Yeast type with ~6% tolerance?

[ThunderPanda]

I have been looking around at different yeasts and have had trouble finding yeasts with relatively low alcohol tolerances, such as 6%. And I am not picky as to the exact number, but a ballpark figure would be good. I want a yeast that will ferment to somewhere around this point, and then stop.

Does anyone have any experiences with anything like this that has worked for them? I have looked at many of the fact sheets from several manufacturers, but most don't seem to carry this, and either way I would rather hear from someone with some experience with the particular strain. Thanks!

 

[theonetrueruss]

terribly curious.. what are you trying to make? get your starting gravity right and you'll have aq 6% drink... if you're trying to have a lot of sugar left over then maybe you need to look into back sweetening. I don't know much about that process but finding a yeast that magically stops at 6% is going to be damn near impossible.

 

[ThunderPanda]

terribly curious.. what are you trying to make? get your starting gravity right and you'll have aq 6% drink... if you're trying to have a lot of sugar left over then maybe you need to look into back sweetening. I don't know much about that process but finding a yeast that magically stops at 6% is going to be damn near impossible.

I want to have a sweet cider, that can be carbonated easily, and without back sweetening. Back sweetening to me seems like... cheating. I would rather use real sugar, and preferably have some of the natural apple sugars in the drink when it is done. If it predictably went to only that concentration, then I could formulate it to always end up sweet, and even be able to bottle it without pasteurization or cold crashing it.

So if 6% is hard to find... What is the LOWEST tolerance of any yeast anyone has ever used?

 

[Pappers_]

Hi Panda. Can't help you with your exact question, I've used this method or approach with mead, but the abv is much much higher.

One aspect that you may have thought through with this method is that if the yeast go dormant or die because of the toxic environment, they won't help you bottle condition and carbonate. So this method works for still mead or cider.

 

[Golddiggie]

Lowest I've used for things other than beer is Lalvin D47, which goes up to 14% ABV... I've only seen one ale yeast that has a tolerance below 10% and that's just at 9% (Wyeast 1968 London ESB Ale)...

Chances are, to get such a low ABV cider you'll not want to add any fermentable sugars to it, beyond what the cider offers. Then add some non-fermenting sugars to it to add sweetness, before adding more fermenting sugars at bottling time in order to carbonate...

Seems like a rather large amount of effort to me, just to keep the ABV low...

Another option would be to ferment it to where you want, filter out the yeast, sweeten it IF needed, and then carbonate it up in a keg. You can bottle from the keg once carbonation is complete... If you don't have a kegging setup, then that becomes and issue.

 

[ThunderPanda]

Well basically I was just looking into this method because it seems like it would save a lot of time and effort... and in terms of using it for carbonation, it could work IF it was relatively consistent. For example, if I knew exactly at what point the fermentation would stop, then it would be possible to bottle it shortly before this point to get the correct amount of carbonation.

Again, this would mean that the fermentation would have to be extremely consistent, and even at that it would take some practice to time everything right... But it would probably be worth a shot. I think I saw some yeasts on some manufacturer's sites that stated a pretty low tolerance, but they were usually listed like "5-8%" and obviously that doesn't offer the consistency that would be required for this to be at all useful... Might just be a lost cause, but if it could be done I think it would be cool!

 

[Golddiggie]

I've not made any hard cider yet, but from talking with people who do make it, you want to make sure it's 100% ready before you bottle it. I also think that they would look at you a bit funny if you mentioned you wanted to make a 6% ABV cider, that would carbonate AND be sweet in the process. For one thing, you don't really know where the fermentation will stop, until it has. You could be anywhere in the 1.010-0.990 range.

It's far easier to have a beer that retains some sweetness and can still be carbonated.

That being said, you COULD just add something like lactose once it's fermented to a good point (depending on the OG) and then just prime it to your CO2 volumes and bottle it. Chances of you hitting just 6% isn't going to be all that easy, in my book. You should be able to get in the area of 8% (or 6-10%) then use lactose to add some sweetness back, that won't ferment, before priming and bottling.

Personally, I'm not using lactose in any of my fermentations. Especially since my system doesn't do very well with it. I'm not about to make something that there's a chance I won't be able to fully enjoy.

 

[GinKings]

in terms of using it for carbonation, it could work IF it was relatively consistent. For example, if I knew exactly at what point the fermentation would stop, then it would be possible to bottle it shortly before this point to get the correct amount of carbonation.

Again, this would mean that the fermentation would have to be extremely consistent, and even at that it would take some practice to time everything right... But it would probably be worth a shot....Might just be a lost cause, but if it could be done I think it would be cool!

It might be a cool idea, but I think it's a lost cause. I don't think the alcohol tolerance of yeast is as exact as it would have to be to bottle early and use it to calculate proper carbonation. Carbonation only requires about 0.3% ABV. If the yeast has as much as a 0.5% variance, some batches/bottles will be flat and others may be bottle bombs. Also, after fermentation ends, the cider clarifies and leaves a heavy layer of sediment on the bottom of the carboy. By bottling early, you will get that layer in your bottles. It's unattractive and any agitation will make your cider cloudy.

Backsweetening is a common practice. I doubt many would consider it to be cheating. In fact, I think the art of tweaking (especially meads) post fermentation can turn a good cider or mead into a great cider or mead.

 

[Pappers_]

and in terms of using it for carbonation, it could work IF it was relatively consistent. For example, if I knew exactly at what point the fermentation would stop, then it would be possible to bottle it shortly before this point to get the correct amount of carbonation.

Unfortunately, the yeast won't cooperate with you, Panda. There are too many variables, like the health and viability of the yeast. Plus, the abv isn't like a light switch - at 8% the yeast are fine, but at 8.1% they turn off. The issue is toxicity and the yeast slow down, peter out, do some work, get lazy, go dormant, and eventually die.

 

[Flywheel]

Backsweaten with apple juice.