anyone have any experience wlp 300

[Jan war]

I piched my wlp 300 at 24.9 c and had fermentation about 8 to 10 hours after that, at that time the temp was at 21 c. I it picked up wery quikly and was bubbeling along very happily, but 40 hours into fermantation it has slowed down considerably and almost stopped i mesured the gravity and it had gone from OG of 1051 to 1030 my goal is 1010. Is this quick drop in fermentation activity normal ? And if not what am i surposed to do.

[tom_hampton]

WLP300 is hefeweizen yeast.  its the Weihenstephan strain (WYeast 3068 equiv).  Yes, I've made several beers with that yeast.  It is a BEAST.  I question your gravity numbers, especially at that HOT of a temperature.  Yes HOT. 

I ferment wlp300 at about 16-17C.  Over 20C is an absolute upper limit, and only at the end of fermentation.  My fermentations FINISH in 3 days, and I start a full 10C below where you did. 

For reference biological reactions generally double in rate for each 10C increase in temperature.  So, your fermentation should progress along at nearly twice the rate of mine.  By 48 hours you should be nearly done.  I think you probably have a ton of CO2 bubbles sticking to your hydrometer giving you a false high SG reading. 

Starting at 25C (77F) is going to produce some interesting flavors (bananna & bubble gum).  Taste it and see what you think.  Next time I'd suggest something below 20C (maybe 18 or so).  See how you like that compared to this one.

[Jan war]

I did tast it and i didnt think it was to bad for only fermenting for about 40 hours there was some sulfer flavour but not much.
I only piched it at 24.9 because it said so on the container and i had some truble cooling the wort down fast enough, im kind of new to this. anyway it also says that optimal temp is around 21 c so thats what i did. But how long should i let it stay in the fermentor or should i just put it down the drain? or is that blasfemy:)
I thought that I would let it sit for 1 week total and racke it to secondary but like i said im kind of new at it.

[Jan war]

and how can i get an accurate reading on the hydrometer if there are co2 stuck to it

[tom_hampton]

1.  Accurate hydro readings: degass the sample, by vigorous shaking in a closed jar.  I used to use a jelly jar.  Pour degassed sample into hydrometer jar, let bubbles rise to the top.  Drop in hydrometer, and give it a good spin.  This will get any bubbles clinging to the hydro off.  Take reading.

2.  Never pitch a beer until at least a month has gone by and it still doesn't taste good!!!! 

The only thing that matters, is DO YOU LIKE IT?  If you are happy with the result, then by-and-large the rest is just chatter. 

That said, as the beer matures you may find that it has significant bananna or bubble gum flavors.  If it does and you decide you don't like it (after a pint or two), then know that you can fix that by reducing the temperature. 

[Jan war]

Nice
thanks! and i will turn ur advice into practice the next time i use wlp 300, and it will not go down the drain.

but I`w got some  Bavarian wlp351 yeast as well and what temp should i use for that and how long does it take to ferment if I'm at about the same OG say around 1.050

[tom_hampton]

I have never used 351.  I just went over to whitelabs.com and read the reviews and description.  From what I can gather it sounds like it works just a touch warmer than 300.  So, I would probably make my first attempt by pitching at 17-18C and letting it ramp to 19-20C after the first 36 hours.  Then I would adjust from there based on the result for the next attempt.  Up by 2C for more bannana-less clove, down by 2C for less bannana-more clove.  Refine as required batch by batch.

[Jan war]

ok thanks

but why does the yest container for wlp 300 say 20 to 22 c as optimal  if its to much, i just wonder.

[npg]

Sorry for late post.

It's a very good yeast strain, but not excactly the same as the W68.  This is not a bad thing and I have had great results with it.  Some people praised my Wheat Beers as exceptional and preferred it to other main brands from back home (Bavaria).  So you can get very good results with it.

I'd ferment at 18C to 20C max!   Pitch at 16C if possible.  Skim the top regularly once the hop resin starts to show (discard that).  Then you soon will get a creamy odd looking layer (Hopfentrieb).  That should be skimmed every 3-6 hours, or as much as possible.  Try and do it in the morning and in the evenings, that's enough.  But skim often.  No need to keep the lid on the fermenter.  Just place it lightly - bacteria won't survive a full ferment (unless you add massive amounts in purpose).

If you want to enhance the ethyl-actetate und iso-amyl-acetate flavours, then I'd suggest you look into the Hermann Verfahren.

Gut Sud!

[jtoots]

Skim the top regularly once the hop resin starts to show (discard that).  Then you soon will get a creamy odd looking layer (Hopfentrieb).  That should be skimmed every 3-6 hours, or as much as possible.  Try and do it in the morning and in the evenings, that's enough.  But skim often.  No need to keep the lid on the fermenter.  Just place it lightly - bacteria won't survive a full ferment (unless you add massive amounts in purpose).

I've never heard of this method before - could you go into what the benefits are of all this maintenance?  Why not keep the lid on, keep it a sanitary environment, and let everything settle to the bottom?

Curiously yours,
Jay

[npg]

certainly .  it's comprehensively described in Ludwig Narziss' book:  "Abriss der Bierbrauerei" from the TU in Munich, in Weihenstephan (Freising).

Once yeast is active it's hard for bacteria to get the upper hand.  Of course, towards the end you can finish by keeping the lid shut.  It's not good for it to sit inactive for too long though, ESP at temps higher than 20C, so a transfer on fermentation completion should be done without too much delay (you have a few days).

Skimming has several purposes.  It removes the unpleasant resins at the begin (discard) and it allows for the yeast to be collected in a cleaner state.  I find that it also gives the yeast more room to breathe and do it's work.  Additionally, it is a very good indicator for fermentation completeness (less foam created)...

Just give it a go... I find it produces smoother ales.

PS:  Pilsner Urquell is first fermented this way too, and many Bavarian breweries skim the top 12-36 hrs before transferring to second ferm in the Lagering tanks.

[brewfun]

Skimming has several purposes.  It removes the unpleasant resins at the begin (discard) and it allows for the yeast to be collected in a cleaner state.  I find that it also gives the yeast more room to breathe and do it's work.  Additionally, it is a very good indicator for fermentation completeness (less foam created)...

I can vouch for this.

I would intentionally look for blow off in my homebrew fermentations. It made for smoother bittering as well as better clarity and flocculation. It got to a point where I would manage the carboy volume to limit beer loss, but still allow for the krausen to escape. The secret was the blowoff tube being as large as the carboy mouth to ensure the smooth, unpressurized movement of the foam.

[npg]

ugh, thankfully I never had to do this in a glass container!   fermentation bins would be my choice in this case.  IIRC they are available in sizes up to 120 litres...  The important thing is to get rid of are the resins (the brown stuff on top of the Kräusen) before they have a chance to sink to the bottom once the ceiling/cover (or whatever you call it in English) collapses.

We do it the same way for our Helles.  The top is skimmed so we don't get any harsh tastes.   If one is lucky and works with ZKV's,  these resins often end up on the side of the walls after the transfer to the lager tank.  But no chances are taken here and it's skimmed the day before the transfer is made.  Surprisingly, stuff still ends up on the walls, so it's a good idea no matter what beer you make.

Of course, if your aim is 100+IBU (waste of hops, this is the bitterness threshold) and 12.5% ABV - then you may just get by without any of this because you won't taste the difference.

 

Greetings from the other side of the Atlantic!

[jtoots]

Very interesting, thanks gentlemen.

[charlespe]

I used this yeast to brew a special beer for my friend's party. it really delivered. It produced a very slight banana note, little to no clove or sulphur, and a slight haze. The fermentation temperature was about 72 degrees. The result was a very easy-to-drink ale that won over several homebrew critics.