Wyeast 1469 - West Yorkshire

[SchlazzGraft]

Has anyone had any diacetyl problems with this yeast? I was thinking about warming it up a bit for that, should i do this when fermentation slows or is completely finished?

 

[motobrewer]

it's been 5 days since i pitched, still has a firm, rocky krausen.

i moved it upstairs (~66 ambient) because temps were dropping a bit to low in the basement (~57...stupid wisconsin). haven't taken a reading yet.

 

[jfr1111]

The krausen is actively protecting the beer. From my understanding, 1469 was used for open fermentation, so removing the airlock a couple of times isn't going to change a thing. I routinely brew with the bucket lid only cracked and I'm going to try 1469 in a mild with a complete open ferment (no lid, beer in contact with air). It supposedly increases the esters character, wich, in a low gravity beer, sounds like it would be hella good.

 

[motobrewer]

so, does this krausen ever fall? or are you guys just racking under the krausen?

 

[Nugent]

I left it in primary for 14 days and the krausen never really fell. I racked from underneath it.

 

[motobrewer]

cool, that's exactly what I'll be doing. It hit terminal at day 6. I'd like to let it sit on the yeast for 3 weeks, but I need the fermentor so it'll come off at 2.

 

[motobrewer]

Well, it got down to 1.011 from 1.050, 77%.

isn't as estery as thames valley II, but still good.

 

[Hoppocrates]

Ehhhh, I too am at 2 weeks with a krausen that won't quit. Unless the flavor/aroma profile of this yeast is phenomenal, I guess I do not see the point of using this yeast over other English yeast......

 

[AnOldUR]

Kegged my 1469 brew on New Years Day.

22 day Primary + 3 day Cold Crash then straight to keg
1.065 OG - 1.010 FG = 84% attentuation

The cause of the low FG was an equipment failure that produced a mash that was a little lower and longer than planned. By the end of the three weeks the krausen had dropped and the cold crash cleared it up more. Quick-carbed (Carbonator Cap) over a quart that wouldn't fit in the kegs.

First impression is very positive. Base malt was Maris Otter, hops were Chinook and Willamette. There's a pleasant hint of dark fruit and spiciness, but nothing overwhelming. The low FG produced a crisp, dry beer that passes as being sessionable despite its 7% ABV. My wife’s beer of choice is ESB. She gave this one a big thumbs-up. It will be interesting to see how this beer matures. (If we can wait that long.)

Had the time to brew yesterday, but was out of 2-row. Threw together a Pils/Wheat mash and used the 1469 slurry. Not sure what I produced, but looking forward to finding out. Better be drinkable. There’s 8 gallons bubbling in the basement. :cross:

Anyone else from this thread have results yet?

 

[14thstreet]

How do you guys think this would work with a session stout made with a heavy dose of black and brown malts? The recipe also has about 10% sugar in it as well but I fear if this yeast attenuates too much I might not get what I want.

 

[AnOldUR]

How do you guys think this would work with a session stout made with a heavy dose of black and brown malts? The recipe also has about 10% sugar in it as well but I fear if this yeast attenuates too much I might not get what I want.

Wyeast claims 67-71% attenuation and with the proper mash temperatures it should be easy to stay on the low end, so you will be fine there. As for using it in a Stout, it promoted as an English Ale yeast, but has characteristics that should work well in a beer with dark malts. I'm thinking about a RIS next. Definitly worth a try and let us know how it turns out.

 

[motobrewer]

kegged my ESB a week ago. 1.050 > 1.011

mine fermented on the cool side (62F) so esters seem a bit suppressed. MO with a bit of simpsons medium and a touch of extra dark. All goldings for hopping. its good, but so far Thames Valley II is better.

I bet it'd be good in a stout. I'd mash high.

 

[SchlazzGraft]

kegged my ESB a week ago. 1.050 > 1.011

mine fermented on the cool side (62F) so esters seem a bit suppressed. MO with a bit of simpsons medium and a touch of extra dark. All goldings for hopping. its good, but so far Thames Valley II is better.

I bet it'd be good in a stout. I'd mash high.

Funny, it seems like we made the same beer at the same time! mine was an extract version of this, with the simpsons medium, and also went from 1.050 to 1.011.

After two weeks the krausen still hadn't completely fallen, so i gave it a couple gentle shakes and that took care of it. I tasted it after a week in the bottle and its quite good, yet definitely needs more time for carbing and mellowing. I considered washing this yeast, but then decided not to because i wasn't too thrilled with the uncontrollable krausen. Someday if i start doing open fermentations i may go back to it, but otherwise i'll probably try other english strains.

 

[bierhaus15]

I just tapped a keg of special bitter I made with this yeast. The grainbill was pretty simple; MO and a touch of extra dark crystal with goldings and fuggles. The beer is still a bit young, but the yeast character is very nice. I get some mild stone fruit esters, a tiny hint of diacetyl (a good thing), and a slight tartness that accentuates the malt. Also, I find this yeast gives the beer a more crisp bitterness than most other English strains. Only thing I dislike about the yeast is it takes forever for the krausen to drop and can be a PITA to clear properly.

 

[Beerrific]

Brewed this recipe with this yeast a couple weeks ago.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/can-you-brew-recipe-black-sheep-riggwelter-178830

Kegged it last night. Came out fantastic. There is an amazing complexity of malt flavors given such a rather basic recipe. Highly recommend.

Washed the yeast for a brown porter to be brewed soon. Used some of the washed yeast to start some cider, so we will see how that works out. The flavors in this brown ale make me want to do more with this yeast. I might knock an ESB or a mild too.

 

[CJPaul]

I share a very similar experience with this yeast so far. Notably a major temp rise in just a couple of hours, a switch to blow off tube, and a persistent krausen. My concern with racking from underneath is the daiectyl, yuck, potential if the yeasties have not finished up with their business. It's 8 days in the primary and I think I'll continue to rouse it and try and keep the temps up just a bit, say 65 or so, at least for a few more days before secondary. Although, if I had a beer machine, I'd toss this ESB into a cask ASAP and get to enjoying it with some pals because just the little sip I had after the hydro reading (67% attenuation) was delish!

 

[mikray]

I also brewed a Black Sheep Riggwelter clone with this yeast. It's been in the primary for two weeks now with a krausen that won't quit. Five days ago the krausen seemed to have dropped so I pulled the blowoff tube off and replaced it with an airlock only to find it full of foam the next day. My temps have been in the 62-63 range.

 

[14thstreet]

I'm wondering, is this persistent krausen a result of not top-cropping? I'll probably be using this yeast within the month and I'll be trying this method for the first time. Process and equipment can change the profile of the yeast, it's a selective pressure.

 

[RetAF]

Just brewed a CDA today. Used SafAle US-05. Have two smack-pacs of 1469 in the fridge. Considered using one for this - now I wish I had. Nothing wrong withe the US-05, but after reading what others are doing...

 

[ballz50401]

That's what I'm planning on doing. Have an English Dark Mild fermenting right now at 63F with the 1469. Going to wash the yeast and brew a Coffee Oatmeal Stout and then a American-style Black Ale (aka CDA/Black IPA). Haven't decided what hops to use with the 'ABA' yet. I have these on hand: Amarillo, Cascade, Centennial, Citra, Chinook, Columbus, Nugget, Simcoe, Willamette, and Warrior. Too many good choices to choose from.

 

[MilwaukeeBrewGuy]

I too have noted higher than advertised attenuation. Cranked out an esb that went from 1.061 to 1.011
on a 153 mash. Fermented at 64.

Do we really need to wash this yeast? Seems super clean when I top cropped it.

 

[jmo88]

I too have noted higher than advertised attenuation. Cranked out an esb that went from 1.061 to 1.011
on a 153 mash. Fermented at 64.

Do we really need to wash this yeast? Seems super clean when I top cropped it.

You really shouldn't wash top cropped yeast as it is pure yeast. Just skim a bit of the brown crud off the krausen first, then it should be as viable as you can get. I usually find that it's best between 48-72 hours.

 

[ISUBrew79]

I brewed a bitter with this yeast recently, using 95% Crisp Maris Otter, 5% Crystal 120, Willamette for bittering, and EKG for flavor/aroma. It fermented out to 1.009 from an OG of 1.048. It does seem less flocculent than say WLP002/Wyeast 1968. I racked the beer to a secondary on top of some gelatin dissolved in hot water. This really helped to drop the remaining suspended yeast. To my surprise, I did see a small krausen rise to the surface in the secondary. I just racked from underneath when I kegged the beer.

Overall, I like the 1469 yeast. It attenuated well, and produced a very drinkable bitter. I plan to try this yeast in other brews (mild, etc.) in the future.

 

[Nugent]

I top-cropped about 150 ml of the beigest, creamest krausen from a Landlord clone from Graham Wheeler's book a week ago and just made a small starter with half of it to make sure that all was well before a Tuesday evening brew session.

Well ... the krausen in my flask nearly blew out the foam stopper within the hour. Put one of those orange double-port carboy tops on the flask, ran a plastic racking cane into one of the ports and some tubing from the came in a sanitized tub. Am now top-cropping from the starter. Crazy.

SWMBO was wondering why I was panickedly running from the deck, where I was spraying stuff with StarSan solution, to the 'brew room' to set up my Frankenstein of a contraption.

 

[eharlow49]

I realize I am reviving an old thread here but it appears to be the most comprehensive in regards to this particular strain. I will be bottling a TT Landlord clone over the next few days that used this yeast. The hydrometer samples were amazing. So much so that I plan on having it be my house bitter. As such, I would like to wash and store this yeast. I have read the "Yeast Washing" sticky and thought I was good to go until I read (can't remember where exactly) that washing highly flocculant yeast is a bit different. To those of you who have washed this yeast with success, what were your methods? Were they similar to the ones found in the "Yeast Washing" sticky or were they more along the lines of the method illustrated here: http://perfectpint.blogspot.com/2011/07/washing-highly-flocculant-yeasts.html ?

 

[bierhaus15]

I'm a little biased since that is my blog... but really 1469 is the ideal strain for top cropping. You'll get healthier yeast and not have to worry about getting the trub and yeast to separate. Also, you won't have to worry about acid washing after successive generations. You can save top-cropped yeast much in the same way as you'd do it by washing. However, top cropping is not just scooping off whatever is on top of the beer at any given time. Here is a very good primer on proper yeast storage and top-cropping. http://www.wyeastlab.com/com-yeast-harvest.cfm. Cheers.

 

[eharlow49]

Thank you and thanks for the link. Very informative and I'll definitely try that next time. For this particular batch (since its obviously to late for me to top crop), I think I'll give the method you illustrated a shot and see how it goes. Thanks again.

 

[siobhan]

I'm also using this yeast for the 1st time, on an Irish Red. Brewed last Sunday.

I smacked the pack Thursday and it only swelled a bit in 24 hrs. This caused me a little concern. On Friday, I added it to a starter, as planned. I didn't think I was seeing much action there, either, over 48 hours.

Sunday, I had to decide whether to start mashing or not, so I poured off some starter supernatent and tasted it. It was definitely beer. I mashed, boiled and pitched.

The fermenter is currently going gangbusters. Whew! I don't know if this yeast always behaves this oddly, but it's certainly working a treat now.

 

[tgmartin000]

Zombie thread!

How would this yeast work in an American brown?

 

[ballz50401]

I'd say give it a go. Probably will have better results with a malt forward brown compared with a hop forward brown ale.

 

[WaltG]

I just started a British Golden with 1469 and didn't see active fermentation for 24 hrs. Usually with S-04, US-05, Mangrove etc I see activity in 3-5hrs. Right now is chugging along though. went from 1.050 to 1.025 in a little under 3 days. It's not going as fast as other yeasts but I think it's ok.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

I'm not sure why people are so surprised that a classic top-cropping yeast produces a lot of krausen - it's kinda the point of top-fermenting yeast, people are too used to bottom-fermenting ones or top-fermenting ones that have adapted to life in conicals.

Yes 1469 seems to be one of the slower yeasts, but it's worth noting that the classic Yorkshire yeasts need generous aeration in the early stages of fermentation. These videos will provide useful context for anyone wanting to use 1469 :

Sam Smith's rousing : https://twitter.com/samsmithsbeer/status/992470580111781889

Tim Taylor's main "brewery tour" video (yeast at 11.06) :
Tim Taylor fermentation video (rousing at 1.07) :

Supposedly the current Taylor's yeast came from John Smith's via Oldham; the Harvey's yeast also came from John Smith's. Assuming that's what 1469 is, then (like WLP037 and WLP038) it's a POF+ yeast related to the saison family rather than the main group of British yeasts. Wiper and True made a well-received Yorkshire Saison last year using WLP037, so you might want to give it a go fermenting it hot to bring out the phenolics.

 

[Tribe Fan]

When I was in the UK, I drank a lot of Timothy Taylor cask ales. Loved this stuff. I have to try this yeast. Thanks for the videos, I think that is very helpful. I might just let this ferment in an open container.