Why Kveik?

[Sundy]

I made a simple brew with Lallemand Voss. I pitched the whole packet and the fermentation lasted about 2 days and the final gravity was nearly 1.0. The problem is the taste, it has a strong phenol taste that is gradually mellowing out but has not disappeared completely. I am asking what could possibly be an advantage of Kveik? If it has to be aged to be drinkable what is the advantage of a quick fermentation. My beers normally ferment quickly unless I keep the yeast too long.

 

[Miraculix]

Voss kveik won't ferment normal wort to zero and it won't give you a phenolic taste.

What you got there, is a classic contamination of wild yeast.

 

[firerat]

. I am asking what could possibly be an advantage of Kveik?

I can let it ferment in my 100F garage and not have to use a refrigerator for temperature control.

 

[yoop89]

I am asking what could possibly be an advantage of Kveik?

Love the high temp limits. For anything needing neutral yeast I use Lutra and dont have to take up valuable ferm chamber space.

I will admit I have found a few faults of some of the Kveik strains. As with any brew you learn and dont repeat right? Its just like any other yeast or tool in that it has its appropriate place in your brew kit.

edit: I agree with Miraculix as well, Ive never had any Kveik strains go that low, maybe 1.006 in a low gravity brew but never a flat 1.000.

 

[Sundy]

Lutra, I guess I should have done more research on strains. It might be 1.006, I said nearly 1.0, lower than I have ever seen from conventional? yeast.

 

[Miraculix]

As I said, Kveiks are non-phenolic. If you got a phenolic off-flavour, you got an infection a kveik does not do that.

 

[Sundy]

Maybe I misdiagnosed the off-flavor. Or the wild yeast was in the packet. I used a new fermenter that was cleaned and sanitized before transferring the wort, pitched quickly with the fermentation starting sometime in the night (a few hours at most) after pitching.

 

[yoop89]

Can you describe your phenol off flavor? Also what kind of beer? Starting gravity? What was the process on brew day?
Definitely sounds like an infection as miraculix pointed out.

Edit: you beat me.

 

[Sundy]

Anything is possible. The off-flavor is dissipating enough that the beer is drinkable. It was an experiment anyway. Roughly a pale ale with a low IBU. If I make it with ale yeast it will be a good session beer.

 

[Saunassa]

my fermentation closet gets warm in summer so use wrap to keep fermenter 88 degrees. Never had an off flavor with kveik_ other then the 6 month old pack of hornindal that I pitched without a starter to bring it to life...

 

[NGD]

my fermentation closet gets warm in summer so use wrap to keep fermenter 88 degrees. Never had an off flavor with kveik_ other then the 6 month old pack of hornindal that I pitched without a starter to bring it to life...

Curious what type of off-flavor you had.

 

[Toxxyc]

Anything is possible. The off-flavor is dissipating enough that the beer is drinkable. It was an experiment anyway. Roughly a pale ale with a low IBU. If I make it with ale yeast it will be a good session beer.

You still haven't described the flavour. Is it hot? Green? Vomit-like?

 

[Miraculix]

Anything is possible. The off-flavor is dissipating enough that the beer is drinkable. It was an experiment anyway. Roughly a pale ale with a low IBU. If I make it with ale yeast it will be a good session beer.

Kveik simply doesn't produce off flavours. There has to be something different going on.

Kveik can get a bit tart and very few strains have been reported to produce a little bit of plastic-like taste, but strong off flavours that dissipate with time are not within the range of the kveik realm.

Can you describe the flavour?

 

[Sundy]

I would say it is a cold medicine taste. It has greatly diminished in the past week in the keg and cold.

 

[Toxxyc]

Cold medicine... I've picked it up in a beer I made before. Heavily hopped VERY light beer (0.8% ABV). Could it be a hop flavour?

 

[Sundy]

Cold medicine... I've picked it up in a beer I made before. Heavily hopped VERY light beer (0.8% ABV). Could it be a hop flavour?

I don't think so. It's not heavily hopped.

 

[Saunassa]

Curious what type of off-flavor you had.

It was strange, the brew cleared beautifully while in fridge, used chinook, cascade and centennial in a pale ale. At 1 week bottled (I like to taste progression) it had slight farmhouse funk. At 2 weeks funk barely there and 3 weeks bottled clean. But there was something from then on. Every eaten an orange past it's prime? That not rotten but real old taste? I had made this in the past and knew what it should taste like. So stashed in my buddies fridge and his son drank it up for me. Free beer is all that matters for some.

 

[Sundy]

I like to drink browns, porters, and bocks. I like a grainy taste with a mild hop finish. What kveik would produce beers like that?

 

[Miraculix]

I like to drink browns, porters, and bocks. I like a grainy taste with a mild hop finish. What kveik would produce beers like that?

Lutra, if you manage to keep oxygen from destroying the malt's grainy flavour, but that's with every yeast.

 

[Barbarossa]

Why kveik? To make Viking beer, apparently.

Anyone know about a style called double Viking? How weird is that? I still tried it tho.

 

[Miraculix]

I would say it is a cold medicine taste. It has greatly diminished in the past week in the keg and cold.

Sounds like either an infection or a chlorinated brewing water to me. What's your water source?

 

[Gusso]

So far, I've used dry Voss, Hornindal, and Lutra. No complaints at all. I love Kveik. I'm really looking forward to the typical hot temps of summer in Charleston that will be here soon.

 

[Sundy]

Distilled water from Walmart.

 

[Toxxyc]

Distilled water from Walmart.

Did you dose the water with the correct minerals before brewing with it, or did you just use straight-up distilled water to brew with? If you just used straight distilled water, that's your problem. Distilled water contains NO minerals or nutrients for the yeast, which is why it produces off flavours.

 

[Miraculix]

Did you dose the water with the correct minerals before brewing with it, or did you just use straight-up distilled water to brew with? If you just used straight distilled water, that's your problem. Distilled water contains NO minerals or nutrients for the yeast, which is why it produces off flavours.

No sorry, it doesn't produce off flavours. The nutrients and minerals are coming from the malt. You can fine tune it with minerals in the water but it's no necessity. The flocculation might suffer a bit but that's it.

 

[Albionwood]

I like to drink browns, porters, and bocks. I like a grainy taste with a mild hop finish. What kveik would produce beers like that?

I've made Porters with Voss, Espe, and Tormodgarden so far; the latter two in a split batch for comparison. Tormodgarden is the clear winner. I find it enhances the malty character and gives a richness and full-bodied character. Espe tasted drier and thinner (though it attenuated exactly the same). Voss contributed a little orange-peel character, nice effect but detracted from the maltiness IMO. All good beers, but I think Tormodgarden would get you the kind of beer you like.

Next time I intend to try Rima vs. Hornindal. It's really fun to do these split batches and see just how much difference the strains make.