Harrington
New Member
I brewed a 10 gallon SMASH with Maris Otter and Amarillo. I used a pound of hops and wanted a hoppy pale ale around 4 - 5 %. 4 oz of whirlpooling extracted that juicy hop taste I was going after, but what an incredible difference the yeast made for this batch.
The simple malt bill really highlighted the differences in these two yeast strains. I think most of us are familiar with Cali Ale, but I had no idea what East Coast Ale would be like. So for those of you who are curious, here is what I found.
The nose of the beer was more muted with the ECA than the CA. They smelled different; bright citrus floral notes with the CA, a more muted "hey, what do we have here?" type-aroma with the ECA. Me, being a hop head, preferred the CA, interestingly, my wife (not a beer drinker), preferred the nose of the ECA. The yeast rounds out and mellows the nose in the ECA for sure.
The CA really suited the beer I was going after. It made the SMASH a crisp pale ale that highlighted the Maris Otter malt, smelled fantastic, was wet with juicy hops, and finished clean. The ECA was completely different, and I want to present it in a different light than what has been written about it before (at least from what I have found).
Simply, you will get an element of sour/tart in your beer from this yeast. Now, this should be obvious, since White Labs plainly states this on their website. But, when I drink this beer from an almost "Session Sour" perspective, if that makes any sense, this beer is fantastic. If I drink it from a Pale Ale perspective, I am left disappointed. The aftertaste of the sour really hangs in your mouth, and I am left with the impression of, "how can a beer start one way, and then then finish in a completely different direction?" I get the wet Amarillo taste to start, and the lingering sour pucker to finish.
So, for anyone who is looking to enjoy the tartness of a sour (IMO) without introducing wild yeast or a wild yeast strain, the ECA can really shine. It is amazing what two different yeast strains can do to the same batch of food, and I thought this would be interesting to share.
The simple malt bill really highlighted the differences in these two yeast strains. I think most of us are familiar with Cali Ale, but I had no idea what East Coast Ale would be like. So for those of you who are curious, here is what I found.
The nose of the beer was more muted with the ECA than the CA. They smelled different; bright citrus floral notes with the CA, a more muted "hey, what do we have here?" type-aroma with the ECA. Me, being a hop head, preferred the CA, interestingly, my wife (not a beer drinker), preferred the nose of the ECA. The yeast rounds out and mellows the nose in the ECA for sure.
The CA really suited the beer I was going after. It made the SMASH a crisp pale ale that highlighted the Maris Otter malt, smelled fantastic, was wet with juicy hops, and finished clean. The ECA was completely different, and I want to present it in a different light than what has been written about it before (at least from what I have found).
Simply, you will get an element of sour/tart in your beer from this yeast. Now, this should be obvious, since White Labs plainly states this on their website. But, when I drink this beer from an almost "Session Sour" perspective, if that makes any sense, this beer is fantastic. If I drink it from a Pale Ale perspective, I am left disappointed. The aftertaste of the sour really hangs in your mouth, and I am left with the impression of, "how can a beer start one way, and then then finish in a completely different direction?" I get the wet Amarillo taste to start, and the lingering sour pucker to finish.
So, for anyone who is looking to enjoy the tartness of a sour (IMO) without introducing wild yeast or a wild yeast strain, the ECA can really shine. It is amazing what two different yeast strains can do to the same batch of food, and I thought this would be interesting to share.
