Best Yeast Strain for a NEIPA?

[hopjuice_71]

I just tapped a keg that was an accidental experiment of sorts. I have a west-coast IPA recipe that is one of my go-to's. Usually I use a relatively attenuating yeast, like Bry-79 or WY1217. It has more sulphate than chloride, is late hopped with a reasonable amount of steep hops, and usually clears up nicely. I didn't have the normal yeast option (long story) so I used WY1968. I altered the mash schedule to compensate for the lower attenuation of the yeast and still get a drier IPA. I dry hopped after fermentation was done and I even lagered the thing for three weeks at near freezing. I was expecting crystal clear beer. What I ended up with was as much NEIPA as any NEIPA I have intentionally brewed. Hazy with not an oat or wheat in sight. Quite a surprise to me, so I thought I would share.

 

[TBryerton]

1318 is gross when dry hopped during fermentation.... muddy rotting fruit

After fermentation dry hopping in the low 60s however it’s wonderful.

S04
1098
1272
1278
Wlp030
1469

All good options as well

I would agree with this. I'm not always the best at describing things but it tastes too 'candyish' to me. Since the last time I've used it I've stopped dry hopping during fermentation so I'll give it another shot. I've had better results using the 3 dry yeasts (mixed fermentation) thought to be used by TH. I've also had some bad results experimenting with those

I'm going to give Hornindal Kveik a shot next.

 

[kbaggen]

Also a vote for A38 here, and seems to me s04 goes also fine as a dry yeast......whiele 1318 III sadly I also had mixed results on! Gona also try a spli bwteen A38/1318 III in the near future!

/Klaus - www.posebryg.dk

 

[couchsending]

Also a vote for A38 here, and seems to me s04 goes also fine as a dry yeast......whiele 1318 III sadly I also had mixed results on! Gona also try a spli bwteen A38/1318 III in the near future!

/Klaus - www.posebryg.dk

A38 and 1318 are the same strain of yeast..

 

[Upthewazzu]

I just had ridiculously good results with WLP066 London Fog. Pitched at 65°, then raised to 68° over 3 days and let it stay there for until FG reached. Cooled to 60° to dump a little trub, then warmed back up to 65° for dry hopping. Then raised again to 70° over the next couple of days for hop creep diacytl rest. Crashed to 45°, added gelatin, then continued crashing to 33° for 48 hours before kegging. Still very hazy and VERY fruity!

FWIW, I've had terrible luck with 1318. In the 3 batches I've used it, I've gotten a nasty metallic or rubber-ish flavor. Will never use it again.

I've heard that 1318 and WLP066 both come from Boddington's, but are different strains.

 

[day_trippr]

Also a vote for A38 here, and seems to me s04 goes also fine as a dry yeast......whiele 1318 III sadly I also had mixed results on! Gona also try a spli bwteen A38/1318 III in the near future!

fwiw, I did four ten gallon neipa batches last summer, different recipes, each split between a38 and 1318.
Nobody could tell any difference. I expect they are indeed the same strain...

Cheers!

 

[couchsending]

1318/A38 are not the same as wlp066, they don’t share attenuation and/or flocculation similarities at all, at least on paper.

I would bet 067 is just 066/644 combined.

 

[Upthewazzu]

1318/A38 are not the same as wlp066, they don’t share attenuation and/or flocculation similarities at all, at least on paper.

Having used both, I can say they don't really share any similarities in real world application either. WLP066 ends up much sweeter and far less ester-y. The only similarity is the haziness in the final product.

 

[ttuato]

No "best" for me - I keep a quiver

Always on hand

• 1272 / A15 Independence - my go to for experimenting with hops
• Conan / A04 Barbarian - my go to for non-galaxy hopped beers (I think galaxy clashes with this yeast not sure what it is)
• S04 / WLP007 - hops that are citrus/limey dominate (e.g. motueka) - yeast finishes tart for me
• Hornidal - for beers that need a quick turn around (5-6day grain to glass), otherwise use above

Never buy again:

• 1318 / A38 - overdone, overruns hops, aftertaste that cannot quite place
• WLP644 / A20 - no, no, no, no --- barnyard for days .... funky every time - yuck

To Try

• RVA Manchester
• Kolsch strain

 

[isomerization]

No "best" for me - I keep a quiver

Always on hand

• 1272 / A15 Independence - my go to for experimenting with hops
• Conan / A04 Barbarian - my go to for non-galaxy hopped beers (I think galaxy clashes with this yeast not sure what it is)
• S04 / WLP007 - hops that are citrus/limey dominate (e.g. motueka) - yeast finishes tart for me
• Hornidal - for beers that need a quick turn around (5-6day grain to glass), otherwise use above

Never buy again:

• 1318 / A38 - overdone, overruns hops, aftertaste that cannot quite place
• WLP644 / A20 - no, no, no, no --- barnyard for days .... funky every time - yuck

To Try

• RVA Manchester
• Kolsch strain

So which strain for a Galaxy prominent beer? Have you tried S04 at lower temps and still had it finish tart?

 

[ttuato]

So which strain for a Galaxy prominent beer? Have you tried S04 at lower temps and still had it finish tart?

I prefer 1272 for any beer that has galaxy. The tropical aroma/flavor from galaxy really goes well with the subtle esters from 1272 in my opinion.

S04 - yes ferm low (63*) & high (69*) always get tart, worse when higher though. I only did WLP007 low though. I only did a handful of batches with it before discovering 1272. Others mileage may vary...

 

[couchsending]

S04, while thought to be the same as 007 and 1098 is actually not the same strain.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

S04, while thought to be the same as 007 and 1098 is actually not the same strain.

Well 007 and 1098 aren't the same strain either... 1098 is more closely related to WLP017 Whitbread II and 1318, whereas WLP007 is in a different subfamily.

S-04 is most closely related to WLP006 Bedford and WLP013 London Ale, so they might be ones to try since S-04 seems to work OK.

 

[FredRedd]

Typical dry hop/fermentation schedule is dry hop on day 2 of fermentation and then again on day 11, 3 days before kegging. I typically keg on day 14.

Newbie question here but when you talk about kegging on day 14 is that 14 days after you put wort in carboy or 14 days after first sign of fermentation?

 

[isomerization]

Newbie question here but when you talk about kegging on day 14 is that 14 days after you put wort in carboy or 14 days after first sign of fermentation?

Almost universally, days are from yeast pitch.

 

[Crice]

A38 Juice and A20 Dry Hop have both been excellent for my NEIPAs. Going to give Omega's Horindal Kviek a shot this weekend as it chewed a 1.070 IPA down to 1.012 in 2 days at 80 degrees, with no off flavors or aromas!

 

[tellyho]

I'm convinced you could brew a NEIPA with almost any strain. There are so many hops in there, whatever the yeast does is totally irrelevant.

 

[duelerx]

I'm convinced you could brew a NEIPA with almost any strain. There are so many hops in there, whatever the yeast does is totally irrelevant.

I disagree here, yeast has huge impact on flavor profile.

 

[j1laskey]

I'm convinced you could brew a NEIPA with almost any strain. There are so many hops in there, whatever the yeast does is totally irrelevant.

I totally agree here, whirlpooling and dry hopping large additions of hops has a huge impact on flavor profile.

 

[Terpene]

I'm convinced you could brew a NEIPA with almost any strain. There are so many hops in there, whatever the yeast does is totally irrelevant.

Disagree.

All other things equal, the difference between a Conan strain NEIPA and a Chico strain NEIPA is enormous. The esters make a huge difference.

Arguably, the yeast esters partially characterize the style, although I'm aware the BJCP provisional guidelines call for a "neutral to fruity fermentation character that is well-integrated with the hops."

 

[ttuato]

I'm convinced you could brew a NEIPA with almost any strain. There are so many hops in there, whatever the yeast does is totally irrelevant.

Agree that you could brew a NEIPA with but yeast esters definitely make a significant difference. If you have opportunity to go to White Labs breweries - they do split batches a lot to showcase the yeast differences. Sometimes it is subtle - other times it is astounding.

If you want to try yourself - start with clean american vs expressive english. Do it several times then switch to comparing only expressive english yeast. I can identify A05, 1272, WLP644, WLP007, 1318, Conan now with about 80% accuracy. Yeast blends throw me as does marris otter base for some reason. Nevertheless all make great NEIPAs.

 

[wepeeler]

Newbie question here but when you talk about kegging on day 14 is that 14 days after you put wort in carboy or 14 days after first sign of fermentation?

Most people count days from pitching. So day 14 is exactly 2 weeks after I brew it.

For those claiming you can brew a neipa with *any* yeast - sure, you can. But don't expect the finished product to taste the same. The esters thrown off by different yeasts contribute to the final flavor. Certain strains showcase/compliment hops better than others.

 

[couchsending]

I think it all depends on what you’re looking for. I’ve been trending towards using cleaner yeasts for hoppy beers. It’s amazing how the generic “fruity” esters have just gotten old to me. Starting to much prefer the intricacies of the hop varieties. The cleaner American Ale yeasts really let the hop character come through more. If you use fruity hops, don’t worry the beer will still be fruity.

You can still make em hazy, and thick, and sweet if you want to.

Highly highly recommend the Bell’s yeast if you haven’t used it. It’s as clean as any Chico variant and really lets the hop character shine but it floccs and attenuates more like a British yeast. And you can top crop it.