Wyeast 1986 ESB: diacetyl rest after fermentation?

[slothorentropy]

The Wyeast product info page for this strain recommends a diacetyl rest after fermentation--does this essentially just mean let it sit on the yeast cake in primary for a while after fermentation is complete? I'd like to rack this ESB to secondary simply to free up the fermenter; should 15 days in primary be enough?

 

[VolFan]

I'm assuming you meant 1968, London ESB... I use this all the time for my english beers and basically let it sit in primary for 3-4 weeks between 65-70F. This yeast should not need a secondary, it is very flocculant and makes very clear beers, the trick is getting it to finish it's job before dropping out early. A diacetyl rest involves heating it up a bit warmer for a few days but I only do this with lagers that are fermented cold, around 50F. Going 2 weeks in primary is more than adequate if moving to secondary to clear out your fermenter, just check the SG before transfer to make sure the fermentation is done.

 

[slothorentropy]

Whoops, yeah, 1968. Thanks for the advice; I'm going to rack it tomorrow. This one fermented a little hot, probably 72F, as it was the last batch I did before getting the swamp cooler together. Depending on how this one turns out, I might brew it again and ferment at 65F for the sake of comparison.

Is washing this yeast more trouble than it's worth? That's what other threads on 1968 would suggest.

 

[bierhaus15]

This is one yeast that you can go from grain to glass in two weeks, with no need for long aging. Plus, the longer you let the beer sit on the yeast, the more character you will lose.

However, 70+F is high a bit high for this strain. And a d-rest at 68F for two days should be sufficient.

 

[slothorentropy]

Yeah fermentation temp control is a brand new thing for me. Hoping to do better with it going forward.

So maybe just bottle this guy?

 

[slothorentropy]

This is one yeast that you can go from grain to glass in two weeks, with no need for long aging. Plus, the longer you let the beer sit on the yeast, the more character you will lose.

Anyone else have thoughts on this? I could rack it to secondary or just bottle it. It's been 16 days.

 

[ajf]

I never do a diacetyl rest with that yeast, but I do ferment at 68F for 21 days with excellent results.
Recently, life has gotten in the way of my brewing, and for two successive brews I had to cut the 21 days down to 14 days (or run out of beer). The beer is drinkable, but nothing like as good as normal. This could be because of the shorter primary, or possibly due to some other cause. I think it is because of the shorter primary as any other causes would have shown up before.
As for washing, it is absolutely worth it. In fact, I find I consistently get better results with the harvested yeast than I do from the original (unwashed) sample.

-a.

 

[slothorentropy]

Thanks, ajf. When you go 21 days in primary with this strain, do you secondary or simply bottle at that point?

 

[Rifester]

I recently used this yeast in an ESB. I bottled at two weeks and started drinking it at four weeks. The beer is great at three weeks in the bottle. If you leave it on the yeast in primary for three weeks I would go straight to the bottle. The rest of the yeast will drop out during bottle conditioning.

 

[ajf]

I go straight from primary to keg with no secondary. I used to do secondaries (two weeks primary, four weeks secondary, and then keg; but I found I got better results without the secondary. The only times I secondary now are when dry hopping or making a lager. I would also secondary a barley wine, or adding fruit; but I don't do those.

-a.