[CroceBrewing]

Recently, we sampled an excellent hopped up wheat beer at Riverwalk Brewery in Newburyport, MA, which was fermented with a neutral strain.

My question: Does anyone have suggestions or recommendations on their favorite neutral strains? The idea is to use a strain that won't give off the banana or clove thing, and allow us to dry hop this one. I know some people might think it's sacrilegious to hop up a wheat beer, but then again we're enigmas.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.
 

[HoosierBrew]

1056/001/05 is about as clean as it gets. Any wheat beer strain wouldn't be as clean.

[majorvices]

Yeah, US-05 would be my go to yeast, especially since it seems to be less flocculative than the other chico liquid versions, not to mention easier to use.

[CroceBrewing]

1056/001/05 is about as clean as it gets. Any wheat beer strain wouldn't be as clean.

Thanks, Jon. With one of those ale yeasts, do you think I'll still get many of the characteristics of a wheat beer? The grist I'm considering is either 50% white wheat and 50% American 2-row, 50-50 Wheat/German pils

[jeffy]

Three Floyds Gumballhead is a beer like that, hopped with Amarillo I think.
On the other hand one of my favorite beers is a strong, dry hopped German Hefe called Hopfenweisen, brewed in collaboration with Brooklyn and Schneider.  There are two versions, but the one I like is also dry hopped with Amarillo.  I think the clovey yeast plays well with the hops.

[HoosierBrew]

You will minus any banana or clove phenols IMO. Wheat on its own has a kind of almost lemony tartness to me. You'll know it's in there.

[CroceBrewing]

Yeah, US-05 would be my go to yeast, especially since it seems to be less flocculative than the other chico liquid versions, not to mention easier to use.

Speaking of US-05, I recently used it with an IPA after my homebrew shop ran out of my usual go-to (WLP001). I pitched it dry, and experienced more than a 24-hour lagtime. Fermentation was slow after that, but we did go from 1.054 OG and hit our target of 1.012 within 14 days. But it never really went off in a big way (never saw much airlock activity, for example). Concerned me, but then it turned out OK. Is this a typical behavior for US-05?

I started it at 65F and tried to maintain that throughout.

[majorvices]

Sometime dry yeast can be a little sluggish. Try rehydrating it in 90 degree pre boiled water. Then cool yeast down to pitching temp - it should take off much faster

[mabrungard]

I agree with Keith. I just kegged a 5 gal batch of pale ale that I fermented with a packet of S-05 that was just pitched in dry. It did ferment out well (FG = 1.010), but it did not seem to have the same vigor as when I normally rehydrate that dry yeast in sterile RO water. I can now say that it does appear that it is better to rehydrate than pitch dry.

[erockrph]

I agree with Keith. I just kegged a 5 gal batch of pale ale that I fermented with a packet of S-05 that was just pitched in dry. It did ferment out well (FG = 1.010), but it did not seem to have the same vigor as when I normally rehydrate that dry yeast in sterile RO water. I can now say that it does appear that it is better to rehydrate than pitch dry.

Yeah, but how does the beer taste?

[jtoots]

If you're leaning towards a Hefe yeast, I'd suggest American Hefe over German... I recently did a 10 gallon batch split in half, one of each of the above yeasts, and the American Hefe had a much more subtle banana/clove.

[denny]

I agree with Keith. I just kegged a 5 gal batch of pale ale that I fermented with a packet of S-05 that was just pitched in dry. It did ferment out well (FG = 1.010), but it did not seem to have the same vigor as when I normally rehydrate that dry yeast in sterile RO water. I can now say that it does appear that it is better to rehydrate than pitch dry.

Yeah, but how does the beer taste?

Took the words right out of my fingers!

[Wort-H.O.G.]

for clean i like sandiego super yeast wlp090. pitched at 64F and keep it there for about 2-3 days, then letting it rise to 68 over next 2 days-it wll be pretty well done at this point.

great for american style wheat ales-it will floc unlike hefe yeast. and for accentuating hops its awesome in my opinion-use it for my pale ale and the hops are brilliant.

[majorvices]

If you're leaning towards a Hefe yeast, I'd suggest American Hefe over German... I recently did a 10 gallon batch split in half, one of each of the above yeasts, and the American Hefe had a much more subtle banana/clove.

American Hefeweizen shouldn't have any banana or clove.

[chumley]

I ferment my American wheats  and wheat-ryes with European or German ale strains.  They seem to leave a little more residual malt flavor than the American strains.