Anyone used whiskey yeast for a big beer

[eddieb33]

So I'm thinking about making a really big old ale at some point in the near future and so I'm looking for a yeast that tolerates high ABVs (>10%). I was on the Whitelabs site and I saw they sell a few different types of whiskey yeast that they say they can be appropriate for big beers. Anyone ever try one of these?

I know they sell that WLP099 super high gravity ale yeast, which supposedly tolerates up to 25% ABV. But I was thinking about aging this on some oak chips anyway. Maybe a bourbon yeast would be appropriate? What do you all think?

 

[GuldTuborg]

Treat your yeast right, and many of them will take you well north of 10% with no problems. I'd look to that route first.

 

[BrewDawg79]

+1 for trying brewers yeast first. How big are you talkin'? I've had good luck with different yeasts getting me over 10%, but I haven't gone over 12 myself (yet).

 

[eddieb33]

Yeah, on some past brews I've done a pretty good job of keeping my yeast happy and healthy. I hit ~10% in an RIS with a standard ale yeast, so hitting that mark isn't really my main concern.

I guess what I'm mainly wondering here is what kind of flavor this whiskey yeast would impart. I want to make something different and unique with this beer and I'm intrigued by the idea of using bourbon yeast. I'm hesitant though because there isn't a lot of information out there about the flavors it would lend to a big beer.

 

[Texconsinite]

Trappist High Gravity from Wyeast

 

[sapperxl]

Yeah, on some past brews I've done a pretty good job of keeping my yeast happy and healthy. I hit ~10% in an RIS with a standard ale yeast, so hitting that mark isn't really my main concern.

I guess what I'm mainly wondering here is what kind of flavor this whiskey yeast would impart. I want to make something different and unique with this beer and I'm intrigued by the idea of using bourbon yeast. I'm hesitant though because there isn't a lot of information out there about the flavors it would lend to a big beer.

I've never done it or heard of it being done but I say go for it. That's one thing I love about homebrewing is being able to experiment and try something out you can't get on the shelf. Let us know how it turns out.

 

[sweetcell]

what i would do is use a regular ale yeast to get to 9-10%, make a starter of the whiskey yeast, pitch it at high krausen, then do regular sugar additions (say a half pound a day, boiled first to sanitize) until desired ABV is achieved.

when While Labs writes "used in high gravity beers", i wonder if they mean as a primary yeast or as a secondary strain as i suggested above. if you do make an all-whiskey yeast beer, please let us know how it turns out! whiskey yeasts haven't been bred/selected for their pre-distillation characteristics but maybe they're good without a still?

 

[sweetcell]

some good info here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/whiskey-beer-199798/

 

[DoWBrewer]

I tried beers beers made with various liquor yeasts at NHC last year @ the whitelabs booth. They were tasty. They are not really that different from normal ale yeast. The distillers are looking for consistency. Some of them were quite neutral.

Sent from my HTC One using Home Brew mobile app

 

[robopp]

FYI-
I just took S04 past 17% ABV with multiple wort feedings. Final calculated original gravity was 1.150 down to 1.018, currently.

 

[Mattstrysik]

I actually just kicked a keg of RIS I aged on vanilla bean, cacao nibs, and coconut, which was fermented exclusively with White Labs Bourbon yeast and it turned out fantastic! It had the heat and chocolate you get from something like Bourbon County. Ended up at 11.5% after a RIDICULOUS fermentation and only about 3 months of aging in secondary. The krausen definitely cleared the head space into the airlock and when I made a blow off, the pressure kept blowing the bung out. I ended up having to tape the thing down. Definitely give it a shot if you dig BA beers.

One may pose the question: Is it still beer if it is fermented exclusively with spirit yeast?

I'm sure the BJCP wouldn't approve, but I could give a damn. It was delicious!

Cheers!

 

[Arrheinous]

Sounds great, I would have expected a distiller's yeast to end up pretty harsh. What sort of temperature control did you use to keep that in check?

 

[BigJack]

One may pose the question: Is it still beer if it is fermented exclusively with spirit yeast?

Cheers!

Yes. I believe distillers use variants on the same species we brewers use. A pit bull and a chihuahua are both still dogs, after all.

 

[podz]

Sounds great, I would have expected a distiller's yeast to end up pretty harsh. What sort of temperature control did you use to keep that in check?

There's a huge difference between a "wash" (distiller's) yeast and a bourbon yeast. The former is selected to ferment sugar water up to 24% ABV in 2 days time, while the latter is selected to ferment something that actually contains a lot of flavour.

 

[lazzlo]

I did this with a RIS earlier this year. Split the batch between 070 and 007 to compare flavors and because I didn't want to throw out a whole batch of a big beer . They are still bulk aging but 070 Bourbon batch samples I tried at transfer had a noticeable whiskey/Bourbon flavor compared to 007 ale yeast but not as noticeable as I expected. Both finished at the same gravity with an abv of about 11%. I plan on using the 070 for the whole batch next time.

 

[Calichusetts]

I've never had an issue with 001 or 002 getting me well north of 9%

And this is with no sugar or wort additions after pitch. I had 001 get me to 14.1% and it carbed in under a month with no additional repitch. Certain strains struggle in my opinion, the scottish strain took nearly 5 months to carb and that was 10.1%

 

[Vodomagoo]

I used super high gravity from white labs for a 13.5% ris with no problems 5 day ferment. If you look at the white labs distillers guide they actually recommend alot of ale yeast for more flavorful distillations