Disappointed with WLP300

I brewed another batch of my Blood Orange Hefeweizen and decided to use WLP300 this time since I keep reading about how this is a great Hefe yeast. I under pitched, according to BeerSmith, using 2 packs instead of the recommended 3 based on the yeast age, no starter, and no aeration, hoping to stress the yeast to get more banana. I fermented at 68F for the first couple of days and then raised the temp to 70F. I took a hydrometer sample today, 7 days after pitching, and I had reached the predicted final gravity. OG was 1.047 and FG is at 1.011. I plan to add the 3# of Blood Orange Puree tomorrow.

At this point, it has none of the character I would expect of a Hefeweizen. I get no banana at all, and little to no clove. I would describe it as maybe a slight spiciness. Not at all what I would expect from a Hefeweizen. I raised the temp to 74F, hoping that once it begins to ferment the sugars in the puree, that the higher temp will bring out some character from this yeast. Funny thing is, the fermentation chamber smells like someone set off a banana bomb in it, just none of it is in the beer.

Based off the way it tastes now, I will be going back to WB-06 when I brew this again. I had high hopes for the WLP300 based on reviews, but it seems to be a very disappointing yeast.

 

I never judge the final taste on a beer from a sample before it is carbonated. I find that some beers change dramatically between the end of fermentation and when they are fully bottle conditioned or at carbonation in the keg.

I can't say as to the WLP300 vs the WB-06 since I have never used either...

Maybe you will get what you are looking for when the beer is totally finished.

 

I would saw that that was actually still a huge over pitch. Using both WLP300 and Wyeast 3068 over 10 times before I got the character out of WLP300. Finally it was from pitching 1 expired vial into 10 gallons with 10 seconds pure 02, basically really stressed. It's an awesome yeast and very characteristically hefe, just a bit finicky.

 

I am hoping that it will get better than it is.

 

I thought about just doing one pack, but didn't know if that would be too little, and didn't want to take that big of a risk with it. Maybe I should have gone with my gut, and done one. Only time will tell now. I may do the next batch with it and see what only one pack brings to the table.