Brewing with Kveik: What Have We Learned So Far?

Thanks for the info, I reactivated my membership with AHA after letting it lapse a couple years ago. I haven't brewed in about a year and I'm excited to fill up the mash tuns again!

 

So I'm about 96 hours into the kveik ferment half of this experiment and a couple things I've noticed so far:

~They don't ferment in 48 hours, even at 90F. 96 hours into fermentation and gravity went from 1.066 to 1.028 (with Hornindal at 90F with nutrients added.) At least not for me. I pitched hot, at about 95F and there was a bit of lag time so I wouldn't do it this way again, I think I shocked the yeast. It's still going hard.
~The fruit notes seem to be a bit exaggerated. They're there, but there's also a lot of spice (my wife says fennel and coriander seed.) We'll see what happens when it's done and cleans itself up a bit.
~So far they seem a bit overhyped in my very humble and flawed opinion

 

I think the big thing that people need to realize about Kveik is that it isn't meant to be some sort of universal solution for proper pitching and fermentation temp control. To brew something trying to get an imitation of a lager with them seems to me like using a hammer to drive in a screw; it sorta works, but it's not pretty and won't stand up to any scrutiny.

 

If you don’t have temp control they will make a passable beer... if you have temp control they will never be as good as traditional strains. I use an English ale yeast that will ferment a 1.050 wort in less than 48 hours at 66 with no off flavors or weird texture.

Best use is for quick sour beers if you don’t feel like kettle souring... other than that there are so many better options.

 

I used Opshuag Kveik from (WLP-518) from White Labs last summer during a heat wave with high 30sC. Living in Germany, A/C is almost unheard of in private apartments (or many offices/all schools, for that matter), and of course we don't have A/C in ours. I thought, why not give it a whirl, for I, like the Germans of old pre-refrigeration times, don't brew during the months of June to August due to the high temperatures.
I brewed in June with the above yeast, with daily highs ranging from 30-33C. And I was very pleased with the end result.
Grain bill: 5% Munich, 12% Biscuit, 40% Maris Otter Pale malt & the rest Extra Light DME - est. FG @ 1.055.
Hopping: 34 IBUs Magnum @ 60 minutes, 7 IBUs Saaz @ 20 minutes.
I remember it fermented quickly and very very thoroughly, from 1.048 OG to an amazing 1.006 FG and ABV est. @ 5.5%.
Aroma and taste was a bit lemony, and a bit spicy in the aftertaste, which obviously didn't come from any ingredient other than the Opshaug Kveik. I bottled 40% of the batch (18L) as is, then decided the lemony thing could be enhanced with a wee bit of dry hopping of El Dorado & Lemondrop hops. Bottled 22L of that and wow, was it nice and had a hefty lemony flavor at that point.
It was a great summer beer, and the surprising thing is that at a 1.006 FG, it wasn't as thin & dry as you'd expect it. Maybe the malt bill wouldn't allow it to taste that dry, but it was surprising thicker and more robust on the tongue.

Overall, the yeast did it's stuff and produced a very pleasant beer in a time I'd normally never brew, so only upsides, right? However, it's not a substitute for other yeasts as it definately has it's own character. I'd put it down as a yeast that's got characteristics of Saison & Farmhouse, but it's really its own baby and needs to be utilized as such.

For this summer, I thought I'd go all out Kveik and ordered packets of Gulo Ale (OYL 501), Espe Kveik (OYL 501) & Jovaru Lithuanian Farmhouse (OYL 033), all from Omega; nonetheless now sitting in the bottom of the fridge awaiting summer time. Has anyone any experience with these 3?

 

Tony, I wonder if WLP-518 produces glycerol during fermentation? In my experience the yeast strains I used to produce Saison beers did produce glycerol so the beers did not taste thin despite the very low FG values.

Cheers!

 

I've used Gulo and Jovaru, and liked them both.

Gulo is good for getting a very dry ale without the phenols that you'd get from a saison strain. I fermented it at ~66F, and got a bit of a peach character in a biere de garde.

Jovaru is cool. It kinda makes its own thing. Don't use it thinking that you're going to get a saison, you'll be disappointed. It has a bit of a lemongrass thing going on, and a little bit of a peppery phenol. I've got a pack on the way that I'm going to use with a pretty straightforward malt bill and hop with Loral, Lemondrop, and a smidge of Sorachi Ace to hopefully get a powerfully lemony summer ale.

 

A lot of Kviek strains produce more organic acids than traditional brewing strains. This is where the Unique Kviek texture comes from. I personally do not find it appealing. I’ve had a few Kviek beers where it wasn’t as obvious but almost all of them have this weird mouthfeel to me.

 

@gudbrande and others interested in kveik and higher temperature fermentations - you might be interested in these two basic brewing video episodes:

http://www.basicbrewing.com/index.php?page=july-22-2019-98-degree-two-day-oslo-pilsner

http://www.basicbrewing.com/index.php?page=december-11-2018-loki-yeast-temperature-experiment

While my experiences with lower pitch were described somewhat pessimistically above, these guys had more optimistic experiences with higher temperature, They seem to have brewed palatable beers. It sounds like the Oslo beer was somewhat lager-like, the way a blond ale is somewhat lager like. The Loki fermentations sound interesting but definitely not lager-like.

And stay tuned to the very end of the Loki video forJame's impression of the late Leon Redbone.

 

|I'm planning on a couple experiments on Kveik yeast this summer. I don't have temp control, aside from swamp coolers. |My brew area does stay cooler than the rest of the house, all other things equal; it's in an unfinished area of the basement, away from doors and such.
However, it will get to around 70 degrees in there, so much higher than I personally prefer: I like fermenting around 60 - 62 degrees - I'll take a little extra fermentation time; I'm in no rush. If I use my usual pale ale / ipa yeast, it'll get a touch of esters.
I know the kveik strains don't mind it hot, but I'm banking that they'll do fine in the 70s too...

 

I’m as big a fan of Basic Brewing as the next person, but James and Steve have never met a beer that wasn’t “tasty”.

 

Because they have selected beers wisely!?!



Cheers!

 

I think they are open to looking past imperfection to find merit. In their case, they are often brewing small batches, and that means they don't have to live with those imperfections for an extended period of time.

 

I brewed a IPA with Bootleg Biology’s Oslo yeast last summer and left it covered on the porch with temps dipping to low 70’s at night and mid 90’s during the day. I’m it finished in 3 days and I dry hopped it for 3 days. It was a clean IPA but not “juicy”. It had a thin mouthfeel and wasn’t that hazy. I prefer Imperial yeasts “Juice” for my hazy beers now. I haven’t decided what I’d use that particular strain for now. Maybe a cream ale or something?

 

fwiw, Oslo isn't the kveik strain many people would turn to to make a hazy. It floccs insanely hard (I know haze in good hazies isn't due to suspended yeast, but nevertheless) and produces a lager-like clean finish. I'd recommend something more like Voss for a hazy, personally. (And have used it myself to good effect.)

 

Had a beer recently from Culmination in Portland, that is brewed with kveik yeast. It was super tasty, was a pale ale yet i was getting sweet/sour flavors. I assume was the yeast.
Culmination Weehawk

 

I've brewed several beers with Voss dry yeast. Always NEIPA style due to the citrus notes from the yeast. Simple grist with 2-row and 1 lb flaked oats, with most hops late-boil or WP/DH. I always pitch dry from the sachet at 85-90 degrees. The current beer was done in 36 hours with 80% attenuation. I get a consistent orange/citrus profile which pairs with the hops, and the beer is always permanently hazy (at least for 8 weeks). I agree that it's a poor choice for a "lager" type beer and I did a barleywine that was not great due to the citrus esters, but no off flavors in my experience. It's fun for a niche beer, especially a hazy IPA if you are in a hurry.

 

I've switched over to using two kveik strains for nearly every beer. This was a gradual, very organic, development and wasn't due to fashion or hype. Before a few months ago I haven't spoken to a single person about homebrewing in decades, or read any articles whatsoever, so fads don't affect me. I tried kveiks because they were for sale and I try every yeast at least once.

A few observations I can offer:
-Pitch temperature is essential, if Lars recommends 95f then pitch above 90f. 48 hour fermentation is not only possible, it's slightly overestimated, and depends more on strain selection more than anything else (Sigmund Voss takes at least 5 days no matter what, Opshaug takes 3 days, but Arset can fully attenuate in 44 hours if handled correctly, for example).
-Some kveiks can biotransform hops in unpredictable ways, and unique flavor combinations can be found for those brave enough to look.
-If you plan on saving your dried kveiks then be sure to harvest in the recommended way only, if it's collected at high krausen then harvest it then, if it's collected from the bottom of the trub then do it that way (domestication requires that we continue the work that was began by those that tended to the kveik yeasts for so many generations).
-Nomenclature seems to upset people with kveiks, so be sure to call your brews 'pseudo-lagers' otherwise the weirdo beardo gatekeepers will give you crap. This is essential.
-Kveiks are truly domesticated and are therefore highly predictable if treated as intended, but if you don't have temperature control that allows you to operate the way that they like, they all tend to act and taste just like California Ale Yeast; nothing special but neutral and effective, taking a more standard amount of time to attenuate.

 

I'll be more than happy to drop the distinction just as soon as beers fermented with Kveik strains and entered in major competitions as lagers start medaling in best of show rounds. Hell, I'd even settle for a single beer entered in two separate major competitions scoring over 40 in both.

I'll wait, but I'm not holding my breath. You can call me a weirdo beardo gatekeeper if it helps. I don't mind.

 

No, no, it's a pseudo-lager if it's made from a kveik. Don't blow your top, I accept your nomenclature choices as being clearly very important to you, and I have no skin in this game.