Verdant IPA vs London iii krausen and attenuation

[tyrub42]

Quick update. Final gravities have been reached. The DIPA with a significant dextrose addition (I think roughly 8 percent) hit 86 percent attenuation. The pale ale, once I subtracted the lactose points from the og and fg numbers, hit 84 percent without any sugar additions. Mashed low on both but even so, I've never had London iii attenuate like this. Flavor is great on both. Is it fruitier than London iii? I want to say yes but it would be irresponsible of me. With the amount of hops (and fruit in the pale) in these beers, I don't really think I'd be able to perceive subtle differences in the yeasts flavor profile. Even so, generation 2 really took off and got nice and aggressive with the attenuation. Krausen still a nightmare but in the pale with coconut and lime, it was restrained by the coconut oil haha. DIPA blew right through its headspace until I added even more fermcap (and even then idk if it did anything or if it just stopped attenuating). Anyway, good stuff!

 

[tyrub42]

Final verdict on this yeast:

The good:

-ester profile and mouthfeel are as good or better than London iii
-attenuates better than London iii
-seemingly better haze retention than London iii (if that's something you feel is important)
-reliable through at least two generations

The bad:

-krausen is actually crazier than London iii imo
-less consistent attenuation between two generations compared to London iii
-low cell count and high price compared with other dry yeast (but better than liquid)

Unknown:

-performance across several generations
-bottle conditioning ability without adding other yeast (I always add some t58 now)

Overall it's a winner bit I don't think I'll ever have a batch that doesn't blower off

 

[Northern_Brewer]

That's not a barm, this is a barm (on a Yorkshire Square of Taddy Porter at Sam Smith's). British ale yeasts are meant to be top-fermenting.

 

[tyrub42]

That's not a barm, this is a barm (on a Yorkshire Square of Taddy Porter at Sam Smith's). British ale yeasts are meant to be top-fermenting.
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Haha yup that's that cheese cake Krausen! I mean, it's common, sure, but I don't really think that English strains are broken if they don't Krausen like maniacs (007, Conan, etc). On my end I just dislike it because it's less beer per batch and also more headspace, which I haven't had a problem with, but is not something I like if I can avoid it

 

[tyrub42]

Actually interesting you posted taddy porter. I coincidentally tried it for the first time a few months ago. The bottle ended up being 5 years old by chance and seemed to have been stored pretty well. Tasted really nice with the age on it, although I'd like to try it fresh as well

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Haha yup that's that cheese cake Krausen! I mean, it's common, sure, but I don't really think that English strains are broken if they don't Krausen like maniacs (007, Conan, etc).

Any yeast you see in traditional British breweries will look like that - the ones that have adapted to continuous/conical fermenters like Whitbread B are super-domesticated in a way that reminds me of Chihuahuas - your ancestors were wolves and you've evolved...to this?

It's another example of how the US yeast labs distort people's idea of "normality" for British yeasts - I think most US homebrewers would be startled to know how many British yeasts are phenolic, as the yeast labs have carefully selected ones that aren't and present that as "normal".

 

[day_trippr]

[...]the ones that have adapted to continuous/conical fermenters like Whitbread B are super-domesticated in a way that reminds me of Chihuahuas - your ancestors were wolves and you've evolved...to this?[...]

Hahahaha! Hilarious yeast jokes are rare. That's a good 'un!

Cheers!

 

[mcleanmj]

A little late to the party, but I wanted to share my experience. I've been on a big NEIPA kick lately, and so far I've tried: London Ale iii, Imperial Juice, White Labs Coastal Haze, Escarpment Labs Foggy London Ale, Voss Kviek, and Verdant IPA. Verdant has been my favorite. Haze, mouthfeel, and residual sweetness are all spot on and I get extreme mango juice vibes. I bottle my beers, and (the horror) had a bottle get knocked over and break in my bathroom. It smelled like mango juice for a week. Strangely, I've gotten strong apricot from LAiii and more mango/pineapple from Verdant, despite the reputation for apricot from Verdant. I've got an oat cream hazy fermenting right now with Verdant and I grabbed a gravity sample yesterday and its looking like a pineapple/mango bomb. Anyway, can't complain about the convenience of dry yeast. That said, I got slightly lower attenuation than estimated with Verdant and had similar experiences, fast take off and then slow chugging at the end.

 

[tyrub42]

A little late to the party, but I wanted to share my experience. I've been on a big NEIPA kick lately, and so far I've tried: London Ale iii, Imperial Juice, White Labs Coastal Haze, Escarpment Labs Foggy London Ale, Voss Kviek, and Verdant IPA. Verdant has been my favorite. Haze, mouthfeel, and residual sweetness are all spot on and I get extreme mango juice vibes. I bottle my beers, and (the horror) had a bottle get knocked over and break in my bathroom. It smelled like mango juice for a week. Strangely, I've gotten strong apricot from LAiii and more mango/pineapple from Verdant, despite the reputation for apricot from Verdant. I've got an oat cream hazy fermenting right now with Verdant and I grabbed a gravity sample yesterday and its looking like a pineapple/mango bomb. Anyway, can't complain about the convenience of dry yeast. That said, I got slightly lower attenuation than estimated with Verdant and had similar experiences, fast take off and then slow chugging at the end.

Agree about the awesomeness of Verdant, although I've noticed far fewer differences compared to London iii. The differences I definitely noticed were a krausen that was somehow even larger than London iii, much better haze stability, and better attenuation. I think I noticed a fruitier ester profile but it was tough to tell side by side, and, for me, I don't think it'd be noticeable in a NEIPA full of pungent fruity hops.

One thing about Verdant that I did not get from London iii, though, is inconsistent attenuation. Verdant seems to get much more aggressive in generation 2 and attenuation was way higher (I'd have to check specifics but the end result was probably 2-4 gravity points further than expected). I don't mind that, but I do appreciate London iii consistency.

Overall, if I didn't already have a new pack of London iii in the fridge I may never bother with it again, as I liked Verdant so much and where I live, liquid is a twice a year event and costs are at least doubled (I paid like 16 bucks for a pack of Roeselare last winter...well worth it for the trouble it takes to get it here, but damn...)