Favorite saison yeast

My favorite saison yeast is 3724, followed by 3726.

 

I'm a fan of WLP568.

 

Saison Dupont is the commercial saison I have liked the most. I also really enjoyed Swamphead's Saison and Brett Saison when I had a chance to visit their brewery a couple years ago. WY 3724 and WLP 565 are allegedly derived from Dupont. Although there could be some difference between them, I have enjoyed both. I used WLP 585 this summer and found it to be really tasty, rivaling my affection for the Dupont strain. WY3711 and Danstar's Belle Saison (Dry Yeast) are not to my liking. I also have not really enjoyed my experience with WLP 670 American Farmhouse strain. I enjoy a saison that allows some malt flavor to get through and has a balance of fruity esters and spicy phenolics. Invariably, the saisons I do not like so much lack these, tending to be too dry to give malt a seat at the table, and excessively phenolic, to my palate.

 

3724 or Dupont Dregs for me. People like to say this is a hard yeast to use, but mostly it's just on the slow side. Just be sure the yeast is fully attenuated before bottling to avoid creating explosives.

 

I give you a long list of my opinions.

http://www.maltosefalcons.com/tech/guide-saisons-and-saison-yeasts

 

Great article and interesting theory on open fermentation and the stall/slowdown.

 

East Coast Yeast Saison Brasserie takes the cake for me. Hard to get regularly but it makes such a great beer. Plays very well with brett/bugs too.

 

In order of preference, after using them all several times:

1. ECY14 saison single-strain
2. Wyeast 3726 Farmhouse Ale
3. Wyeast 3725 Biere de Garde
4. ECY08 Saison Brasserie
5. ECY03 Farmhouse Blend

I have no love for 3724 or 3711.

 

My personal favorites in order of preference:

1. WLP585
2. ECY08
3. Wyeast 3726
4. Wyeast 3724
5. Wyeast 3711

Both WLP585 and ECY08 produce very complex and flavorful Saison beers. The issue with ECY08 is that it is a pain in the neck to gete; very limited retail outlets and those few outlets sell out very quickly.

I like the flavor of the Saison beers brewed with 3724 but that strain has a lengthy fermentation timeline which is not appealing to me.

Wyeast 3711 performs like a champ during primary fermentation. All of the beers I brewed using 3711 completed primary fermentation in less than a week. The flavor profile is rather one dimensional; mostly spicy (phenols).

Cheers!

 

Drew, is the linked article a 'living document'? If I revisit this article later on will I read new data?

Cheers!

Jack

 

Yup - going to do a few more strains this weekend.

 

I brewed a Biere De Miel with WLP550 and loved it. Really dry/tart and had that great sulphur-y/pepper funk. It's recommended for Tripel's but I found my go to strain.

 

Blaugies dregs. Sometimes said to be the same yeast as WY3726, but I have not used 3726.

 

I'm s fan of the Yeast Bay's Wallonian yeast . . .

 

Amen, brother. On the advice of @jbakajust1, I added Orval dregs to a Blaugies-inspired Saison . . . it took a year, but the judges wet their pants when they drank it.

For the OP, maybe not what you're after, but consider harvesting. I harvest DuPont, Blaugies, and Ommegang with good results. It's a bit messy to learn, but the payoff is worth it. Oh yeah . . . you get to quaff down some good brew during the process.

 

If you are a fan of brett(who isn't), wlp670 american farmhouse ale is better than any I have used. If for some reason you don't like brett, wlp585 belgian saison 3 is a keeper in my book.

 

wyeast 3522 makes an awesome saison.

 

In typical BA fashion, another "what is your favorite X" thread lists practically every example of X.

I haven't tried it, but I've already decided this is going to be my new favorite:

http://www.omegayeast.com/?portfolio=c2c-american-farmhouse

A “coast to coast” blend of a saison strain from a famous Northeast U.S. brewery and a Brettanomyces strain from a Northwest U.S. brewery. The blend results in a fast developing fruity and funky farmhouse ale.

 

I'm assuming Ommegang Hennepin or Hill Farmstead + Logsdon Saison Bretta.