White Labs Yeast Vault

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Sounds like a great idea, I think I'll do that. Also pondered adding a bit of citrus zest at the end of boil to replicate the orange slice in the glass that people seem to love in the states.

Can't wait for that Hansen Blend to ship, I'm gonna try a NE IPA with that.

This yeast vault program has been awesome.
 
Finally got around to trying my 611 split batch.
Did a German Pilsner and Saaz SMaSH, and fermented one gallon temp-controlled at 61, and one gallon uncontrolled at room temp (around 75 ambient), about three weeks each. Bottle conditioned and finally sampled about two weeks later:

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1461129284.089128.jpg

Pretty similar in general, but some slight differences my untrained palate picked up. Definitely get more banana and Hef-like characteristics (not clove, though, but maybe some bubblegum) in the warmer one, and more stone-fruit sweetness and saison-type flavors and less of the banana in the cooler version. I prefer the warmer myself, but my wife likes the cooler one (and we're both fans of hefs and saisons). She commented on the creamy mouthfeel, which does almost taste like there's some wheat in there (though there's not)!

I used these two SMaSH gallons basically as drinkable starters: I added two gallons of apple juice onto part of the yeast (didn't use the whole cake) in one fermenter, and have that going at 68 right now:

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1461129722.736613.jpg

...and saved the yeast from the other one for my next brew next week. Am thinking a kind of Hef-Roggenbier-Saison type hybrid:

40% Pilsner
20% Wheat
20% Rye
10% Flaked Oats
10% table sugar
~15 IBUs at 60 min only

For lack of a better name yet, I'm calling it my "Multigrain Nordic Ale" for now...
 
I used a grain bill similar to a weizenbock. Mine has been fermenting for 3 days now. I pitched the yeast at about 75 degrees and left it at room temp. My house temp has been about 70 to 75. Given the warm temps I was very surprised that this didn't have any blow off. I will report back in a few weeks on how it turns out.
 
Got my 835 a couple weeks back, brewed a 11 gallon helles, 5.5 on 835, 5.5 on 833 my current favorite munich strain. Sampled both after the D-rest, the 835 tastes super clean out of primary, and already with good clarity, and nice maltiness, (and a bit of a floral note, more prominent than in the 833)

Overall, the sample was very promising, especially compared to the 833.
 
Giraffe, How did the fermentation go, what temp did you use.

I just started a helles with my 835, I pitched an appropriate size start at 48F and had some airlock activity about 18 hours later then at about 24hours it stopped. Then this morning (40hours post pitch)it was going again, but still not going crazy.

I am figuring this is a something funny with my batch of beer, but did the 835 ferment at the same rate as 833 or what ever yeast you used?
 
ba-brewer said:
Giraffe, How did the fermentation go, what temp did you use.

I just started a helles with my 835, I pitched an appropriate size start at 48F and had some airlock activity about 18 hours later then at about 24hours it stopped. Then this morning (40hours post pitch)it was going again, but still not going crazy.

I am figuring this is a something funny with my batch of beer, but did the 835 ferment at the same rate as 833 or what ever yeast you used?
Click to expand...

I pitched at 48, mr malty approved starter size, fermented at 50/51. Had a thin krausen on the second day, was ready for d rest on day 7. 1 day slower than 833. Overall normal behavior. OG was 1.044, FG 1.008 on the 835, maybe a little higher on the 833.

Brewed 10 gallons of smoked helles yesterday for gen 2. Pitched a portion of the each harvested yeast cake, 833 in 5gal, 835 in 5 gal. Each has a krausen now, 18 hours after pitching.
 
giraffe said:
I pitched at 48, mr malty approved starter size, fermented at 50/51. Had a thin krausen on the second day, was ready for d rest on day 7. 1 day slower than 833. Overall normal behavior. OG was 1.044, FG 1.008 on the 835, maybe a little higher on the 833.

Brewed 10 gallons of smoked helles yesterday for gen 2. Pitched a portion of the each harvested yeast cake, 833 in 5gal, 835 in 5 gal. Each has a krausen now, 18 hours after pitching.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the information. I check gravity at 60hr post pitch and it was at 1031 down from 1048, which is about 24hours slower than what I normally get with 833. At 24hrs the tops was void of activity, 48hrs had a nice solid krausen.
 
Thought it was worth sharing that my Hvit Wheat (recipe and details here) won a bronze medal with a score of 39.5 in the Hammerdown Brewcup up in northern Kentucky this past weekend. Must have been some stiff competition haha. But I'm certainly very happy with the results. I'll definitely keep using the WLP611 for wheats while I can.

I'll share the score sheets when I get them.
 
Anyone else get a notification for a yeast they didn't order? I only ordered the WLP835 Lager X from the vault and already received it (pitched it into a helles last Friday). But today I got another email saying I was getting an order from White Labs?
 
Interesting, maybe they sent me one? I didn't order it though and the shipping number has no info yet.

It sounds interesting, and I have 2 IPA coming up.
 
Received my Hansen Ale vial today. I might be overlooking it, but I can't seem to find any information on recommended temperature for this yeast. Anyone have that info?
 
gometz said:
Anyone else get a notification for a yeast they didn't order? I only ordered the WLP835 Lager X from the vault and already received it (pitched it into a helles last Friday). But today I got another email saying I was getting an order from White Labs?
Click to expand...

I received an email titled " Oops! Please Disregard the Email from Stamps.com" seems like they may still working the bugs out of the yeast vault system.
 
Got my Hansen in the mail today too. I was going to build a large starter and bank some yeast for another brew later. It's called Hansen blend so I assume it's a blend of a couple different strains. Does anyone see any issues with this strategy?
 
Got my 2 vials of Hansen yeast today and am kind of dickish about it. It seems to me this was discussed that after the quantity was met, it would ship out soon so I figured it would be here before us southern boys got the hot weather. It took only 2 days to get here and while the package didn't feel hot, it wasn't cool either.
It is what it is but I never buy yeast online except in the winter and early spring. I guess it's ok but I won't be using it for another 3 weeks so I'll make a big ass starter and see how it goes.
Won't do this again though.
Oh, and it's in vials and not the new packs.
 
Beer-lord said:
Got my 2 vials of Hansen yeast today and am kind of dickish about it. It seems to me this was discussed that after the quantity was met, it would ship out soon so I figured it would be here before us southern boys got the hot weather. It took only 2 days to get here and while the package didn't feel hot, it wasn't cool either.
It is what it is but I never buy yeast online except in the winter and early spring. I guess it's ok but I won't be using it for another 3 weeks so I'll make a big ass starter and see how it goes.
Won't do this again though.
Oh, and it's in vials and not the new packs.
Click to expand...


Mine were not cool by the time they arrived. The ice pack was warm and so was the vial. Luckily I was home when it arrived and was able to get it in the fridge quickly. Won't be making anything out of it for a couple weeks so I'm hoping it survived!
 
I think it's fine too but I'll also make a large starter when I use it in about 3-4 weeks. I think it's really got to get hot to damage it too but I also think the new packs would have been better than the old vials but I guess they didn't make enough of it to justify that process.
Also, this is darker than I would have thought it would be. Not a bad thing, just an observation.
 
I think that they are using the vials because it's a blend. The 611 New Nordic Blend came in a vial also. I think the new Pure Pitch packages are for just that - "pure" single strains. Just a guess though...
 
A few thoughts, all of which are obviously only my opinions:

1. Per an interview with Chris White on BBR and what I was told while touring White Labs in San Diego, White Labs currently will continue to package blends and bugs in the vials. The Pure Pitch packaging is literally a small partitioned portion of the bioreactor the yeast is grown up in. This greatly minimizes stress on the yeast and maximizes viability. And as the blends are grown up separately, they as of now cannot be packaged this way. The bugs, if I recall correctly, are just being kept separate for the time being. However, they eventually would like to get everything in the Pure Pitch.

2. While my vials arrived about room temperature here in Memphis, I am relatively unconcerned. I would predict that most yeast you purchase online or in a local homebrew shop have gone through at least one if not two such transports. Not to mention the yeast is literally days old, so viability should be very near the maximum possible unless you can drive to White Labs.

3. I personally do not typically put blends into starters. When they are grown up together, the proportions of each yeast/ bug can change quite dramatically. And in the case of most commercial pitches, they are calibrated to have the desired flavor profile at the packaged proportions. Of course this will proportion will also change while fermenting, but the proportion is correct during the beginning of fermentation. Now of course I acknowledge there are some stable blends that withstand several generations. In fact, when I tested WLP611, while the yeast harvested following fermentation had changed proportion the starter I made (grown up from 10mL or so of the same vial) was relatively stable.

Anyway, just my thoughts. Feel free to disagree.
 
Beer-lord said:
Anyone heard anything about the release of the Hansen yeast? It's been in production for almost 4 weeks. That seems kind of long to me but WTF do I know?
Click to expand...

Good news/ Bad news situation...

Good news: my Hansen yeast arrived today!

Bad news: White Labs is CLEARLY overestimating the cooling ability of that puny icepack and "insulated" mailer. When I took it out of my (black metal) mailbox on this bright sunny day, it was WAAAY too hot. I kick myself for not measuring its temperature, but I freaked a bit and immediately put it into the fridge.

I'm betting the yeast is shot. I will build a nice starter for it, but I will also be sure to have something in reserve if/when it doesn't take off.

Grrrrr...:mad:
 
skydiver30960 said:
Good news/ Bad news situation...

Good news: my Hansen yeast arrived today!

Bad news: White Labs is CLEARLY overestimating the cooling ability of that puny icepack and "insulated" mailer. When I took it out of my (black metal) mailbox on this bright sunny day, it was WAAAY too hot. I kick myself for not measuring its temperature, but I freaked a bit and immediately put it into the fridge.

I'm betting the yeast is shot. I will build a nice starter for it, but I will also be sure to have something in reserve if/when it doesn't take off.

Grrrrr...:mad:
Click to expand...

When my Wlp835 arrived it was warm too, but the starter took off no problem. I estimated 20% loss and that seems accurate from the starter slurry volumes.
 
Finally popped my WLP611 Nordic Yeast and tossed it in a starter. If the smell of the vial is any indication of what to come im looking forward to this.

Not sure what style this would fit under, but I'm brewing:

6lb Bohemian Pilsner
4lb Spelt Malt
.5lb Vienna Malt

1oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh for 14IBU

I'm gonna throw a portion of the starter into a gallon jug of Cider.

Also gonna take a gallon of the wort and pitch TYB Lochristi Brett Blend for a future project.
 
I recently bottled my WLP611 Nordic Yeast. I didn't get any of the banana flavors people were talking about. More fruity(cherry/apple maybe) with a very slight clove presence. It was yummy and I can't wait to open a bottle soon. I did Weizenbock recipe thinking it would have the banana esters. Oh well still good.
 
bobo31 said:
I recently bottled my WLP611 Nordic Yeast. I didn't get any of the banana flavors people were talking about. More fruity(cherry/apple maybe) with a very slight clove presence. It was yummy and I can't wait to open a bottle soon. I did Weizenbock recipe thinking it would have the banana esters. Oh well still good.
Click to expand...
The wheat I brewed with 611 and fermented @ 62 degrees had a lot of banana.
I'm about to keg my 611 Weizenbock which i fermented at 70... and it has less banana character, definitely a bit of apple tartness.

What temp did you ferment at?
 
Snubnoze707 said:
I'm gonna throw a portion of the starter into a gallon jug of Cider.
Click to expand...


I did the same thing, and just bottled the cider today. The 611 got it nice and dry.

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1463091691.130803.jpg

I just used straight juice, no added sugar. OG 1.052 and FG 0.999, for an ABV of about 6.9%. The fruity esters complement the apple flavor well, and the yeast seems to add a bit of mouthfeel over a standard cider/wine yeast. Can't wait to try it once carbonated, to see for sure in the final product...
 
Can't say I'm too impressed with the Hansen blend so far. Brewed a batch last Saturday and pitched one vial into oxygenated 5 gallons of 1.040 wort. As of today it's still sitting at 1.014, and is still fermenting.

WLP007 would have been done with this by now, so hopefully the flavour is good.
 
Leipzig said:
The wheat I brewed with 611 and fermented @ 62 degrees had a lot of banana.
I'm about to keg my 611 Weizenbock which i fermented at 70... and it has less banana character, definitely a bit of apple tartness.

What temp did you ferment at?
Click to expand...

I got straight up banana bread from fermentation around 80° with the 611. It is good, and actually very clean. But the aroma is bready banana.
 
PeteNMA said:
Can't say I'm too impressed with the Hansen blend so far. Brewed a batch last Saturday and pitched one vial into oxygenated 5 gallons of 1.040 wort. As of today it's still sitting at 1.014, and is still fermenting.

WLP007 would have been done with this by now, so hopefully the flavour is good.
Click to expand...

Did your vial arrive warm as others have reported? I wonder if maybe some cells died. If that is the case and you didn't make a starter you would have underpitched.
 
They were warm in the mailer yes. I made up a small starter and had it spin for about six hours before pitching so whist it may have been a small under pitch hopefully that should have been somewhat compensated for. FWIW the starter was actively fermenting a couple of hours after pitching, and the entire batch was actively fermenting about twelve hours after the starter was pitched.

When I pulled a gravity sample on Tuesday it measured at 1.030. Just seems like this blend is a little slow.

Overall I'm OK with this having been an entertaining way to buy yeast, equally I won't be sad if I can't get any more in a hurry.

Of course an ale blend was also a pretty boring thing to buy compared to some of the more weird and wonderful vault offerings so I'd definitely order vault yeast again, but make a better choice next time:)
 
I'm beginning to feel like there's a reason these aren't year-round offerings. I am using the hansen blend next week. I'm banking on using the saison blend a lot this summer so I hope it doesn't let me down.
 
Yeast is something for me that I'm prepared to spend money on resupplies. I've tried my hand at yeast ranching and I don't find it to be worth the effort compared to making a starter for each brew day.

So I'm not disappointed in the purchase per se, I've tried other regularly available yeasts which I haven't liked.
 
So a brief update. The Hansen brought the FG down to 1.014 on Thursday evening, measured again last night and it was at 1.013-1.012. I expect this to finish at 1.010 so it's getting there. However a taste of the hydro sample was very surprising, the residual sweetness when tasting Thursday's 1.014 sample is pretty much gone in Fridays sample and there is a wonderful hop aftertaste on the back end.

I'm planning to brew this weekend, probably on Sunday so I need the carboy empty tomorrow to refill. However at this point I'll be happy to keg it, if it drops another point or two I won't complain but if it's done now that's just fine.

This yeast has been a fairly good top cropper, since it really started fermenting in earnest there's been a thick cap of yeast on the beer. Not a big expanding amount like some yeasts but respectable nevertheless. The krausen is starting to drop now though as it nears terminal gravity.
 
On 28-Feb I put a 1.107 OG wildflower honey (from my hives) mead must directly on the slurry which was quite loose despite cold crashing the prior beer before racking off and bottling it. Today I bottled that New Nordic Mead. It finished at 1.021 for 11.6% ABV. Definite yeast character about equally weighted with the honey in taste and aroma. It's too sweet on its own, but works great mixed in the glass 50/50 with a mango/peach sour I have on tap. The acidity of the beer balances the sweetness, and the fruitiness of the New Nordic yeast blend plays right along with the beer's fruit. The slurry was even looser now than after the first fermentation of the beer. I left about an inch of mead in the gallon jug to try to limit yeast in the bottles as much as possible.
 
Well the rep itched Hansen took off like a rocket. Maybe the blend is out of kilter and one of the faster strains came to dominate. Who knows. Nevertheless the pale ale brewed yesterday is ripping along right now.
 

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