Need advice for English IPA yeast choice

[mithion]

I've been tinkering a lot with a recipe for an English IPA. One aspect I've been having tremendous difficulty deciding on is the selection of yeast. Last winter, I brewed the recipe with Wyeast 1968 London ESB strain. I was afraid that attenuation would be an issue but by a miracle of nature, I got a final gravity of 1.012 which is spot on for the style. I was pleased with it, but I felt it was almost too malty. Almost like a barleywine with less alcohol (granted the recipe might have not been formulated correctly). So I've been looking into experimenting with another strain to see if I can balance it a bit more.

I would like to know what your favorite strain for an English IPA would be? I've been looking into the Wyeast 1099 Whitbread, 1275 Thames valley and 1318 London Ale III. What do you guys think of theses strains for the style? Would you recommend something else?

 

[StoutFan]

1335-British Ale II
Typical of British and Canadian ale fermentation profile with good flocculating and malty flavor characteristics, crisp finish, clean, fairly dry.

Flocculation: high
Attenuation: 73-76%
Temperature Range: 63-75° F (17-24° C)
Alcohol Tolerance: approximately 10% ABV

From Wyeast themselves, and the strain I like to use for all my IPA's!

 

[mithion]

Interesting. I'll have to check this one out. I'm not sure they have it at the LHBS. BTW, what are the "malty characteristics" they speak of for this strain?