Yeast Strain for Helles?

I have not tried sauergut yet, as I'm trying to see if I can get away with not using it, AND since with my water and recipes I seem to have the opposite pH problem -- pH is often too low already rather than too high, so if I used sauergut then I'd just have to offset it with pickling lime to bring pH back up again anyway, which seems silly to me. Eventually though I will give it a try, door is not closed on this and jury's still out.

Regarding W-34/70 -- in the DRIED form -- I have had relatively mediocre results, versus the one time I used S-189 and was impressed. But I really should run a side-by-side split batch experiment to know for sure, so that's still coming in the future. My next experiment will test S-189 vs. WLP833 as I planned that for a while and already have the yeast. Sorry, not going three-way split on this one.

So that's my bases for previous statements.

 

I did read @TheBeerery ’s Sauergut Reactor post but still have some questions maybe y’all can help me with.

Other than reinheitsgebot, what is the benefit of this sauergut method versus just using 88% Lactic Acid for acidification? Would similar results not be produced from dosing in 88%LA in the mash and then again post boil to achieve desired pH?

 

You have to use more of it vs. just lactic acid so you get a more pronounced flavor contribution from it.

 

This suggests to me that the pronounced flavor is another microbial byproduct, which would be subtle at this dilution rates. Thoughts on what that could be?

 

The sauergut is added near the end of the boil to drop the PH to 5-5.1, this boil addition is what we taste in the final product, some have likened it to a grape flavor or somewhat of a tangy flavor. Coincidentally Paulaner Helles when fresh has this taste quite pronounced which is why I love Paulaner so much hence the name I chose.

 

After much investigation, I found that the grape comes from ethyl heptanoate, which is a yeast-derived ester. My guess is that there may be something special in sauergut that generates extra chemical precursors to ethyl heptanoate, in the same way that DMS or diacetyl also have precursors which can be minimized or promoted depending on the brewer's desires.

What I failed to recognize, if true, is that sauergut might be added to the END of the boil, not to the mash?! Okay, now I am intrigued.

 

If true? Read any German brewing textbook if you don't believe me.

 

It’s added to the mash and the end of the boil traditionally.

If you have a really alkaline water and have to use a bunch of lactic acid to adjust mash and then add even more to the end of the boil the. I bet you could get that grape taste just by using lactic acid. Not sure what the threshold is though.