28 replies to this topic

[Big Nake]

I used S-04 as a Plan B/backup because I had another ale yeast that went down. I made a hoppy blonde, my Signature ale, a Cascade pale ale, a cream ale and the batch of Dubbelfest that I mentioned... 5 batches total. As a fan of English ale strains, I like this yeast. I like the character and aroma that it brings to the beer. I like that it flocs well and also works quickly. But the next time I use it I need to remember to mash a little lower, possibly use a bit more sulfate in the water and also make sure that the yeast finishes up and gets the gravity as low as it will go and... allow it to warm up because it tends to produce some diacetyl. Anything on the malty side or anything where a good percentage of crystal is involved can end up with a very heavy and rich finish... pretty much true for many other English strains. All of that said, next time I go to the LHBS I will pick up another one or two packets of it to have around.

[positiveContact]

I like it for amber/ESB type beers.

[HVB]

This is the house yeast of one of the breweries I like.  They are doing VERY good hoppy beers with this yeast and they are hazy but that is mainly because of the dry hop.  I have not had a lot of discussion with the brewer on mash temp but I assume it is 150-152 but I know they run the yeast 69 for 24 hours and then back it down to 66 for the rest of the fermentation.  The ester at 69 work really well with the new school hops.

[positiveContact]

This is the house yeast of one of the breweries I like.  They are doing VERY good hoppy beers with this yeast and they are hazy but that is mainly because of the dry hop.  I have not had a lot of discussion with the brewer on mash temp but I assume it is 150-152 but I know they run the yeast 69 for 24 hours and then back it down to 66 for the rest of the fermentation.  The ester at 69 work really well with the new school hops.

 

I always worry about bring ferm temp DOWN after it's going.  I worry it's going to make the yeast quit early and not finish the job.

[HVB]

I always worry about bring ferm temp DOWN after it's going.  I worry it's going to make the yeast quit early and not finish the job.

In my home scale testings it has no been an issue at all.  I went 68-65 with out issue a couple of times.  Just got 3 more packages to play around some more once I get free time.  House projects are lining up so not sure when free time will be.

[Big Nake]

What's nice is that after all this time using primarily liquid yeast, I have S-189 and S-04 as alternatives and the truth is that these are not inferior yeast products, IMO... they produce beers that are on par with any liquid strain I would use. I have had my issues with US-05 producing a peachy-apricot ester so I could still use a neutral dry ale yeast and I still have not used 34/70 or M84 (both of which are supposed to be a dry version of 2124, IIRC) so I may have to try those as well. Honestly, if I had dry versions of 1056, 1028 (or other English yeast) and 2124 along with whatever corresponds to S-189... I could be a very happy dry yeast user.

[Bklmt2000]

34/70 is a damn good lager yeast; to my tastes, it's the same as 2124.  My go-to, Swiss Army knife lager yeast.

[Poptop]

Fellas, if you had one favorite recipe where S-04 shines what is it? I have a pack and need a summer'y beer.

Also, I like the 05 at warmer ferments to pull out those apricot notes. I know, sounds bad to some but when used with some citrus'y hops it suits my palate...

34/70 is a damn good lager yeast; to my tastes, it's the same as 2124.  My go-to, Swiss Army knife lager yeast.

It's becoming a staple to keep on hand for dry yeast. So easy to use thus far.

[Bklmt2000]

Fellas, if you had one favorite recipe where S-04 shines what is it? I have a pack and need a summer'y beer.

Also, I like the 05 at warmer ferments to pull out those apricot notes. I know, sounds bad to some but when used with some citrus'y hops it suits my palate...

 

English summer/blonde ale?

[Poptop]

English summer/blonde ale?

I'd love to make something in line with a Sam Adams beer we were drinking last summer.

httpss://www.samueladams.com/craft-beers/seasonals/summer-ale

Edited by Steppedonapoptop, 03 April 2017 - 08:56 AM.

[Big Nake]

Fellas, if you had one favorite recipe where S-04 shines what is it? I have a pack and need a summer'y beer.

Also, I like the 05 at warmer ferments to pull out those apricot notes. I know, sounds bad to some but when used with some citrus'y hops it suits my palate...



It's becoming a staple to keep on hand for dry yeast. So easy to use thus far.

If you decide to make something with S-04 that is summery, consider a hoppy blonde ale (my personal opinion would be to use some 'clean' US hops as finishing hops like Crystal, Liberty, Santiam, US Goldings, Glacier, etc) and think about mashing on the lower end of the range and also using water where the sulfate and chloride is at least equal if not leaning towards sulfate... you need to bring some crispness because S-04 tends to produce a malty beer or maybe it's just low attenuation. Then make sure it sits in the primary at a little higher temp near the end of primary to eat up any diacetyl. FWIW, the only beer that I made in this group of 5 that had diacetyl was batch 1. The other four show no signs of it. I fermented these in a tub of water and the primary temp for most of the time was probably 62-64° and then I placed the primary in a warmer spot for another week or so to let it warm & clean up. You'll end up with a bright beer too... this stuff drops like a rock.

[Seven]

I just used this yeast for the 1st time last Thursday after an 11-year absence from homebrewing. I used it on an oatmeal stout with a target mash temp of 152* that I missed on the low-side by a few degrees. I chilled the wort to the low 70s but am fermenting in an unheated, 50* garage so the wort likely cooled off before the yeast got going. I wasn't expecting a blowoff since I was using a 6.5 gallon Better Bottle but I had wort in the airlock within 36 hours. Crazy fermentation, possibly due to the oatmeal? Anyhow, it looks like it's done fermenting but I've not taken any readings...will give it a week or 2 to clean up.

[Poptop]

Sounds good thanks. I have some Crystal needing a home

[Big Nake]

I just used this yeast for the 1st time last Thursday after an 11-year absence from homebrewing. I used it on an oatmeal stout with a target mash temp of 152* that I missed on the low-side by a few degrees. I chilled the wort to the low 70s but am fermenting in an unheated, 50* garage so the wort likely cooled off before the yeast got going. I wasn't expecting a blowoff since I was using a 6.5 gallon Better Bottle but I had wort in the airlock within 36 hours. Crazy fermentation, possibly due to the oatmeal? Anyhow, it looks like it's done fermenting but I've not taken any readings...will give it a week or 2 to clean up.

The stout is a good application for this yeast, I think. I'm not a stout-head but I envision the S-04 creating a nice stout.

[Bklmt2000]

The stout is a good application for this yeast, I think. I'm not a stout-head but I envision the S-04 creating a nice stout.

 

Speaking from experience, S-04 makes excellent stouts.  Irish, oatmeal, imperial, you name it.

[Big Nake]

One thing that I like is a good yeast aroma. The aroma can be that of a malty beer or a hoppy beer and the yeast can still come through. It's one of the things that I love about 2124. When I'm harvesting yeast from a 2124 primary, the whole kitchen smells like beer heaven. I get the same kind of thing from S-04... it's not the same but it's similar. When you have a glass of beer in front of you that was made with S-04 (or many of the English liquid strains), take a whiff of it and get that full, bready & crackery aroma. It's hypnotic... and I rarely use the word hypnotic.

[Seven]

Sounds like I'll need to raise temps a bit towards the end of fermentation to burn off a few more points?

[Bklmt2000]

Sounds like I'll need to raise temps a bit towards the end of fermentation to burn off a few more points?

 

That, and some gentle agitation to rouse the yeast will help ensure it's done.

[HVB]

Sounds like I'll need to raise temps a bit towards the end of fermentation to burn off a few more points?

yes, same as with most yeasts.  After the first few days let it go towards 70, IMO.

[Big Nake]

Sounds like I'll need to raise temps a bit towards the end of fermentation to burn off a few more points?

I would. Swirl it a little (as mentioned) and just make sure that it doesn't stay too cool. It truly does drop like a rock so if it gets too cool and it bails out you may end up with underattenuated beer and also diacetyl. Rouse it, warm it and allow it to go a bit further. Had I been more in-tune with it on the first run, I probably would have carefully sampled it to ensure the beer was done and that diacetyl was not detectable. Now that I know, I'll be more mindful of it. I think the end result is worth the additional focus.