Does anyone else dislike US-05?

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As with alcohol, I believe that US-05 is being blamed for a lot of things that it just has not done. It is a very good dried yeast, which in my opinion and experience produces a wonderous beverage. WLP001 beats it for dead though.

I'm not blaming this yeast for anything. Just do not like the properties it has. I have made some beers with it that did taste good. I find there are better strains out there.
 
So far, whenever I have brewed with US-05 my first thought after tasting it is: "this would've been better if I'd used White Labs Kolsch yeast."

It never fails. That's why I try to avoid US-05 when I can.
 
So far, whenever I have brewed with US-05 my first thought after tasting it is: "this would've been better if I'd used White Labs Kolsch yeast."

It never fails. That's why I try to avoid US-05 when I can.


Wlp029 is a great yeast for pale ale and wheat beers ime
 
I made a delicious Double IPA (OG 1.091) using 50% Maris Otter, 50% German Pils, and 12 oz of Falconer's Flight hops in 5 gallons. I used S-05 and fermented cold (low 60s) and I got this wonderful peachy flavor from the yeast that complemented the hops.
 
I like US-05 just fine. I ferment at ~65 and haven't noticed any significant fruity esters. All my beers get Whirlfoc, cold crashed to 0 degrees, and gelatin, and with that regimen my US-05 beers get just as read-the-newspaper-through-it clear as all the rest. :)
 
Love US-05, ferment in upper 60's. I seldom use anything else. Love my beers from it and so do all my friends and neighbors!
 
US-05 and Notty are my go to yeasts. I ferment my house pale at 67, US-05 for a two weeks in the primary, then straight to the keg and in the kegerator for a week. Comes out clear with no off flavors that I can decern. I've used S-04 and Notty for English Pub style ales, I prefer the Nottingham over the two. 66 for ferment temp. Low abv's for both. 4.7 for the pale and 4.5-5.5 for the English styles. Wish I had a Nitro system for some of the English ales though. I've used US-05 for a double IPA once. Came out as clear and clean, though I'd like to try it again with liquid West Coast strain to see the difference. I'm still a novice when it comes to yeasts.
 
I am trying to narrow down a bad bready/yeasty taste in my l last few brews and I think I've identified US-05 as the culprit. I never had a misstep with Notty but when I switched (to make a SNPA clone, naturally) I started picking it up and didn't like it. I'm going to do my next batch with Notty this weekend and see how it goes.

It's not really the "peachy" flavor people warn of at low temps, though I do ferment at 64F and ramp up to 68F or so over the course of 10 days, but it might be something to do with that. My last batch was a simple 2-row with a bit of crystal, but there's far too much of that bread flavor to blame the malt.
 
This is exactly why everyone complains about this yeast.

Can you explain in more detail why you think I am doing something wrong? In fact I have a batch right now that is tow days going!

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Can you explain in more detail why you think I am doing something wrong? In fact I have a batch right now that is tow days going!


I'm not saying you're doing anything wrong. I just don't want to wait 60 days to clear.
 
I'm not saying you're doing anything wrong. I just don't want to wait 60 days to clear.[/QUOT
Thank's for clarifying, You don't have to wait sixty days,but if you want a quality ale it will take sixty days in the primary, you can keg it and it two days have a pint, I don't keg. I bottle, I can probably wait two weeks for it to carbonate, and it would be fine. Why not wait 2 more weeks to produce a superior ale .

My .02
 
I'm not saying you're doing anything wrong. I just don't want to wait 60 days to clear.

713, looked at my original post and I stand to be corrected, I posted 60 days in primary, me bad I meant to post 30 days. Sorry for the confusion. So it is a total of 60 days , 30 in primary, 30 in bottle.
 
I think it shines in a super dry hoppy beer, but has its place elsewhere if you can control your mash temps well. I think Bry-87 is much cleaner, it's undetectable in my latest porter. A Blonde Ale I made recently really shows the kind of fruity esters US-05 can put out, and many people who have tried it guessed that it's Belgian in some way. I think it's alright, but you need to use it where it works best.
 
713, looked at my original post and I stand to be corrected, I posted 60 days in primary, me bad I meant to post 30 days. Sorry for the confusion. So it is a total of 60 days , 30 in primary, 30 in bottle.


Even still, you are a far more patient brewer than I am. I do agree that S5 requires more patience and the right temps, especially for lighter ales.
 
Just made a pale ale with 05 after solely using notty for a while. Followed my tried and true notty schedule of a two week primary with two days of that a coldish crash at 39deg. Kegged with gelatin and force carbed and now 3 days later it tastes like a Belgian it's so yeasty and cloudy. My notty would be crystal clear. Sign me up for dislike and how long is this gonna take to floccing flocc?
 
I think US-05 performs well, but I agree with some others here that it is just a bit too boring for me. The only American yeasts I use anymore are Wyeast 1272 American Ale II and Wyeast 1332 Northwest Ale (which is actually from an English brewery). Wyeast 1028 London Ale is also a good fit for most American-style ales.
 
I am trying to narrow down a bad bready/yeasty taste in my l last few brews and I think I've identified US-05 as the culprit. I never had a misstep with Notty but when I switched (to make a SNPA clone, naturally) I started picking it up and didn't like it. I'm going to do my next batch with Notty this weekend and see how it goes.

It's not really the "peachy" flavor people warn of at low temps, though I do ferment at 64F and ramp up to 68F or so over the course of 10 days, but it might be something to do with that. My last batch was a simple 2-row with a bit of crystal, but there's far too much of that bread flavor to blame the malt.

I am with you on the bread flavors. I get it until the yeast has dropped and cleared. Which takes a quite a bit of time in the cold and fining or filtering to do it well imo. This strain just does not get it for me.
 
you have me worried about 05. I will find out soon. 1056 liquid was a fantastic yeast but expensive.
 
Funny using 05 on a stout now and a week in fermentation is done and my beer is close to a nice dark black. 2 or 3 days in the fridge and it is packed down really well.
 
I think it is OK in strongly flavored beers (IPA's, stouts, etc.) when treated properly (re-hydrated correctly, pure O2 addition, temp-controlled ferment). I won BOS in a large competition with a beer fermented with US-05.
 
It is the only dry yeast I use now. No problems. I do like to harvest slurry for several batches. Maybe that makes a difference on my end.
 
I'll take notty any day! I like to reuse slurry and I've used reused notty for several generations with no problem. Twice now S-05 has crapped out on me and taken extra time to finish or didn't quite get there. I'll stick with the notty.
 
Interesting. I've found repitching US-05 consistently results in a fully-fermented outcome.

And a few years ago I found if you dump a fresh batch of wort on a full US-05 cake it'll ferment the bejesus out of it :eek:

<shrug>

Cheers!
 
A full yeast cake is different than pitching a mason jar of it. A FULL yeast cake should ferment fully almost anything. That's a little different.
 
Agree with notty I've repitched a half 20oz soda bottle of washed notty that was more than a month old and it kicked off in hours and finished like a champ. Right now I have a keg of S05 APA that I cold crashed for two days and even after a week in the keg tastes like a Belgian cause it's so yeasty and it won't floc. Never woulda happened with notty.

My new S 05 rehydrating instructions: Carefully open package, slowly sprinkle into Clorox Bleach, boiling water, or destructor of choice, leave and forget. I'd be afraid to flush it down my toilet it might ruin my septic system colony.
 
Add me to the list of those that don't care for US-05. I have found that it takes a LONG time to clean up compared to other yeasts. If you aren't in a hurry, it's alright, but there are much better options out there IMO.

If you are in a hurry, have a cocktail. Beer needs patience.
 
There are many interesting comments on this thread. I've used used US-05 many times without noticing any off-flavors whatsoever. It makes me wonder if my palate is just less discriminating than others here. :drunk:
 
I'd like to jump in here.

I used M44 for awhile, and on a whim, decided to had back to US-05, to see if I could make similar/same beer with US-05.....

It seems I can't... Thisis somewhat my own issue, but buyer beware here - US-05 can cause some pretty major Diacetyl issues, particularly when fermented cool, and if you miss the D-Rest timing, you will end up with a big butter bomb.
last 2 used US-05, and tasted not great (1 is still in the keg, but I'm struggling)
I also have a M44 black IPa, which is clean and withoutthis particular issue - although slightly boozy due to a small underpitch (the packjets are 1.5g smaller than US-05, well thats my excuse anyway)

So just be aware - and if you ferm low, be sure to rest early.
 
Maybe I just don't have such a "sophisticated" tongue but I think 05 rocks. Ferments fast and neutral, available everywhere, pretty hard to make a bad beer with it IMO.
 
A follow up that coincides with some of the observations here: I fermented with US-05 at 68° for 3 days then raised to 72° until the yeast dropped on my RyePA. No off flavors and the hops are blasting through. However I had to carefully monitor the process and get the temp timing correct and stayed well within the recommended manufacturers temperature to do it right. So yes, US-05 makes good beer but it requires a bit more attention than other strains that I use. I'll save it for known recipes that I'm willing to experiment with to get right, because when it's good it's very very good.
 
Agree with US-05 producing a ton of diacetyl at lower temperatures. For that reason alone, I don't like to use it.

Doug, can you describe what diacetyl taste like? I use ofive for years and I am happy with it, just curious what diacetyl tastes like on the pallet.

Regard's
 
Doug, can you describe what diacetyl taste like? I use ofive for years and I am happy with it, just curious what diacetyl tastes like on the pallet.

Regard's

butter
Butterscotch
Overly Sweet caramel

the best descripter is Freshly Buttered Popcorn oyu get at the cinema...
 
The aroma and flavor are probably best described as "fake butter". Think movie-butter popcorn, or the "buttered popcorn" flavor of Jelly Belly jelly beans. In some darker styles it's actually not bad in small amounts.

It also gives an oily slickness to the mouthfeel that is not all that pleasant.
 
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