Yeast charecteristics

I have no idea what the "sugars" ratings are about, I've never seen that before. I'll bet you can safely ignore the entire concept.

As for a mocktoberfest, K-97 is an excellent choice, very clean Kolsch yeast. The S-04 would be an unsatisfactory choice in my opinion, too many esters and just not suited to such a beer.

 

From the Fermentis website:

“Fermentis Safale K-97 is a German ale yeast selected for its ability to form a large firm head when fermenting. Suitable to brew ales with low esters and can be used for Belgian type wheat beers. Its lower attenuation profile makes for beers with a good mouthfeel. This ale yeast works at a wide temperature range between 12-25°C (53.6-77°F) but ideally between 15-20°C (59-68°F). Highly flocculant.”

Are you sure that K-97 is a Kolsch yeast? When I homebrew my Kolsch beers I use Wyeast 2565 and I obtain a low final gravity (high attenuation) which IMO is a necessary feature of the Kolsch beer style.

Cheers!

 

Not positive, but I'd be willing to bet a 6-pack that the K in K-97 stands for Koln or Kolsch. I haven't used it yet myself, but intend to based on positive reviews elsewhere on the interwebs. People all over have used it for both alts and kolsch styles reporting good clean results.

For whatever it's worth....

WLP029 is another Kolsch yeast and for me its average attenuation has been 75% with a range of 72-78%. That's pretty standard attenuation, not "high" in my opinion.

Meanwhile, Wyeast 2565 (which is a different yeast) has acted inconsistently for me over the years. It now gives me an average 83%, with a range of 73-84%. Seems to have evolved somewhat from what it was 10 years ago, when average attenuation was much lower at 77%. YMMV.

Conclusions: Not all Kolsch yeasts are created equal. I'm sure the folks in Koln would agree as well. And, for whatever else it's worth, if evolution is going on, these wouldn't be the first. Other yeasts have apparently been evolving over the years. Notty used to give me 77% attenuation regardless of mash time or temperature, very consistent and dependable. Now years later on my last batch, attenuation was huge in the high 80s. I was actually kind of disappointed with how dry this beer turned out. But the yeast will do what it wants. We can try to control it but it will still do what it wants........

Bottom line: Yeasts are living creatures. They very often times don't do what we expect them to do. Even a few years in between uses seems to change their character. They're constantly evolving. I'll grant that German yeasts have been used for so many years that they shouldn't be evolving so quickly. But, they might also have other ideas of their own.

Back to the OP: Attenuation is just one variable. But flavor, I would argue, is what's more important in this case. If you want a clean beer, I think the K-97 is going to do that for you, and not the S-04.

 

FWIW I will stick to using Wyeast 2565 to brew my Kolsch beers. I have been brewing Kolsch beers for the past 15+ years using that yeast and it has performed consistently (no evolution whatsoever). K-97 is not even on my radar screen to produce a Kolsch.

Cheers!

 

The 'Alcohols' in this case refers to higher alcohols (aka. fusel alcohols). There are e.g. propanol, isobutanol, and 3-methyl-1-butanol. So the extra consumed sugar does indeed become alcohol (ethanol).

 

I would suggest this book: https://www.amazon.com/Yeast-Practical-Fermentation-Brewing-Elements/dp/0937381969

Cheers!

 

Personally I think S-04 is the worst yeast on the market.

 

I disagree. The rotten tomato award goes to WLP820 Oktoberfest yeast. Any other lager yeast in the universe is 50 times better than that POS.

 

I recently brewed a "New England" style IPA using S-04 and that beer turned out really, really well!!

@SFACRKnight

Cheers!

 

Alot of brewers are reporting back this yeast is a great choice for the NEIPA. With the peach esters I expect in that style of beer I agree it would be a pretty poor choice for anything meant to be lager like.

 

I only brew English ales and find SO-4 lacks any character. Reminds me of the mass produced crap served up by the mega swill brewery's here in the UK. I started brewing to get away from that sort of rubbish.

 

Which yeast strains do you prefer in your brewing of English ales? What specific character(s) do you want in your English ales?

Cheers!

 

I've made several NE IPAs with 04, along with plenty of stouts and porters, and find it to be my favorite English yeast strain out there!

 

My preferred choice is whitelabs WLP002 English yeast but will use any of their "British" strains.

 

Are Wyeast yeasts available to you? If so I would recommend Wyeast 1469 (West Yorkshire Ale) which is sourced from Timothy Taylor. This is my preferred yeast for brewing my Bitter Ales and I ferment warm (e.g., 21 degrees C) to encourage the production of esters.

Cheers!

 

Some Wyeast are available but not from my usual suppler. When I did use the yeast in the past I found the smack pack a pain in the arse

 

Well you aren't suppose to put the smack-pack there!

I use Wyeast for the majority of my liquid yeast brewed beers. I have never experienced any issues with the smack-packs. Needless to say but YMMV.

Cheers!