bread yeast

[tockeyhockey]

Racking to a secondary is a lot less work than bottling. I'd rack and give it the full two weeks, then take a sample. If it's drinkable, go ahead and bottle at that point - if not, then come back here, we'll probably tell you to drink it anyway but you *might* decide then to dump it. Even if it works out well, it's not going to taste GREAT after two weeks in the secondary, but you should be able to get enough of a sense then whether it truly is ruined.

If you end up having to dump it, much better to have only spent the time to move it to secondary than to have bottled.

OK, I want to back up a second and ask the experts - what SHOULD he have done when his yeast was thrown away? Obviously, he should have had more dry yeast around, that's lesson 1. Would it have been better, though, to have sealed up the wort WITHOUT pitching the bread yeast - knowing the risk of contamination - then getting the right yeast the next day? Would that have been better than the bread yeast?

i know it's not what i "should" do, but i'm going to put it straight into bottles this weekend. that way, i free up valuable space for new batches. i have friends coming into town at the end of the summer and i want to make sure that i have beer for them to drink. but i also don't want to "totally" waste this batch. i don't see the point in having what is probably bad beer take up valuable fermentation space in my cramped brewing headquarters.

rules be damned -- i'm bottling it this weekend! i'm having a crab fest, so my guests will be switching from natty boh to my home brew and back. wonderbrau is bound to look good in comparison.

 

[SteveM]

Bottling after only one week fermenting is truly working with no net.

I am betting it is drinkable, after it ages a bit.

As far as the question above about what would you do if you spilled or otherwise lost the yeast, since I don't claim expert status I will cheerfully duck it.

 

[Beer Snob]

I guess I am perhaps a little concerned with how this thread is appearing to people with little experience brewing. Want to make certain that folks in this category understand that by no means is using bread yeast a good thing. Bread and beer yeast are two completely different things. I think this thread should be viewed as very good reasons to keep some dried yeast in your fridge/freezer rather then a green flag to use bread yeast in your quality beers.

Also wanted to ask a question to folks. We know what happened with this beer and it seems like a good subject to talk about what if this was to happen again? Is this solution actually the best solution that was available? How long could it sit waiting for the correct yeast?

 

[the_bird]

I have the same exact question - given the circumstances, what SHOULD he have done? I'm inclined to think - seal up as good as possible, figuring a 50/50 chance of avoiding contamination for 24 hours versus pitching bread yeast and pretty much guaranteeing a beer that, in the best case, would be barely drinkable. Life's too short to drink bad beer!

 

[alexander taipan]

As a person who almost used bread yeast 12 days ago i found this thread great reading, it's easy for somebody like myself who is fairly new to brewing to think "yeast is yeast" i'm glad now i didn't. Hope your beer turns out okay mate and i think we all learned a lesson here

 

[SteveM]

I guess I am perhaps a little concerned with how this thread is appearing to people with little experience brewing...

I think there is no great risk in this, I think most people *get* that there is great potential for mishap here. But the proof will be in the pudding. I think everyone is mostly curious as to whether it will be drinkable, not whether it will be a great beer.

 

[tockeyhockey]

I think there is no great risk in this, I think most people *get* that there is great potential for mishap here. But the proof will be in the pudding. I think everyone is mostly curious as to whether it will be drinkable, not whether it will be a great beer.

well, i put it in bottles this weekend. i know it should have gone into a secondary for a while, but i wanted to cut my losses a bit. if it's bad, who cares? i've got more on the way. if it's even drinkable, i'll be very happy.

i tasted it before i bottled it and it definitely has alcohol. it's very bitter, but that probably has something to do with the 4 oz of saaz hops the recipe called for.

there was a noticibly rough yeast flavor, very bready, almost "wood" like (i can't think of a better description).

 

[tockeyhockey]

i had my first taste of wonderbrau last night. it's not quite done carbonating (needs another week at least in the bottle) but i figured i'd give it a taste just to see what was going on.

i definitely tastes like beer. however, it doesn't taste like good beer. it is harsh, and has a sharp, ultra-bitter finish. i used saaz hops as my bittering and finishing hops, 2 oz total, so i wasn't expecting something totally overpowering.

pretty nasty stuff really. but i'll let you know in another week what comes of it.

 

[Beer Snob]

Yeah 2 oz of Saaz "should" not be too overpowering. Outside of the yeast issue the hops needs some time to mellow. Your beer is still pretty green. The first AG I did was a wheat and the AG process had a few bumps cause it was my first one. The stuff... last I tasted, was real nasty too. I just put it in the back of storage somwehere to forget about it for a little while. Not that I'm saying this is what you should do, but let it age a bit more. If at the end, two months go by and it still taste nasty then you might consider doing what I've done so it can age a bit more and you can move on to other things.

 

[SteveM]

TH - which is it?

...it's very bitter, but that probably has something to do with the 4 oz of saaz hops...

...i used saaz hops as my bittering and finishing hops, 2 oz total...

Four ounces or two? If it was four, that might have something to do with the bitterness.

All in all it sounds like a better outcome than anyone would have expected, but as was noted, it is still pretty young.

 

[tockeyhockey]

TH - which is it?





Four ounces or two? If it was four, that might have something to do with the bitterness.

All in all it sounds like a better outcome than anyone would have expected, but as was noted, it is still pretty young.

good point. i think it was four. might have been three. not sure if it was two.

guess i need to start keeping better records.

 

[God Emporer BillyBrew]

good point. i think it was four. might have been three. not sure if it was two.

guess i need to start keeping better records.

Yeah, I didn't on my first couple batches and have regretted it ever since. It goes against my nature, but it's really not that much trouble and it's pretty cool to flip back through your notebook and look at the beers that have been.

Plus when you keep notes you can answer the questions that the people on this board who are trying to help you ask.

 

[tockeyhockey]

wonderbrau is done carbonating at this point and i tasted one last night. it isn't bad at all. i think it's too hoppy, but that's my fault, no the yeast's fault.

as far as off flavors from the bread yeast, i don't detect any yet. as the beer matures, i'll see what happens. but so far so good.

 

[Wheat King]

awesome! i was following your story and am happy to hear your wonderbrau worked out.

 

[ruppe]

Just as a sidebar, if you screw up a beer, but it's still drinkable(?), don't dump it, or not all of it, unless you need the bottles. As someone who loves to grill, beer makes a great base to marinate in. Even a borderline beer, with herbs and spices will make a piece of meat tastier on the grill.

 

[SteveM]

wonderbrau is done carbonating at this point and i tasted one last night. it isn't bad at all. i think it's too hoppy, but that's my fault, no the yeast's fault.

as far as off flavors from the bread yeast, i don't detect any yet. as the beer matures, i'll see what happens. but so far so good.

Thanks for the update - this is a great story! You will never forget your WonderBrau!