Dry Yeast for Scottish Ale

[Locham]

Folks-

Moving this post from Extract Brewing (where I got a solid answer) to here, since I have some confusion with dry yeast strains.

Folks-

I'll be brewing the Midwest Scottish Export 80 Shilling extract kit this weekend as a full-volume boil (and using my newly-acquired wort chiller). Ingredients are:

6 lbs. Gold liquid malt extract
1 lb. Amber DME
4 oz. Biscuit
8 oz. Caramel 40L
4 oz. Chocolate
2 oz. Special B
1 oz. Peat malt specialty grains
.5 oz. Challenger (bittering, 90 min)
1 oz. Fuggles (flavor, 30 min)

I have a few questions, though, and lay myself on the mercy of the board:

1) Proper yeast. Liquid yeast isn't an option for me (long shipping overseas, etc), and my kit came with Safale S-04. I also have ingredients for EdWort's Haus Pale Ale, and picked up a package of Nottingham to use with that. Recipes I've seen online sometimes use S-04, sometimes Nottingham, sometimes S-05. Which would be best to pitch for a Scottish Export, and so I learn, why?

brettwasbtd replied: Scottish ales usually use really clean yeasts. In my experience, all three of the aforementioned dry yeasts are fairly clean (Haven't been able to get S-04 to taste british really). What temp are you fermenting at? If you can go real cold like 58-60 range nottingham might be the way to go, if closer to 68 I'd go with S-05.

And my follow up there:

I have to admit that yeast options are incredibly confusing for me, particularly since I'm relying on dry yeast. Midwest shipped Safale S-04 with my kit, and both Northern Brewer and AHBS lists Safbrew S-33 as their dry yeast of choice for their Scottish Ales, but then for AHBS's Session Scottish Export recommend Windsor. Nottingham is an option, but then so is S-05! I'm sure the results are different with each yeast (and then different within each of those yeasts depending on fermentation temps, pitching temp, temp fluctuations, time in primary, time in secondary (if one chooses to rack to secondary for some reason).

How does anyone learn this? Is it just that there are many paths to a final destination, and at the end it will be beer and will probably be good? I realize I should probably post this part in the yeast/fermentation section, too....

I appreciate any help!

 

[TimTrone]

I'd go with the S04. Nottingham will attenuate a little more than you'd want with a scottish ale. You'll want some maltiness left in the brew, and the 04 will give that.

 

[poley]

I'd go with the S04. Nottingham will attenuate a little more than you'd want with a scottish ale. You'll want some maltiness left in the brew, and the 04 will give that.

+1 on S04, just keep it cool (62-64ºF) to keep the fruity esters down.

 

[Locham]

Brewed and pitched S04 last night, bubbling away in my closet at 63F right now with a good amount of krausen. We'll see how it goes in a few weeks!

 

[KDKid]

I tried using a white labs liquid yeast on a holiday recipe that was expired. No action after 36 hours. I then added a dry safale yeast. Still nothing after 12 hours. Do I need more time? It was at 64*f when I last checked. Wrapped my bucket with a blanket to bring it up. Any suggestions? I'll check back tomorrow.

 

[Locham]

o For the white labs - how expired are we talking? Did you make a starter? Did you pitch one vial or two? What was the volume of your wort that you pitched it into and recipe original gravity/expected final gravity? Did you aerate the wort before pitching (and if you did, how?) Just based on what I've seen, the experts here will need answers to these questions to tell you what's up.

o How'd you add the Safale - sprinkled on top, or rehydrated in a cup of water? I can say that after 10 hours of pitching Safale on my scottish ale, it has a nice head of krausen and is bubbling merrily away, and that's with a wort temperature around 62-63. Perhaps the more experienced brewers will let you know if you need to raise the temperature based on the style of beer you're brewing.

Welcome to the board, by the way.