Not impressed by WLP530

[xben]

Hi,

I made 3 batches in a row using WLP530 because I previously read this strain was awesome for belgian style.

The grain bills are similar from a batch to an other.

I fermented the first one to 65F, the second one to 70F and the third one to 75F as a experiment.

The three beers are good, but I can't tell which one was fermented at which temp, so far. Maybe it is a matter of aging, I don't know!

To my taste, I don't really notice any particular "belgiany" characteristics in any of them as well.

My "belgian" reference are mostly from Unibroue beers or "Leffe brune".

Right after I brewed them, I noticed Wyeast as the Unibroue strain (3864), which I'll give a try on my next batches.

Am I the only one not impressed by WLP530 results?

thanks!

 

[jekeane]

It all depends on the character you are looking for. I pitch both 500 and 530 at 66 let rise to 68 day 1 70 day 2 and up to 74 day 3 till it's done. I get a fair balance of esters and phenols with that regimen.

 

[LLBeanJ]

It all depends on the character you are looking for. I pitch both 500 and 530 at 66 let rise to 68 day 1 70 day 2 and up to 74 day 3 till it's done. I get a fair balance of esters and phenols with that regimen.

You saying you blend the two strains? Also, what pitch rate do you typically use?

 

[catdaddy66]

I brought 530 gradually up to 80+° for a few days and then backed it down to 68°. Awesome flavors were the result.

Maybe you need it a bit warmer for a bit longer to see more yeast character.

 

[jekeane]

You saying you blend the two strains? Also, what pitch rate do you typically use?

not blended was just saying i get similar results with both strains. I generally under pitch by 400ml according to brewers friend calculator.

I get the proper count according to the calculator then i pour off 400ml to save for my next starter. Normally with other non Belgian strains I would overbuild by 400ml if I were saving yeast.

 

[LLBeanJ]

not blended was just saying i get similar results with both strains. I generally under pitch by 400ml according to brewers friend calculator.

I get the proper count according to the calculator then i pour off 400ml to save for my next starter. Normally with other non Belgian strains I would overbuild by 400ml if I were saving yeast.

Oh, okay. I wasn't sure. Thanks.

It seems Belgians and Hefeweizens are my white whale. No matter what I do, I just can't seem to get that nice balance of esters and clove. Esters are actually not the problem, it's just the clove seems to be very elusive. I've tried various Belgian strains (WLP400, WLP500, WLP530, WLP550) and experimented with temp, pitch rate, and oxygenation. I thought I was on to something recently when I did a pitch rate experiment with WLP530 where I fermented partial batches using 5 different pitch rates from .25 up to 2.0 and found that .25 gave me the best yeast character. Then I brewed a full batch of a quad using that pitch rate and I'll be damned if there is no clove present, though it attenuated just fine despite the massive underpitch. That brew has been aging in a keg for the past several months and I haven't sampled it lately, so maybe it will come around eventually.

 

[kingwood-kid]

If you want more clove, try mashing with a ferulic acid rest at 110F before your main mash rest at 150ish.

 

[JohnSand]

I love 530, a friend finds it too mild. Brew to your taste.

 

[xben]

mild.. this is the good word that describes my 3 batches! I'm looking for a strain that delivers more than that.. did anyone try the wyeast 3864?

 

[TastyAdventure]

Do you know what your pitch rates were ? And how much oxygen did you give them?

 

[xben]

According to calculators, I pitched correct amount. About oxigenation, I don't have a specific system, I open the valve and let the wort splash into fermenter at about 2 feet high, resulting into a ~6-inch foam on the top when it's fully transfered.

 

[JohnSand]

I have always done the same, aggressive pouring to oxygenate. It works well.