MJ M36 Liberty Bell, which strain?

[Granite03]

I bet there was something wrong that has nothing to do with the yeast.

No, it went like clockwork until the clock kept running with this yeast.

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

What temp did you mash at?

 

[duncan_disorderly]

I'm not sure how a 3.8% bitter would have an FG of 1012 with a yeast that attenuates around 76% iirc.

What was your OG?

 

[Erik the Anglophile]

Yeah something does not add up, and btw 1.008 is absolutely in line with a bitter, especially a northern or Yorkshire type one.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

I think I'm done with Mangrove Jacks yeast. I designed an ordinary bitter with Beersmith and used M36 Liberty Bell as it was the most appropriate my HBS had in stock. It was designed to be 3.8% ABV with a FG of 1.012. It finished at 1.006, jacking my ABV much higher than planned and making it really dry. It may be appropriate for other styles, but I have to have yeast I can count on.

1.006 and 3.8% is pretty normal for northern bitters, eg
http://barclayperkins.blogspot.com/2012/05/lets-brew-wednesday-1987-boddingtons.html
And that's after Boddies stopped using their diastatic yeast, they were getting down to 1.003 off a higher OG in the 1970s. This idea that British bitter is poorly attenuated is just a myth.

 

[monkeymath]

I've just bottled a beer brewed with liberty bell. It kind of tastes like straight S 04, it flocculates maaaaad, also just like S04 but it did start a bit slow, not like S 04. MAybe the pack was a bit old or something. The beer is pretty clean tasting and came out of the fermenter PERFECTLY clear, after 7 days from pitching the yeast. I only know of one dry yeast capable of this and that is S04..... but maybe something exotic from down under does the same? Mauri anything?

I do not see any windsor in there... the yeast just flocculates too well.

That's funny. I have read in a number of places that M36 was slow to start, whereas others say it took off quickly. Last week I bottled a stout made with M36 where fermentation kicked in after only 12 hours. Which is faster than any fermentation I've had with dried yeast iirc (I haven't used a lot of dried yeast in recent years tbh). It went nuts for three days and then stopped rather abruptly, ending at some ~75% AA.
At which temperature did you pitch? Mine was 19C.

Although the yeast is usually described as pretty neutral, the beer tasted pretty fruity at bottling - maybe more fruity than I would've liked. But it's not fully conditioned yet, so it's too soon to tell.

 

[Granite03]

With a 3.8% ABV I wanted better body. Mash temp was 155. It could be that BeerSmith was off, but I don’t think they make up yeast attenuation. It fermented in SS chronical fermenters at 68F with glycol cooling. I need a yeast that is predictable.

 

[Protos]

In my experience, M36 is almost identical to S-04 aside that it's less tart and a tiny bit more fruity.
I find no windsory features in it at all.
Stable attenuation at 75-77%, excellent flocculation.
I won't employ it in a beer where I want a low alcohol level and a fuller body. Windsor or London is my friend for such a recipe.

 

[Miraculix]

That's funny. I have read in a number of places that M36 was slow to start, whereas others say it took off quickly. Last week I bottled a stout made with M36 where fermentation kicked in after only 12 hours. Which is faster than any fermentation I've had with dried yeast iirc (I haven't used a lot of dried yeast in recent years tbh). It went nuts for three days and then stopped rather abruptly, ending at some ~75% AA.
At which temperature did you pitch? Mine was 19C.

Although the yeast is usually described as pretty neutral, the beer tasted pretty fruity at bottling - maybe more fruity than I would've liked. But it's not fully conditioned yet, so it's too soon to tell.

Same temperature range. Maybe it is actually a mix and the mix is not properly mixed before packing the small sachets? Meaning, if it should be 50/50, sometimes one might get 90/10 or something like that and another person might get 10/90 instead.

 

[duncan_disorderly]

Maybe when they changed from M79 Burton union to M36 Liberty Bell they changed the blend? (If it is a blend). Notty/Windsor to Bry97/Windsor. Something like that, just guessing. Might have informed the significant name change.

 

[Miraculix]

Bry97 does not flocculate that well IMO.

 

[elproducto]

Arise thread! I just want to chime in that this is quickly becoming one of my favorite "strains".

I've brewed 5 beers with it, and everytime it's quick, reliable and has an amazing flavor profile. It's not TOO English that it's useable in American IPA, but is totally nice in English Styles.

Did I mention it's cheap? I only wish I could buy it by the brick, it's going to be my new house English strain I think.

 

[kjelljorner]

If some people from the thread are still around, I thought I would ask for your opinion on a hypothesis that I have: M36 is Mauribrew Draught.

I recently made some photographs of MJ yeasts (this post and below), and found the following two to be mixtures as shown clearly by grains of different shape and color.

• M76 (this is also listed as a mix in the MJ catalogue)
• M54 (this has been previously stated by MJ in an email to a customer)

However, M36 doesn't give any indication of being a mix, but looks homogeneous (photos here) and not like M42, M44 or M15. The hypothesis that it is a combination of M42/Nottingham(?) and M15/Windsor(?) is therefore not very likely. With that out of the way, I think the likely candidates for M36 (M79 when it was introduced in 2013) would be either S-04 or Mauribrew Draught. Given that MJ would incorporate the other Mauribrew strains (Ale 514 as M10, Lager 497 as M84 and Weiss as M20) in their lineup, it would also make sense for them to use Draught.

It's very hard to get by any information on how Draught actually performs as it hasn't been widely used by home brewers. There are spec sheets, but they don't specify attenuation except that it is "high". Draught is no longer available, but it seems that AB Mauri/AB Biotek has rearranged its yeast in the Brewhouse and Pinnacle brands in the following way (see catalogue, p. 50–51):

• Mauribrew Ale 514 → Brewhouse Classic Ale
• Mauribrew Lager 497 → Brewhouse Classic Lager
• Mauribrew Weiss → Brewhouse Classic Weiss
• Mauribrew Draught → Pinnacle Heritage English Ale (mapping through here)
• Mauribrew AB01 (introduced in 2019) → Pinnacle Heritage American Ale (mapping through here)

Based on this mapping, we can also compare M36 to Heritage English Ale's specs.

	M36	Draught	Heritage English Ale	S-04
Temperature	18-23	13-22	18-22	18-26
Attenuation	74-78	High	72-78	74-82
Flocculation	4/5	Heavily	Very high	+
Compaction/sedimentation	4/5	Very good	Heavily	Fast
Description	"light, delicate fruity esters ... finishes beers moderately dry but does not strip away body."	"Ester profile at higher temperatures and gravities."	"Full bodied, slightly fruity and estery."	"balanced fruity and floral notes"

Temperature range and attenuation match really well. The MJ flocculation/compaction rating of 4/5 seems a bit low, but people have reported very strong flocculation and clearing of the beer. From your experience with the yeast, would this be plausible? (I've only used it once and then in a kit.)

As it's very hard to get the AB Mauri/AB Biotek yeasts almost anywhere these days, it's nice to (maybe?) have access to them through MJ.

 

[dmtaylor]

Everything old is new again...

I have a new old theory. M36 might just be... S-04. At least, until I'm proven wrong again.

 

[kjelljorner]

Everything old is new again...

I have a new old theory. M36 might just be... S-04. At least, until I'm proven wrong again.

I'm working on getting my hands on both some S-04 and some Pinnacle Heritage English Ale (smuggled in from Spain)

 

[Shenanigans]

I got a 3g pack of this for 1€ with an online order and was wondering what to do with it.
I think it was left over from a small MJ kit that's why it's only 3 gramms.
I will of course build a starter as I usually brew 21 Litre batches.

 

[Miraculix]

I got a 3g pack of this for 1€ with an online order and was wondering what to do with it.
I think it was left over from a small MJ kit that's why it's only 3 gramms.
I will of course build a starter as I usually brew 21 Litre batches.

You can brew a beer with it!!

 

[Shenanigans]

You can brew a beer with it!!

I read somewhere that it's good for cider too