Yeast Choice for wheat beer

[Saxomatic]

Hi There

Im kinda in a cool project and i've mostly tweaked every single details,
but there is only one that remains .... THE YEAST

I've read a lot on that matters and i need some info to have the best yeast for my concept

I'm looking toward a beer with a big banana flavor , little to none clove ( i know that single mash temp will help on that matter ) and no bubble gum flavor

i've head that the 3068 would be nice but that the 3638 would be a better pick.
How about white labs.

Here's my grain bill for this project ( hops are not final )


RastaBanana
Dunkelweizen (15 B)
Type: Partial Mash
Batch Size: 24.00 l

1.00 kg Pilsen Malt 2-Row (Briess) (1.0 SRM) Grain 1 24.4 %
0.30 kg Munich 20L (Briess) (20.0 SRM) Grain 2 7.3 %
0.30 kg Midnight Wheat (550.0 SRM) Grain 3 7.3 %
0.500 kg DME Wheat Bavarian (Briess) (8.0 SRM) Grain 4 12.2 %
10.00 g Zythos [10.90 %] - Boil 30.0 min Hop 5 10.8 IBUs
10.00 g Zythos [10.90 %] - Boil 15.0 min Hop 6 7 IBUs
10.00 g Zythos [10.90 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 60.0 min Hop 7 0 IBUs
2.00 kg DME Wheat Bavarian (Briess) (8.0 SRM) Dry Extract 8 48.8 %
1.0 pkg Weihenstephan Weizen (Wyeast Labs #3068) [124.21 ml] Yeast 9 -

Gravity, Alcohol Content and Color
Est Original Gravity: 1.056 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.014 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.5 %
Bitterness: 17.8 IBUs
Est Color: 26.6 SRM
Measured Original Gravity: 1.046 SG
Measured Final Gravity: 1.010 SG
Actual Alcohol by Vol: 4.7 %
Calories: 427.1 kcal/l

 

[jro238]

If you want *big* banana flavor with the weihenstephan yeast then just ferment a little hotter (maybe 72-74 F). Try not to go too hot or you will end up with bubblegum flavors though.

I personally like to start mine at something like 62 or 63 F and let it rise up during fermentation but I am also not looking for a banana bomb

 

[JDGator]

last weekend i brewed a 50/50 wheat/pilsner with WLP300. been fermenting around 70F so far. trying to keep it at that temp for another week and then i will start checking the SG.

 

[Saxomatic]

jro .... I you where to call your flavor with the way you ferment it , you would say ?


I want a obvious Banana flavor so everybody that drinks that beer would say ... did you put banana in that beer . I want to be easy drinking and be able to drink 2-3 without any problems . i might also put some coco rum at serving as an option or at bottling


I'm also not sure about hops

 

[jro238]

jro .... I you where to call your flavor with the way you ferment it , you would say ?


I want a obvious Banana flavor so everybody that drinks that beer would say ... did you put banana in that beer . I want to be easy drinking and be able to drink 2-3 without any problems . i might also put some coco rum at serving as an option or at bottling


I'm also not sure about hops

Hallertau is a popular hop to use in weizen beers.

I'll start by saying that the rest of this is based on hefeweizens and not dunkelweizens and that my ideal hefe is Weihenstephaner so that is the banana balance that I shoot for.

I brewed one batch a while ago (7lb wheat, 4lb german pils, 1 pack of wyeast 3068) where I lost control of the fermentation temp a little bit at the start. Fermented at 71-72 for 2 days before it went down to 68 for 2 days then back up to 70 for the remainder of fermentation. The majority of fermentation was finished in the first 3-4 days. Had a great aroma but ended up with a bit too much banana for my taste. I wouldn't necessarily have said that I had put banana in the recipe, but it was the most prominent flavor in the beer and was slightly overpowering (but still definitely drinkable).

Fermenting the same recipe at 62 for a few days then letting it rise up a bit (maybe up to 65 or so) for another week along with doing a starter and pitching the proper amount of yeast gave me a much nicer banana balance. The banana is still there but isn't nearly as apparent. The starter and pitch rate is more important with this temperature since it is a little colder than the yeast really likes.

 

[Saxomatic]

thanx for the information

Im currently on my part one of two with a hopfenweisse with that yeast and that baby been rockin at 62/63 for the last 4 days and the krausen just dropped .... Took a Sample and im quite proud .. for that beer i want the clove and the banana profile that i want for my hopfenweisse ... fermentation is almost over.

for this project ive put the specs for a dunkel mainly for srm spec ... I'm goin Hefe big time with that one ... Black Hefe !

With The 71F-72F version you did JRO ... How was the Clove flavor ? I know mashing temp have a big effect on that flavor but im still curious how it ends up !

If i were unable to modify the fermentation temperature ... should i'll stick at 70F ?

I might be able to have a primary temp and a secondary temp

Banana is the key flavor not overpowering and im very interested with the slight pinnaple flavor from the zythos.

In the end , Coco-rum will be optionnal as an add-on at serving

 

[jro238]

thanx for the information

Im currently on my part one of two with a hopfenweisse with that yeast and that baby been rockin at 62/63 for the last 4 days and the krausen just dropped .... Took a Sample and im quite proud .. for that beer i want the clove and the banana profile that i want for my hopfenweisse ... fermentation is almost over.

for this project ive put the specs for a dunkel mainly for srm spec ... I'm goin Hefe big time with that one ... Black Hefe !

With The 71F-72F version you did JRO ... How was the Clove flavor ? I know mashing temp have a big effect on that flavor but im still curious how it ends up !

If i were unable to modify the fermentation temperature ... should i'll stick at 70F ?

I might be able to have a primary temp and a secondary temp

Banana is the key flavor not overpowering and im very interested with the slight pinnaple flavor from the zythos.

In the end , Coco-rum will be optionnal as an add-on at serving

Full disclosure for that batch: it was my first all grain batch I ever did and the mash pH was too high (probably around 5.7) so I got a decent amount of grain husk tannic flavors in the finished beer. The banana was strong enough to shine through these, but I believe whatever clove was in there got covered up.

If I couldn't really control fermentation temps, I would be perfectly happy fermenting this beer at 70.

 

[Spartan1979]

What yeast is recommended when you DON'T want much banana flavor?

 

[lotusworker]

Wyeast Labs #3944 is a good one for banana flavors

 

[helibrewer]

What yeast is recommended when you DON'T want much banana flavor?

Use the WLP Hefeweizen yeast and ferment at 62. You can also give your mash a rest at 113F, it's a ferulic acid rest and develops the precursors for clove.