Choosing a yeast

[Lipi128]

Hey everyone!

Really noob question. I've done a few extract homebrews that my local homebrew shop suggested to me based on my beer preferences.

I was looking into getting a kit from northern brewer and it offers 3 different yeast options. Wyeast 3944, t-58, and omega yeast wit. I've looked everywhere and I see that they are similar.

My question is where do I find out the differences between them and how do I know which to choose? Also any info as to where to do some research on these differences would be awesome for future reference!

Thanks!

 

[lslbrew]

At the noob level I would say that you will not notice a difference between the yeast. T-58 is a dry yeast and the other two are liquid. Wyeast and Omega are different labs that grow and sell the yeast. Most likely the yeast is from the same origin (original brewery that uses this yeast). T-58 is probably a dried version of the same yeast strain. It is often debated where the yeast originated or if the two brands got them from the same origin. These debates are going to be between very advanced brewers and there probably is no clear answer. My point to this is that if you concentrate on pitching proper amount of healthy yeast of any of these choices you will get the same result.
A large amount of beer's flavor will come from the yeast itself. Depending on the style of beer you want to brew you will want a yeast that is in that style grouping. This is why your local shop will suggest a certain yeast. Within a given style are different yeasts and you start splitting hairs on what flavor contributions you get from the sub style yeast.

 

[Morrey]

Nicely said^^^^. Another good example is using dry Safale US-05 or liquid WLP001-both the Chico strain. I would be hard pressed to believe I could tell you the difference if you gave me side by side beer examples of the same recipe with a yeast from each. Dry is often half the price and has no real handling problems (shipping) like liquid.

With that said, a dry sachet is probably easier for a novice to start with as it requires less prep time, and depending on the way you build a starter (highly recommended), less expense for flasks, stir plates, stir bars, etc. A bit of warm water, sprinkle the dry yeast in....30 min later you are good to go. Later on experimenting with liquid yeast is quite the norm.

If you start looking at various yeasts on sites like Wyeast and White Labs, they tell you the styles of beers best suited for a particular yeast strain they sell.

 

[jan_b19]

wyeast 3944 and omega wit have a slightly acidic phenol flavor profile (very slight) they're also milder yeast strains. It produces less esters than the T58 and leaves a bit of a clove aroma. T58 is a yeast strain with a lot of esters. So it's better for spicy beers.

 

[kh54s10]

Those are 2 liquid yeasts and a dry yeast. They will be pretty similar. So any of them will be a good choice. You may not want to order liquid yeast during the summer when delivery trucks or mailboxes could get very hot, killing the yeast. Omega says a pack will contain at least 150 billion cells. I believe Wyeast packs contain 100 billion. Depending on the gravity of the beer you may need to make a starter to have the optimum cell count.

Read the descriptions on the manufacturers websites.

In the long term you will use some yeasts and like the results better than other yeasts. To find out you will have to try each one.

 

[Lipi128]

Thanks everyone!!! All of this info is very helpful! So basically for now I'm going to stick with the dry yeasts until I get comfortable enough to move on. Good to know there isn't a big difference between them. They have a pretty big price difference that's why I was wondering if I was missing anything.

Thanks again for all the input everyone

 

[ericbw]

Liquid is always more expensive, but there are more options. Like T-58 - it's suggested for your Belgian wit, along with 2 others. But if you wanted to make an abbey ale, I bet they would suggest 2 other liquid yeasts and T-58.

So it's maybe not the most specifically right one for all the styles.

 

[Morrey]

Thanks everyone!!! All of this info is very helpful! So basically for now I'm going to stick with the dry yeasts until I get comfortable enough to move on. Good to know there isn't a big difference between them. They have a pretty big price difference that's why I was wondering if I was missing anything.

Thanks again for all the input everyone

I think your assessment to get familiar with the brewing process using dry yeasts is good judgment on your part. A handful of various dry yeast strains can be workhorses in your brewery. There was a thread/poll some months ago titled "if you could only have one yeast, what would it be"? The choices that stood out were dry yeasts.

 

[jan_b19]

Those are 2 liquid yeasts and a dry yeast. They will be pretty similar. So any of them will be a good choice. You may not want to order liquid yeast during the summer when delivery trucks or mailboxes could get very hot, killing the yeast. Omega says a pack will contain at least 150 billion cells. I believe Wyeast packs contain 100 billion. Depending on the gravity of the beer you may need to make a starter to have the optimum cell count.

Read the descriptions on the manufacturers websites.

In the long term you will use some yeasts and like the results better than other yeasts. To find out you will have to try each one.

Don't your liquid yeast packages arrive with a cold pack strapped to them, or in a cooled box?

 

[jan_b19]

Thanks everyone!!! All of this info is very helpful! So basically for now I'm going to stick with the dry yeasts until I get comfortable enough to move on. Good to know there isn't a big difference between them. They have a pretty big price difference that's why I was wondering if I was missing anything.

Thanks again for all the input everyone

No problem!
And the best way to see what yeast strain you like is to brew the same beer beer with all of them. Give them a try and see what's the best one for you.

 

[kh54s10]

Don't your liquid yeast packages arrive with a cold pack strapped to them, or in a cooled box?

Wait until later in the summer. You will read a lot of posts about yeast coming with a hot cold pack asking if the yeast is still good. They don't last long in a hot truck sitting on a Sunday. Or in a black mailbox when the day is in the high nineties.

The last time I ordered liquid yeast online the temperatures on the route were in the sixties. It took 4-5 days and by then the cold pack was at ambient temperature.

 

[lslbrew]

No problem!
And the best way to see what yeast strain you like is to brew the same beer beer with all of them. Give them a try and see what's the best one for you.

+1
When I started brewing I bought a box of 1 gallon jars from U-Line. This was back before brewing stores were carrying "small batch" equipment. I would split a batch of wort into each one and use a different yeast. This way, all else being equal I could see what each yeast contributed to the beer. I used a simple pale ale recipe to keep from confusing flavor with dark grains, etc. Also I would use the same recipe and yeast but change only the hops. I quickly learned what I liked and what I did not. Now when I look at a recipe (or a description of a beer at a brew pub) I have a good idea if it is a beer for me or not.

 

[GrimBrewer]

You can get quite a bit of info by searching google for specific yeast strains.
But as others have said, I would start wth a dry yeast first less variables if u dont have to make a starter. Also focus on your over all brewing processes first and worry less about the type of yeast. Once u have your brewing process sorted, stable and hitting ur targets, u can start looking at what the same beer recipe gives you wth diffrent yeast types.

 

[jan_b19]

Wait until later in the summer. You will read a lot of posts about yeast coming with a hot cold pack asking if the yeast is still good. They don't last long in a hot truck sitting on a Sunday. Or in a black mailbox when the day is in the high nineties.

The last time I ordered liquid yeast online the temperatures on the route were in the sixties. It took 4-5 days and by then the cold pack was at ambient temperature.

Well living in a small country like Belgium is good when brewing beer My yeast usually arrives within 2 days, and the last years our summers have been pretty.. mediocre.

But I can imagine if you live in a huge country like the US things have to travel a bit further than 200km