Sundew Yeast

[Gusso]

I just got a pack. I have to brew my niece's 21st beer this weekend but after that the Omega Sundew is on deck. Anybody try it yet? It supposedly has a strong strawberry, pear, basically fruity taste and aroma. It says it pairs well with tropical/fruity hops but I might go light on the hops the first time around to get a better taste of the yeast on its own. Sounds interesting...

 

[Gusso]

Omega has a recipe with mostly Huell Melon hops. I guess I could order some but I made a pale ale with Rakau a couple of months ago. Had a a nice peachy, strawberry taste to it . I have a pound or so of them, I should use Rakau for the first go around with this yeast.

 

[jwa120]

How was your experience with this yeast?

 

[Gusso]

Didn't brew yet. Possibly tomorrow.

 

[jwa120]

I have a pack sitting in the fridge. I'm planing on making something light on hopping to get an idea on the ester profile.

Lets us know what you brew and how it turns out.

 

[Gusso]

Looks like I probably won't brew with it for a few days. But I did make a starter today as I'll probably be over 1.060. Just pouring the yeast into the wort, I got a distinct smell of dehydrated strawberries. Looking forward to this upcoming brew!

 

[Gusso]

So, I made a beer with Sundew. It's fruity but I wouldn't say it's extreme berry like I was expecting. Not bad at all but I was expecting more. 7/10.

 

[Jnick]

So, I made a beer with Sundew. It's fruity but I wouldn't say it's extreme berry like I was expecting. Not bad at all but I was expecting more. 7/10.

What temperature did you ferment it at? Curious as a couple videos imply the warmer it goes the more berry notes.

 

[Gusso]

Low 70's.

 

[Jnick]

Low 70's.

Thanks!

 

[Off Balance Brewing]

Where did you guys find it? Northern?

 

[Jnick]

Where did you guys find it? Northern?

I got mine from Atlantic Brew Supply.

 

[Jnick]

So, I made a beer with Sundew. It's fruity but I wouldn't say it's extreme berry like I was expecting. Not bad at all but I was expecting more. 7/10.

I'm on day 8 of fermenting a Blonde Ale with Sundew at 70 degrees and it is still putting off a strong Sulphur smell even though it appears to be almost done fermenting as the krausen has almost dropped. I know it's parentage is OYL-024 which is a Belgian yeast so I expected maybe some rotten egg smell but this has been for at least 5 days. Do you remember your brew putting off something similar?

 

[Gusso]

I'm on day 8 of fermenting a Blonde Ale with Sundew at 70 degrees and it is still putting off a strong Sulphur smell even though it appears to be almost done fermenting as the krausen has almost dropped. I know it's parentage is OYL-024 which is a Belgian yeast so I expected maybe some rotten egg smell but this has been for at least 5 days. Do you remember your brew putting off something similar?

I did not get any sulphur from the Sundew. I got some for a short time from Gulo, though. It quickly dissipated.

 

[Jnick]

I did not get any sulphur from the Sundew. I got some for a short time from Gulo, though. It quickly dissipated.

Ok interesting. Maybe I have something else going on. Time will tell. Thanks.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Usually hydrogen sulphide ("rotten egg") is a sign of stressed, unhappy yeast, caused by eg not enough nutrients or not enough aeration. The saison parentage may well mean a fairly high oxygen requirement.

Putting some copper metal in the beer can help disperse the rotten eggs.

 

[Jnick]

Usually hydrogen sulphide ("rotten egg") is a sign of stressed, unhappy yeast, caused by eg not enough nutrients or not enough aeration. The saison parentage may well mean a fairly high oxygen requirement.

Putting some copper metal in the beer can help disperse the rotten eggs.

Thanks for the information. I did my normal 1 minute with pure O2 and added nutrient in the last 5 minutes of the boil. I did add .5 lb of raspberry honey in the boil which is the only thing I did differently than my typical beers. OG was 1.044 so I didn’t use a starter and the yeast was only a month old.

 

[Gusso]

Fwiw,, I did make a starter.

 

[Jnick]

Fwiw,, I did make a starter.

Could be the difference. Appreciate it.

 

[Jnick]

I just received this response from Lance the owner of Omega yeast about Sundew. "Sundew can definitely kick off a ton of sulfur during fermentation (its parent strain, Belgian A, does the same thing). Give it a little more time and that should condition out. Everything else sounds on point. Let me know if you have any other questions".

I hope this helps any others going forward.

 

[couchsending]

Anyone experimented a bit more with Sundew? There isn’t much out there on it. Interested in trying it in a Taras Boulba inspired beer but also pairing it with more strawberry forward hops like
strata and cashmere.

 

[jwa120]

I've used sundew a few times. Overall I like it and am planing to use it again. It has a rather strong ester profile, but I would not call it strawberry like. It reminds me more of an English yeast.

I've fermented in the upper 60s and low 70s and haven't had any sulfur or fermentation issues.

I've used sundew for a west coast IPA that had 3.5 oz of dry hops and the esters were still noticable over the hops.