it came around. So Cooper's ale yeast can do a good job as long as you re-hydrate it,ime. It def needs a blow off to start with in that case. I've also found that 66 to 68F is a good temp for the average brewer to get good results that doesn't have any dedicated temp control. PM me if you guys have further questions. I don't mind helping anyone seeking honest answers. No flamers,please.

I'm gonna save this for later. I'd hate to waste all of those packets that I have. Maybe when I get around to a part dextrose beer I'll give it a go.

 

[unionrdr]

Just re-hydrate it as I have,try to keep the temp down to the range I specified,& it should work quite well. With a mid-gravity ale,it won't break any speed records. But use a blow of the 1st couple of days,it gets quite vigorous when re-hydrated with that little bit of dextrose. I know what the big boys say about weakening the yeast in doing so. But that just doesn't hold true for me. Not to say any of them are full of it or anything. I just know it works for me. So try it & see for yourself. I'm just relating my own personal observational experiences.