NEW!!: Safale W-68 Dry Yeast

[AlcheMania]

Has anyone used this yet?
Its supposed to be the Weihenstephaner strain.
Not sure where to even source it yet.

 

[lumpher]

I haven't even heard of it till your post, but:

https://craftabrew.com/products/safale-w-68-yeast
https://www.northernbrewer.com/products/safale-w-68

 

[Bassman2003]

It needs to beat Munich Classic as folks seem to say that is best dry hefe yeast. I have never used it.

 

[AlcheMania]

I haven't even heard of it till your post, but:

https://craftabrew.com/products/safale-w-68-yeast
https://www.northernbrewer.com/products/safale-w-68

My local brew supply says its sold out of from local suppliers. So i guess i gotta pay up for shipping.
A legit Weihenstephan 68 dry would be a game changer.

 

[AlcheMania]

Has anyone used this yet?
Its supposed to be the Weihenstephaner strain.
Not sure where to even source it yet.

On the way.
Plan to brew this one in June to serve July 20th
Will keep all posted

 

[rallenhall]

Hope this is a good copy of 3068 as I've yet to find a dry weizen yeast that I really like.

 

[AlcheMania]

Hope this is a good copy of 3068 as I've yet to find a dry weizen yeast that I really like.

Same !

 

[AlcheMania]

On the way.
Plan to brew this one in June to serve July 20th
Will keep all posted

Update: brewed a batch of Hef Sunday. Did a 15 minute ferulic rest into a 60 min, 155 F sach. Im on HERMS so its about 17 minutes for me to get from 115 to 155. Pitched @ 1pm. Had ferm activity by morning @ 66F. Dropped spunding to zero but waited 24 hrs post pitch to take lid off then left open bout 48 hrs till i saw krausen was settling. Currently sealed up @8 psi and 70 F. Will let ride thru the Sunday eve (while im in Baja fishin woohoo!) then soft crash to 52 F for a few days then transfer into a keg w/ some 34/70 and some sugar for final cleanup n carbing.
Ferm smells pleasantly sweet but not much in the way of banana aroma during ferm like i get from wlp 300. If this ended up closer to 380 id be happy. Bout 4 weeks till tap. Fingers crossed

 

[Bassman2003]

Cool. Keep us posted!

 

[jdauria]

Have not used it yet, but was able to use W-68 (the number the strain gets in the Weihenstephan yeast bank), liquid version through the **************** (Low Oxygen) website member group and it was a great yeast.

 

[AmarikinBrew]

It needs to beat Munich Classic as folks seem to say that is best dry hefe yeast. I have never used it.

Really? What's the difference between this and the Munich Classic? Re-branded? Re-Introduced?

 

[beersk]

I have a hefeweiss leichtbier fermenting right now at 70F. Brewed it last Sunday. Probably will keg it this upcoming week and be drinking it in a couple weeks. Got mine from Williams Brewing. Got my fingers crossed it's a good dry version of the 3068.
I did not do any pressure fermenting this time. I fermented in my SS Brewtech brew bucket, 3.5 gallons or so. Didn't do it open though; thought about it, but decided against it.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Trying this yeast on a banana bomb. I underpitched and set it at about 76*. I should get it in the keg in a week or two.

 

[beersk]

I have a hefeweiss leichtbier fermenting right now at 70F. Brewed it last Sunday. Probably will keg it this upcoming week and be drinking it in a couple weeks. Got mine from Williams Brewing. Got my fingers crossed it's a good dry version of the 3068.
I did not do any pressure fermenting this time. I fermented in my SS Brewtech brew bucket, 3.5 gallons or so. Didn't do it open though; thought about it, but decided against it.

My beer turned out pretty nice. I'd say it has a nice balance of banana and clove, maybe more on the banana side. I fermented at 70F. I can't say for sure how much, if any, difference there is to say, the Lallemand Munich Classic yeast though.

 

[AlexKay]

I just kegged a dunkelweizen fermented at 64 with W-68. It came out well, lots of clove, faint banana, well balanced. My experience with Munich Classic is that it’s very good when it’s good, but it is inconsistent … so I’ll need to do quite a few more with W-68 to see if there’s really an improvement. But so far, so good.

 

[beersk]

I just kegged a dunkelweizen fermented at 64 with W-68. It came out well, lots of clove, faint banana, well balanced. My experience with Munich Classic is that it’s very good when it’s good, but it is inconsistent … so I’ll need to do quite a few more with W-68 to see if there’s really an improvement. But so far, so good.

I've had this issue with pretty much every Lallemand yeast I've used. Good when it's good, but inconsistent. So, I don't use Lallemand anymore. Simple as that.

 

[Bassman2003]

I just kegged a dunkelweizen fermented at 64 with W-68. It came out well, lots of clove, faint banana, well balanced. My experience with Munich Classic is that it’s very good when it’s good, but it is inconsistent … so I’ll need to do quite a few more with W-68 to see if there’s really an improvement. But so far, so good.

I am lucky enough to also be using W-68 from those to be unnamed and it is hands down the best hefe yeast. It actually responds to the banana/clove battle with temp adjustments. Low 60's is the most clove I have ever got from hefe yeast but still great beer and 68F will produce plenty of banana. It also bestows the gift of vanilla. Great stuff.

 

[douban]

On the way.
Plan to brew this one in June to serve July 20th
Will keep all posted

Two days ago, I purchased this yeast for only 38 yuan. Why is the price so expensive on your end? And it only took me 48 hours to get it in my hands

 

[AlcheMania]

Update: brewed a batch of Hef Sunday. Did a 15 minute ferulic rest into a 60 min, 155 F sach. Im on HERMS so its about 17 minutes for me to get from 115 to 155. Pitched @ 1pm. Had ferm activity by morning @ 66F. Dropped spunding to zero but waited 24 hrs post pitch to take lid off then left open bout 48 hrs till i saw krausen was settling. Currently sealed up @8 psi and 70 F. Will let ride thru the Sunday eve (while im in Baja fishin woohoo!) then soft crash to 52 F for a few days then transfer into a keg w/ some 34/70 and some sugar for final cleanup n carbing.
Ferm smells pleasantly sweet but not much in the way of banana aroma during ferm like i get from wlp 300. If this ended up closer to 380 id be happy. Bout 4 weeks till tap. Fingers crossed

Update: very pleasant Hefeweizen def not as banana forward as wlp 300 with more of a bubblegum/perfume/light banana mix and def some spice/clove complexity (I did a 15 min acid rest) def improvement with longer lager time, possibly softening the phenols. Keeps a nice round mouthfeel even with the higher carbonation. For me not a substitute for wlp 300 or 380 but thus far my favorite dry Hef yeast after a single batch. I fermed @ 66 but will up to 68 F next time.

 

[AmarikinBrew]

Franziskaner Dunkel Weisse?

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Good and not so good. My banana bomb, bombed. Not horrible, just not nearly the banana you can get from WLP300. It's palatable, just not what I was going for.

The good - I used my other sachet to make a Widmer clone and I think it hit spot on! I've made my other wheat beers with WB-06 and I think they came out too tart. This W-68 has exactly what I was looking for in wheat beers. I would say the banana/clove is very well balanced and leaves it cloudy/hazy with a creamy white head. I do believe this beer will be on rotation.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Almost forgot. How can I post something like that without the accompanying Pic.

 

[VTMongoose]

Trying this yeast on a banana bomb. I underpitched and set it at about 76*. I should get it in the keg in a week or two.

How much did you pitch and what was your rehydration/starter procedure including the timeline?

 

[FloppyKnockers]

How much did you pitch and what was your rehydration/starter procedure including the timeline?

I pitched a half a sachet. No rehydration, no starter. Pitched and left fermenting in Texas summer room temperature (~76°). I wanted to stress the yeast as much as possible for the most banana. There was some, but not enough. I've had much better luck with WLP-300. Kegged after three weeks, chilled, carbed, and drank.

 

[VTMongoose]

I pitched a half a sachet. No rehydration, no starter. Pitched and left fermenting in Texas summer room temperature (~76°). I wanted to stress the yeast as much as possible for the most banana. There was some, but not enough. I've had much better luck with WLP-300. Kegged after three weeks, chilled, carbed, and drank.

Interesting. I am going to rehydrate mine a day or two before to try to get the yeast reactivated and deplete their glycogen reserves. I was planning on pitching 8 grams which is about half the sachet, should be about 100B cells. Perhaps I will cut that back to 6 grams.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Interesting. I am going to rehydrate mine a day or two before to try to get the yeast reactivated and deplete their glycogen reserves. I was planning on pitching 8 grams which is about half the sachet, should be about 100B cells. Perhaps I will cut that back to 6 grams.

6 grams might be better. I thought I waaaay under pitched, but the yeast took off fairly quickly and vigorously.

 

[ntempleton]

Update: very pleasant Hefeweizen def not as banana forward as wlp 300 with more of a bubblegum/perfume/light banana mix and def some spice/clove complexity (I did a 15 min acid rest) def improvement with longer lager time, possibly softening the phenols. Keeps a nice round mouthfeel even with the higher carbonation. For me not a substitute for wlp 300 or 380 but thus far my favorite dry Hef yeast after a single batch. I fermed @ 66 but will up to 68 F next time.

Interesting. I'm one of the few that enjoy bubblegum in my German Weissbier.

 

[AlcheMania]

Franziskaner Dunkel Weisse?

Yeah I think this yeast would suite that type of profile nicely. As a very light colored hef it's not ideal for me thus far, not being as banana forward as I like.

 

[VTMongoose]

6 grams might be better. I thought I waaaay under pitched, but the yeast took off fairly quickly and vigorously.

I ended up rehydrating around 6.7 grams or so and pitched it after chilling to 72°F (I'm sure I lost about a gram in the rehydration/pitching process). 4 days later, primary fermentation is nearly complete. It took off right away (pic is from the morning after I pitched) and behaved like any other W-68 yeast (WLP300/WY3068/OYL-021) with regards to blowing a crazy amount of Krausen out the airlock during the growth phase, after which I switched to an airlock.

I will let it primary a full two weeks, closed transfer to another one of these, batch prime to ~3.0 volumes of CO2, keg condition 2.2 gallons in one of my small Oxebar kegs and bottle the rest.

 

[VTMongoose]

Yesterday (whilst mashing an American Pale Ale) I transferred the finished beer into a sanitized/purged fermonster and ran off 2.2 gallons into a small Oxebar for myself and bottled the rest in a combination of 12 ounce long-necks and 500 mL Euro bottles. Can hardly wait the two weeks it'll take for this to condition to see what the results are. The wort had the expected aromas of bananas and cloves and almost no sulfur.

The beer finished stonkin dry at 1.008. Honestly that's probably too dry, but we'll see.

The follow up to this hefeweizen will swap the white wheat for dark, and up the grain bill by half a pound to get closer in color and strength to Ayinger Urweisse.