Home Distiller

I think the topic of yeast is a bit confusing to beginners, especially if they start out watching everyone's favorite liquor show....

Anyway, the list of available yeasts to ferment with is pretty daunting. I make alot more beer than distilled product, when I started out making beer one of my favorite things to do was play with different yeast strains. The difference is huge! I can only imagine yeast plays an important part in distilling.

For distilling I know one wants a yeast that is:

Fast
High attenuating (the ability to ferment all available sugars and get the final gravity as close to 1.00 as possible)
High or semi-high alcohol tolerance

I'm playing around with all grain batches getting my SG (starting gravity) hovering above 1.080. I'm wanting yeasts that are high attenuating and have good FLAVOR. Speed isn't as much of an issue. I use US-05 for most of my beer making, and am giving that a go now with this yeast. I'm not sure it will be as high attenuating as I want.

Anyway, can folks leave a review on their favorite yeasts, particularly if they're doing all grain batches. Please post:

yeast strain
if you use a starter
SG and FG
type of batch and what you're making
and most importantly, what you think of the flavor!

I think yeast choice plays less of a role in distilling than it does making beer as the fermented product is not what is drunk.
I can tell you however that going for high gravity brews is counterproductive. 1.080 is about the highest I would attempt for distilling unless using a basic sugar wash. You have to remember that a wash/mash of 1.080 at 5 gallons contains the same amount of alcohol as 1.060 at 8 gallons (not true math, just a guess) yet the yeast has had to work less at the 8 gallon level. This affects the final flavour.
As for yeast strain, the couple all grains I have done for distilling I have used bakers yeast and Nottingham ale yeast, I cannot distinguish between the 2. I can say though that the bakers yeast was quicker in clearing than the Nottingham. All my mashes for distilling have been simple 2 row mashes. Both ended up with less flavour than expected, the wort was amazing but the distilled product showed little flavour carryover.
The subtle nuances that yeast choice adds doesn't tend to carry over through distillation as far as I'm concerned.

US-05 is well known for clean ferments with little additional flavours

Well, this is a very subjective topic, and youll get a hundred differnet opinions from a hundred people. I disagree with much of what Belly just said, , except about US-05, which is my mainstay for both brewing and distilling. I believe yeast play a huge role in distilling. Read my analysis of 3 yeasts in last years apple brandy runs here - http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 9#p7121964 I could ramble on with similar experiences with different yeasts and AG's.
And I never go higher than 1.065, about 8% for AG's. And never add sugar to fruit. Both do weird (bad) shit to yeast and flavors, in my experience.

Here's my $0.02:

For AG's I use US-05, clean and highly attenuative (finishes at low FG). And never let it get above 70F
For Rum I use Bakers, and never let it get below 80F (it stalls)
For Fruit I use EC-1118, clean ferment, and ferments out dry (attenuative). Never let this get above 70 either. Low 60's is better.

US-05 is a beer yeast developed for Maltose (like all grain mashes). EC-1118 is a wine yeast developed for fruit (fructose, glucose). Bakers is a damn mystery, but comes highly recommended by the Rum Gods around here (LWTCS, Piss et. al.), and that's good enough for me.

Cheers.

Jimbo, you have much more experience with all grain distilling than I. I really haven't found the need as I love UJ. As I said, I've only done a couple all grains for distilling and they were very simple single malt grain bills. Probably not a good indicator
Once I get my brew rig back together I will experiment with different malts and yeasts although I still think the malt choice will have more effect on flavour than the yeast will.
you are right though, yeast choice is very subjective, my brewing buddy uses EC 1118 exclusively for beers. I wouldn't even consider it.

Jimbo wrote:Well, this is a very subjective topic, and youll get a hundred differnet opinions from a hundred people.

I hear you there! I'm just hoping to have a thread for future reference where people share their favorite yeasts and for what, or why they don't think yeast matters.

Baker's yeast all the way, baby! Cheap and easily found. For cane and grain. Different brands will give different flavours, to some degree.
For fruit; it comes with its own yeast, I've never felt the need to argue with Mother Nature on that point.
I've tried wild yeast on grains, it didn't make a noticeable impact on the flavour of the spirit. But slow as hell.
Or, if I'm feeling fancy-free, I've found that whitelabs belgian sour mix has a strong wild yeast-like taste that carries over. Very robust!

Caveat; some people don't do baker's yeast or this or that yeast. Maybe it is brand they used, maybe some individuals are sensitive to it, just don't like the cut of its jib for whatever reason. Maybe they think baker's yeast is cheap? I can see that. I used a certain ale yeast recently, quite expensive from a good brand, to make some ale (not for distilling). It was disgusting. Tasted like almost nothing but over powering yeast. I distilled it, because it was too gross to drink. The distillate was just yeast, yeast, yeast. I chucked it away in the end.
But anyway, go with what you like. Try them all.

just to muddy the water even more its worth mentioning some yeasts completely vary the flavours they contribute given different temperatures, nutrients and gravitys- hotter and more stressed giving more fruity characteristics generally,

i also imagine how much yeast remains in solution to be cooked/distilled will affect flavour

also i couldnt agree more on the comment about yeast preferance- my flatmate cant stand s-04 style beer yeasts for example-

most interesting yeasts ive played with are london ale 3- top cropping and lovely taste (applely to plummy) and a joy to use an reuse

wheat beer yeast, bannana or clove taste by temp

belgain beer yeast (i forget the strain) really hard to describe and so variable- cool and low s.g and is like a lager yeast, high and goes really fruity and complex

I just tried my batch of rum with D47, and it had the best mouthfeel of any rum I've made yet. I have just brewed a batch of rum with d80 and d254. Best flavour and aroma. I haven't settled on one yeast for one thing yet.

Trappist HG if you're looking for dry yeasts / whisky.

Put me down for White Labs WLP001 (California Ale yeast). Quick worker, broad temperature range, alcohol tolerant, and drops out nice. AG brews washes.

coosabrew wrote:Put me down for White Labs WLP001 (California Ale yeast). Quick worker, broad temperature range, alcohol tolerant, and drops out nice. AG brews washes.

That yeast is exactly the same as US-05 fyi. Dry yeast is alot cheaper than those smack packs.

I've always suspected US05, WLP001 and Wyeast 1056 are the same. They all ferment and taste exactly the same in beer recipes I've made a zillion times.

Jimbo wrote:I've always suspected US05, WLP001 and Wyeast 1056 are the same. They all ferment and taste exactly the same in beer recipes I've made a zillion times.

This has been debated on beer forums for a long time. I've listened to some podcasts with yeast company interviews.....it's the same yeast.

+1 for chico, good for rum, UJSM sugarhead types and AG's. I also like irish ale for AG, adds a bit extra. EC1118 for fruits.

For the number guys I've recently had an all grain batch go from 1.0821 to 1.013 in 5 days. It's still fermenting, pretty happy with that.