WLP001 v. US05

[nolabrew85]

A recipe calls for WLP001, but I usually use US05 as my clean fermenting/neutral ale yeast because of its ease of use and the heartiness of the yeast. I am wondering how noticeable the difference between these strands (besides the fact that one is liquid and the other is dry). The descriptions seem pretty similar. The beer is an Irish red. Thanks.

 

[Jmarsh544]

The two yeast strains you reference are the same strain just packaged differently by differently companies. Wyeast 1056 is also the same. Brew away!

 

[zachattack]

It is supposedly the same strain. Most people (myself included) don't notice any differences, but some people (Yooper) do and prefer the liquid forms. If you like US-05, definitely use it.

 

[cscade]

As stated above, WLP-001, US-05, and Wyeast 1056 are (or at one point were) all the same, just different labs and forms.

In my personal experience, the fermentation profile is effectively the same for all 3, but there are differences that I take into account depending on the beer/recipe. In particular, US-05 is much more reluctant to clear than either of the 2 liquid variants, even under refrigeration. Generally, US-05 takes 1.5-2 weeks longer to reach comparable clarity in my experience. Clarity isn't of #1 importance for most homebrewers, and I don't freak out about it. Where is starts to matter though is in hop-forward beers that should be consumed fresh. Since the US-05 stays in suspension longer, perceived bitterness in the finished beer will swing wildly over the first month of it's life in the fridge. So if I'm making a nice dry-hopped IPA that I want to start drinking 2 weeks after kegging, I'll avoid US-05 because the perceived bitterness at the 2 week mark will be much higher than the balance I was shooting for. A few weeks later, the bitterness drops to intended levels, but the dry hop character is already fading by then.

Long story short; If it's a beer I intend to condition for 1 month or more, I'll use any of the 3. If it's a beer I want to drink fresh, I avoid US-05.

 

[nolabrew85]

thanks

 

[chicken]

I used WLP001 for the first time in a pale ale several weeks ago. I felt a little silly once I discovered that WLP001 and US-05 were supposed to be the same strain. If I was going to try liquid yeast and make a starter for the first time, why not use something other than the liquid equivalent of what I already had in my refrigerator? Oh well.

Yesterday I brewed the same pale ale recipe, using US-05 but keeping everything else the same. This will give me the chance to see if there are any differences at all in fermentation behavior or flavor.

 

[zachattack]

Yesterday I brewed the same pale ale recipe, using US-05 but keeping everything else the same. This will give me the chance to see if there are any differences at all in fermentation behavior or flavor.

Sounds like a good experiment! Keep in mind that unless you have precise temperature control, even a few degrees difference can change how the yeast works. Also pitch rate as well. So just remember that there might still be differences due to these variables, although it doesn't seem like much they're actually fairly significant.

 

[tre9er]

One of those yeasts will engulf your entire brewery in a fireball, effectively destroying everything in it's path...the other won't.

Happy brewing.

 

[Yooper]

I've heard that they are the same strain- but in my experience they taste, ferment, and flocculate very differently.

I much prefer WLP001 over Wyeast 1056 and S05.

WLP001 seems to not throw "peachy" esters at lower temperatures like S05 does, and it seems to clear the beer much better.

I think Wyeast 1056 and S05 are very close, but I don't think I'm convinced that WLP001 is the same.

 

[chicken]

Sounds like a good experiment! Keep in mind that unless you have precise temperature control, even a few degrees difference can change how the yeast works. Also pitch rate as well. So just remember that there might still be differences due to these variables, although it doesn't seem like much they're actually fairly significant.

Yeah, I guess I should have said that I'm *trying* to keep everything else the same.

The temperature in my basement is pretty stable this time of year, but there's no way to be sure the pitch rate was exactly the same, and there's probably other little things that were different. Still, I'm curious to see what happens.

 

[winvarin]

One of those yeasts will engulf your entire brewery in a fireball, effectively destroying everything in it's path...the other won't.

Happy brewing.

I know which is which. But I'm not tellin'

 

[chicken]

One of those yeasts will engulf your entire brewery in a fireball, effectively destroying everything in it's path...the other won't.

Happy brewing.

Heh heh, I did have a rather explosive fermentation with the WLP001! The US-05 has never behaved that way for me, but I have also never made that particular recipe before either.

Anyway, I guess we'll see what happens!