WLP007: Horrible taste?

[peoples22]

I brewed an IPA and used WLP007 for the first time and as soon as I was kegging it I knew I wasn't a fan. The beer smelled "yeasty" and it tastes exactly like it smells. It's a dumper for sure!

Anyone else have any experience with this yeast?

 

[triethylborane]

007 is a thoroughbred. I use it at ferm temps of 63f and it makes the most consistent pale ales and dry irish stouts.

 

[Trail]

Cold crash it for a few more days, then pour out the first couple ounces when you put it back on tap. Had to do that with a stout fermented with Mangrove Jacks M07 lately.

 

[Schemy]

007 is a thoroughbred. I use it at ferm temps of 63f and it makes the most consistent pale ales and dry irish stouts.

Ditto.

What was your fermentation process? I find it to finish very fast and very clean. It likes the lower end of the ale ferm range, so its perfect for my basement.

I use WLP007 for pretty much everything within its range, including Hazy Pale Ales/IPAs.

It's my house yeast.

 

[lstewart89]

I had a bad experience with 007 recently too. I usually use 1098 as my house yeast but my LHBS was out so I ordered a vial of 007 online. Overbuilt it and harvested, and then pitched my starter into a ~1.055 Amarillo/Citra pale ale. Fermented in my basement at about 70 degrees (basement temp about 60). The final product had a sickly sweet flavour to it that completely masked the hops. I chalked it up to a bottle infection and got new bottles and plastic. Fermented a few beer after that with other yeast and everything was fine. Then I made another pale ale (Zombie Dust clone) with the harvested 007 put into a starter. Fermented once again at 70 in basement and it too has that disgustingly sweet flavour that completely masks the citra hops. Pretty mad that I wasted half a pound of citra on a bad beer.

Anyway I had harvested the 007 in hopes of using it again, but once the Zombie Dust clone came out bad I dumped the yeast down the drain and bought 1098. The only thing I can think of is that there was an issue with that package when it left Whitelabs since no one else has this issue with 007. Beers finishing at 1.010 shouldn't have a disgustingly sweet flavour to them.

 

[Schemy]

I had a bad experience with 007 recently too. I usually use 1098 as my house yeast but my LHBS was out so I ordered a vial of 007 online. Overbuilt it and harvested, and then pitched my starter into a ~1.055 Amarillo/Citra pale ale. Fermented in my basement at about 70 degrees (basement temp about 60). The final product had a sickly sweet flavour to it that completely masked the hops. I chalked it up to a bottle infection and got new bottles and plastic. Fermented a few beer after that with other yeast and everything was fine. Then I made another pale ale (Zombie Dust clone) with the harvested 007 put into a starter. Fermented once again at 70 in basement and it too has that disgustingly sweet flavour that completely masks the citra hops. Pretty mad that I wasted half a pound of citra on a bad beer.

Anyway I had harvested the 007 in hopes of using it again, but once the Zombie Dust clone came out bad I dumped the yeast down the drain and bought 1098. The only thing I can think of is that there was an issue with that package when it left Whitelabs since no one else has this issue with 007. Beers finishing at 1.010 shouldn't have a disgustingly sweet flavour to them.

Yeah 007 doesn't like temps that high. You need to control it and keep below 65. It throws a lot of fruity/sweet esters when it gets up there in ferm temp. That would be my guess on what you experienced with the yeast.

 

[peoples22]

I had my ferm chamber set at 66°F but unfortunately the tape I had holding the probe in place came off and I was reading ambient temperature for around 18 hours maybe.

I wasn't expecting that short of time to produce this disaster.

 

[lstewart89]

Yeah 007 doesn't like temps that high. You need to control it and keep below 65. It throws a lot of fruity/sweet esters when it gets up there in ferm temp. That would be my guess on what you experienced with the yeast.

It's quite surprising since Wyeast 1098 is supposedly the same strain, however 1098 is pretty clean at around 70.

 

[Trail]

It's quite surprising since Wyeast 1098 is supposedly the same strain, however 1098 is pretty clean at around 70.

Interesting. Supposedly according to who? I'm always fascinated by these half-acknowledged yeast pedigrees!

 

[bigbeergeek]

It's a fantastic yeast when fermented cool. As others have stated, let it go too warm and the flavor becomes yeasty, green, harsh and unpleasant. Time and cold knock much of that flavor down, but the twang never completely subsides. I wouldn't dump it yet.

 

[peoples22]

Thanks, I'll give it some more time and see how it goes

 

[emsroth]

I had nothing but trouble with the yeast.

1. I've never found these "clean" yeasts to be as clean as everyone says. Even at 62F Chico and 007 have strong yeast flavors. Heavy notes of apricot and other sweet fruit.

2. I've never not had issues with the A01 House version by Imperial yeast. First generation came it alright, but the harvest yeast was always thin, yeast density must have been quite low even though the yeast was young and wonderfully creamy in color. Later generations always took 36 hours to start and tasted off. Some of the few dumpable batches were from that yeast.

I've had much more luck with WLP051

 

[Schemy]

It's quite surprising since Wyeast 1098 is supposedly the same strain, however 1098 is pretty clean at around 70.

That's what I've read/heard as well, but found 1098 to be different. 1098 isn't quite as expressive to me as 007. 007 can throw off some big esters when you push it up, but 1098 doesn't seem to do that. While 1098 is clean, I don't think it allows the malt and hops to come through like 007 at lower temps. That's why I've been using it for the hazy pale ales, it really lets the hops and malt come through and compliment each other. That said, I haven't used 1098 in that application. May give it a shot and see what it does.

 

[65C]

I had my ferm chamber set at 66°F but unfortunately the tape I had holding the probe in place came off and I was reading ambient temperature for around 18 hours maybe.

I wasn't expecting that short of time to produce this disaster.

I've read the first 72h are critical for temps

I had one bad brew from getting hot in first few days - I forced myself to drink it as a lesson and started using an old fridge (which keeps 17C well on min setting) and had no issues since - interestingly after a month or so that brew turned out okay in the bottle - better than okay - but first couple of weeks it was like banana nail polish

 

[troglodytes]

I think I'm done with WLP007 and 002. I find them to be very yeasty as well. I ferment them cool (62-65F) and they attenuate fully but leave a twangy yeasty flavor that goes really poorly with IPAs and APAs, and its the same flavor every time I use them. There are tons of great beers out there, that I love, that supposedly use this yeast, and I don't know why I always get the flavors I get with them but after about 5 or 6 attempts I think I'm just going to switch to Conan, which I never have an issue with.

 

[Smellyglove]

007 is not a "clean" strain. It is supposed to be fruity, dried raisin-like not far off from 002. That's the sweetness.

If it's to fruity for a palate switch strain.

I'd say it's like 002on steroids. But it need some care with temperature. It attenuates fast, but if you let it drop after main fermentation it goes on a semi-strike leaving you with a fuller, and somewhat sweeter tasting beer than it can be.

It's a great strain if you use it properly and want that british ale sweetness, but with a tad drier result. It needs to be heated up beyond fermentation temp to fully attenuate according to it's potential. So start low, and save the temps to the endgamde, if you start high, you will get a quite 002-fruity beer, but without the attenuation 007 can deliver. It takes of like a rocket. Don't let it fool you,raise temps or it will shut down as fast.

 

[emsroth]

There are tons of great beers out there, that I love, that supposedly use this yeast, and I don't know why I always get the flavors I get with them but after about 5 or 6 attempts I think I'm just going to switch to Conan, which I never have an issue with.

That's my experience with Chico as well. I'm not fond of the flavors it produces. I also find it far from "clean." It REALLY accentuates toasty notes. Make a pale ale with 2-row pale/pils and make one with pale ale/Vienna. Wth Chico, you taste that toast. It can almost overwhelm a beer at times. For a good example, check out their Black IPA found in the most recent IPA mix pack. So acrid it almost burns.

And I taste that yeast in EVERYTHING. The rise of the NEIPA has been great for yeast and beer diversity.

I now have Imperial A20 (Citrus)/WLP644 Sach Trois as my house IPA yeast, and I couldn't be happier (almost). It's fighting me with Crystal malts a tad, but it does wonders to hops.

 

[popquizkid]

I use 007 quite a bit and find it very reliable and a great choice for APA / IPAs if treated right. Note - it seems to work best for me paired with fruity hops (mosaic / citra / amarillo , etc)

As mentioned by others - I ferment in mid 60s ramp up after high krausen. I have never had it turn out sweet / cloying except once when I accidentally mashed at 159 I will say it often ferments pretty fast, so if you let temps get out of hand even for a short period you might have issues.

I have found fermenting some yeasts (Chico comes to mind) too low can bring out some peachy / apricot esters. I a have found there is a tight range (65-67 then ramp) that will produce the character that I am looking for with 007.

 

[emsroth]

I tried to produce a pseudo kolsch by fermenting at 62. Too much peach.

I did find that it produces a nice British ale when up at 70 F. It made a sweet ESB. I just screwed up with body (mashed too low) and bitterness (before Brewers friend updated their FWH calc). But damn tasty. Try it!