Dry vs. Liquid Yeast

[Throckmorton]

I looked around the forum for an answer but was unable to come up with anything. I've always used White Labs yeast when brewing. I've only done pale ales, irish reds, stouts and hefes. I understand that with a hefe, you would definately want to use a liquid yeast because it is a specific type. However, is there a big difference btw using a dry yeast opposed to a liquid when you are brewing a pale ale, irish red, or stout?

 

[Shonuff]

I use dry yeast for everything except Belgians, Hefs, and Sour Beers (haven't used lager yeast).

Make a cheap and easy Pale Ale or Stout and use some dry yeast and see what you think.

 

[Duckfoot]

Used both... Haven't gotten that into the whole 'specific yeast for specific brews' yet.... I just kinda roll with what the recipe calls for....

What part of May-retta you in?

East Cobb REPREZENT!!!! :rockin:

 

[Throckmorton]

What part of May-retta you in?

Far northeast, just south of hwy 92, close to Kennesaw and Woodstock.

 

[barroomhero1234]

All depends on what you like. Dry is usually fine, more specific as stated by others. I love Wyyeast irish ale. But i go along fine with dry as well.

 

[DeathBrewer]

I looked around the forum for an answer but was unable to come up with anything. I've always used White Labs yeast when brewing. I've only done pale ales, irish reds, stouts and hefes. I understand that with a hefe, you would definately want to use a liquid yeast because it is a specific type. However, is there a big difference btw using a dry yeast opposed to a liquid when you are brewing a pale ale, irish red, or stout?

Safale US-05 would work great for all three of those.

Nottingham is a great yeast for fermenting clean and dry.

Here are some others

i would not use a dry yeast for belgian beers, wheat beers, or anything that needs a specific flavor profile. the dry yeasts tend to be best for clean fermentation (most american/british ales.)

 

[McKBrew]

I have taken to using Nottingham for just about everything not requiring a specialty yeast. It's cheap and reliable. No reason why one type is better than the other and it's all a matter of preference.

If you are making a large beer like a Barleywine or Double IPA, you might consider a liquid yeast as you can make up a large starter.

 

[Throckmorton]

Thanks all. I'm not only looking to go a cheaper route, but also looking to save some effort. I know you don't need a starter for dry. Sounds like the majority of stuff I brew will work well with dry. Thanks for your comments.

 

[WBC]

Thanks all. I'm not only looking to go a cheaper route, but also looking to save some effort. I know you don't need a starter for dry. Sounds like the majority of stuff I brew will work well with dry. Thanks for your comments.

The best way to find out what the difference is to make a batch of brew and ferment half with yeast #1 and half with yeast #2. I did this many times and overall I like the liquid yeast better. This is because I think that it is just slightly better taste in my opinion and I think that liquid is a more pure single strain. Read all you can find on the internet about brewing yeasts.

The above being said I do use Safale and Nottingham when making ales for the most part and use liquid on all my German lagers and wheat beers.

 

[Throckmorton]

Thanks WBC. That is pretty much what I had gathered, as I did do some research on the internet. I was curious what folks in this forum thought, as I've been impressed with the comments I've read since joining earlier this year.

I plan on creating a stir plate based on the directions and advice given on this forum, but I also wanted to experiment with dry yeast.

I see that most of you have mentioned Nottingham and Safeale. Any thoughts on Muntons? I buy most of my kits from Midwest Supplies, and that seems to be their dry yeast of choice.

 

[cd2448]

I've used predominantly dry yeast so far, windsor, S-04, S-05 and T-58 (lavlin for apfelwein). I've been happy with them, and the only direct comparison I have between liquid and dry is a saison which was actually better with T-58 than the wyeast belgian ale yeast that I had - but there might be a million reasons for that with my process etc.! The hefe I made with wyeast 3068 was excellent and I'd definitely use liquid for that.

I wash my yeast, but it's a lot of hassle to save $2 or whatever! I'm thinking I need to rationalize and only do it for expensive liquid yeasts (for the odd times I use them).

 

[cclloyd]

I too use dry - US-05 - most of the time, and when I do use liquid I wash and save at least three pints for future usage. The yeast washing thread (sticky) here makes it a piece of cake and well worth it to me. At $6 - $8 bucks a vial or smack pack I will re-use it as much as I can.

 

[Travion]

I made an IPA and used Ringwood ALe Yeast, liquid yeast. The IPA came out tasting like a Hefeweizen with a lot of hops. A very yeasty taste.

My question is: I am looking to get a clean non-yeast taste, what is the best yeast to use.
I am brewing an IPA tomorrow, so any advice would be great ! Thanks.

I have heard that the Safeale 05 is good to use, as it produces a clean taste, is this correct?

 

[ifishsum]

Any thoughts on Muntons?

It seems a high percentage of the threads asking about stuck fermentation have used Munton's dry yeast. It does not seem to attenuate as high as many others.

I personally have used Safale US-05 and Nottingham with very good results. My first try with liquid yeast will be an American hefeweizen, but otherwise I've had such good luck with dry I'm not too compelled to change.

 

[s3n8]

I made an IPA and used Ringwood ALe Yeast, liquid yeast. The IPA came out tasting like a Hefeweizen with a lot of hops. A very yeasty taste.

My question is: I am looking to get a clean non-yeast taste, what is the best yeast to use.
I am brewing an IPA tomorrow, so any advice would be great ! Thanks.

I have heard that the Safeale 05 is good to use, as it produces a clean taste, is this correct?

Yes, you are correct, Safeale 05 is a very clean fermenting yeast.

As far as your other, how long did you let the beer in the fermenter? Several IPA recipes I have seen call for Ringwood. I have never used it, but have used many other strains. They are all a little different, but they all drop out of suspension if they are given time.

 

[Bob]

I made an IPA and used Ringwood ALe Yeast, liquid yeast. The IPA came out tasting like a Hefeweizen with a lot of hops. A very yeasty taste.

Ringwood is a special yeast. Really, they ought to put warning labels on it.

My question is: I am looking to get a clean non-yeast taste, what is the best yeast to use.

I am brewing an IPA tomorrow, so any advice would be great ! Thanks.

That's like asking which hops variety is 'best'. There's no single correct answer to that. This is a situation in which you're really best served by reading all you can on the different types and strains of yeast. For example, I can brew a hell of an IPA with Ringwood, because I know how to manipulate the ingredient to get it to make the flavors I want.

If you're looking for a clean yeast with little ester production, look at SafeAle S-05 and Danstar Nottingham. If you're equipped to make starters - which will put your brew back a couple of days - look at Wyeast 1056 or 1332, or White Labs WLP001 or WLP051. In your case, I recommend SafeAle S-05 - all you have to do is follow the instructions on the packet.

Cheers!

Bob

I have heard that the Safeale 05 is good to use, as it produces a clean taste, is this correct?[/quote]

 

[CBBaron]

US-05, Wyeast 1056 and Whitelabs WLP001 are similar strains of clean fermenting ale yeasts that are often used for American style IPAs.

You can easily use multiple packs of dry yeast for high gravity beers if you need additional yeast population. I used 2 packs US-05 rehydrated with GoFerm in my 09-09-09 Barley wine and it rapidly fermented down from 1.120 to 1.024 (12.75% ABV). This was probably my most vigorous ferment. In fact I think my temps got a little high during the ferment resulting in too many fusels.

Craig

 

[HOP-HEAD]

I noted several times in this thread people indicating that dry yeast is great in certain applications, but that you need liquid when making a hefe. Now you've got me a little curious, because I have a German Hefe in my primary right now and I used an 11.5 g pack of dry Safebrew WB06 that was recommended by the kit. What can I expect?

 

[Tenchiro]

WB-06 makes a very good hefeweizen, you get the clove/banana but it doesn't seem to be as strong as some liquid strains produce.

 

[david_42]

Muntons standard yeast has low attenuation and is a common source of stuck ferments. It was selected for fast, clean fermentation of high-sugar beers. The Gold is better for all-malt beers.

 

[Travion]

Thanks S3n8 for your reply.
I had the IPA in the primary for a 8 days, then another 7 days in the secondary.

 

[Travion]

Thanks a lot for your advice, I appreciate it.

I think I will give it a shot with the safeale 05

Ringwood is a special yeast. Really, they ought to put warning labels on it.



That's like asking which hops variety is 'best'. There's no single correct answer to that. This is a situation in which you're really best served by reading all you can on the different types and strains of yeast. For example, I can brew a hell of an IPA with Ringwood, because I know how to manipulate the ingredient to get it to make the flavors I want.

If you're looking for a clean yeast with little ester production, look at SafeAle S-05 and Danstar Nottingham. If you're equipped to make starters - which will put your brew back a couple of days - look at Wyeast 1056 or 1332, or White Labs WLP001 or WLP051. In your case, I recommend SafeAle S-05 - all you have to do is follow the instructions on the packet.

Cheers!

Bob

I have heard that the Safeale 05 is good to use, as it produces a clean taste, is this correct?

[/QUOTE]

 

[s3n8]

Thanks S3n8 for your reply.
I had the IPA in the primary for a 8 days, then another 7 days in the secondary.

That is not terribly long. The info on Wyeast says it is highly floculant, but it sounds like it may not have cleared yet when you bottled it.

Live and learn, but I try to do 3 - 4 weeks in primary, then another couple weeks in secondary if I am dry hopping. I know its difficult, but patience will reward you with clearer beer .

 

[Throckmorton]

I noted several times in this thread people indicating that dry yeast is great in certain applications, but that you need liquid when making a hefe. Now you've got me a little curious, because I have a German Hefe in my primary right now and I used an 11.5 g pack of dry Safebrew WB06 that was recommended by the kit. What can I expect?

Hey Hop-Head,

I said that you needed liquid because I wasn't aware that there was a dry Hefe yeast strain. Now that I've looked it up, based on the info, you should be fine. The yeast is supposed to produce a banana clove taste, which is what most people want in their Hefe. That being said, the liquid yeasts tend to be more consistant. When you use dry, two identical batches might not taste quite the same.

 

[Endovelico]

I used S-04 for my first two batches of IPA, and my next batch is going to be a Porter with the S-05. I heard it's really clean.

 

[CBBaron]

I noted several times in this thread people indicating that dry yeast is great in certain applications, but that you need liquid when making a hefe. Now you've got me a little curious, because I have a German Hefe in my primary right now and I used an 11.5 g pack of dry Safebrew WB06 that was recommended by the kit. What can I expect?

WB06 is a fairly new yeast on the market. It is marketed as a German Hefe yeast.

No first hand experience but other posters have reported mixed results. Enough negatives have been reported that I would not recommend using it for a hefe but instead I would recommend a good liquid yeast from Wyeast or Whitelabs.

I think you can expect a hefe but it may not give as good of results as the liquid yeast products.

Craig