Citrus from yeast??

[parratt1]

So I am working on a clone of a basic american wheat. The origional has a slightly spicy and orangy/lemony citrus bite at the end. The brewery claims they use no flavor or aroma hops and adds no fruit so I am trying to figure if it comes from the yeast. Is there a yeast that will lend these characteristics to a very light bodied beer?

 

[ACbrewer]

yeast will do this, and so will temp. I think if you ferment warm (say 75ish) you get citrus flavors. I sure someone else will correct me if I'm wrong. This is very common with the Belgian ales/yeast blends.

 

[Golddiggie]

Wyeast 1056 (American Ale) lists:

Mild citrus notes develop with cooler 60-66°F (15-19ºC) fermentations.

Look at other yeast strains to find ones that either have more citrus character, or that do it in a temperature range you'll be able to ferment at.

You might get a slight hint from the bittering hops, depending on which you use.

Of course, making a clone doesn't always mean you have to follow their recipe exactly. You're trying to replicate the end product. SO, you could use some flavor hops to give the citrus character you're looking for. Otherwise, play around with combinations of yeast, temperature, and other ingredients until you match the original...

 

[Yooper]

I don't like wheat beers- I think they have a natural "sour"ness to them that I think of as lemony. Could that be what you're tasting?

 

[parratt1]

Im not sure Yooper if I would say sour although a slight lemony like pucker and a hint of spice as the finish. Not overwhelming just there in the very end and very subtle. So maybe we are talking about the same thing. But I sure dont taste it in mine. My recipe was two row, torrified wheat, I think flaked wheat and just bittering hops. Only 12 IBU. So it pretty well ended up tasting like bud light. It just needs that missing citrus kick without getting fruity.

 

[skeezerpleezer]

Why not add some late addition citrusy hops? May not be what the brewery did, but may get you what you are looking for.

 

[rjwhite41]

Im not sure Yooper if I would say sour although a slight lemony like pucker and a hint of spice as the finish. Not overwhelming just there in the very end and very subtle. So maybe we are talking about the same thing. But I sure dont taste it in mine. My recipe was two row, torrified wheat, I think flaked wheat and just bittering hops. Only 12 IBU. So it pretty well ended up tasting like bud light. It just needs that missing citrus kick without getting fruity.

You made a wheat beer and it doesn't have any flavor from the yeast??? You might want to sell that recipe to Miller, I'm sure they would be very interested.

 

[Yooper]

Im not sure Yooper if I would say sour although a slight lemony like pucker and a hint of spice as the finish. Not overwhelming just there in the very end and very subtle. So maybe we are talking about the same thing. But I sure dont taste it in mine. My recipe was two row, torrified wheat, I think flaked wheat and just bittering hops. Only 12 IBU. So it pretty well ended up tasting like bud light. It just needs that missing citrus kick without getting fruity.

Did you use any wheat? Except for the torrified wheat? I'm not a wheat beer fan, but if I was making a wheat beer I'd use wheat malt. That would give it that distinctive "wheat beer taste".

 

[parratt1]

No just flaked wheat and torrified wheat. Doesnt torrified wheat fall into the category of wheat malt? I know the brewery uses unmalted wheat but I have never used it. I did a little looking at all the yeasts characteristics that wyeast offers. Some of the belgians and also some of the other yeasts I have never used are supposed to give spicy and citrusy flavors so I am gonna branch off and try some of them out. Good thing about homebrewing is that I have the ability to experiment!!!! I love this!

 

[B-Hoppy]

Maybe the brewer soured a small portion of the mash or utilized some acid malt in the mash. A little bit goes a long way, especially in a lighter styled beer.

 

[parratt1]

I just researched sour mash and acid malt. Thats pretty interesting. Im not 100% sure Ive had any sour beer before but I may try to add 5% acid malt and give that a whirl. Thanks for those ideas.