Alternative to Recultured CPA yeast?

[drsmurto]

I use WL009 all the time for Coopers Dark Ale. Currently have one in the fermenter. Also use it for the occasional sparkling ale and for pale ales for a camping trip. Haven't recultured coopers yeast in years due to the effort involved. A fresh vial is easy.

The one critical aspect when using the Coopers yeast is keeping it to 16C to get the pear esters only, any higher and it's all bananas.

 

[Damien13]

Hey Cool Thanks Dr Smurto. Any tips on a dry yeast you would chuck in to get kiiiiinda similar?

 

[bignath]

If it was strictly based on dry yeasts?

Probably/Most likely yeah...

Just running through the main / most common ones:

US05 - neutral, bland, some say boring. Depends on what your brewing. APA? Great choice......but CPA is a looooooong way from a APA.

US04 - more commonly used in british beers. Definitely wouldn't do that. It's a good yeast, and i have some of it myself, but i personally wouldn't choose it.

WBO6 - Wheat beer yeast. I have a sachet of it, but never used it. Maybe experiment with different temps and it might throw a fruity flavour like i get in a lot of wheats...Dunno.

Nottingham - some say neutral, i don't find it that way. Leaves a fruity type thing in my beers. CPA is a very fruity,florally beer actually, so this would be getting closer to atleast having similar types of characteristics, even if they are not the same ones..Also is a very good attenuator, so mouth feel should be close.

Windsor - Dunno, i have some of that too, but haven't used it yet. I think from memory made by the same company (Danstar/Lallemand) - not that means anything.

No idea if this helps..

 

[GalBrew]

I use WL009 all the time for Coopers Dark Ale. Currently have one in the fermenter. Also use it for the occasional sparkling ale and for pale ales for a camping trip. Haven't recultured coopers yeast in years due to the effort involved. A fresh vial is easy.

The one critical aspect when using the Coopers yeast is keeping it to 16C to get the pear esters only, any higher and it's all bananas.

Good tip! thanks for that one Doc.

Also don't use Windsor unless you want low attenuation. S-04 can be a little quitter too if you don't keep an eye on it.

 

[Mikedub]

I'm fermenting with Danstar Windsor atm , from initial tastings I'd say its it the ball park of CPA as I'm getting plenty of pear, though perhaps leaning towards yeasty rather than CPA bready, as others have mentioned it this yeast finishes quite high,

 

[QldKev]

I've used WL009 and it's close. I do prefer the CPA bottle yeast and think if you are after a CPA close it is worth the effort to re-culture. I experimented along with ekul a couple of years back and we found 16.5c to be the perfect temp for a CPA clone.

QldKev

 

[Damien13]

Not to flog a dead thread, but I just went through my brew journal from a few years ago, and one of the best Aussie pales I made was with T-58 dry yeast. I remember it being extremely close to coopers (was a st peteres wort pack). SG 1.040
What the hell?? Isn't T-58 a Belgian yeast?? Were my taste buds that crap 4 years ago?? I remember it not throwing the usual Belgian aromatics I am not a fan of. Anyone have much experience with this yeast? When I used the same yeast with a high grav (1.070) pumpkin beer it was banana city! Could it have been stress... hmmm

 

[Tilt]

WBO6 - Wheat beer yeast. I have a sachet of it, but never used it. Maybe experiment with different temps and it might throw a fruity flavour like i get in a lot of wheats...Dunno.

I used WB 06 a while ago as a back up yeast on a CSA when the recultured bottle dregs on my stirplate failed to fire.
Based on advice in the American forums I didn't oxygenate (dropped via a length of hose into the fermentor from the kettle, but no 5 minutes of shaking as I usually would) and fermented at 19-21 degrees rising over 4 days.
It attenuated well to 1009 and cleared moderately with a cold crash - the beer wasn't crystal clear but it didn't have the luscious fine cloudiness of a true Coopers.
Esters/ phenols wise I got slight whiffs of banana, and no clove that I could pick up. No pear at all (not that I was expecting any).

Overall I thought WB06 was on OK dry substitute at a time when I needed it - and it gave some properties of Coopers yeast which I wouldn't have got with S05, Nottingham or Windsor. However it doesn't produce a Coopers clone - you'd need to go with the real thing for that.

 

[Nick JD]

Whenever I call T58 "pretty average" Ross sets the dogs on me.

But it is pretty average.

 

[black_labb]

Coopers yeast is great, try it with different recipes to really get the most out of it. One of my regular brews is a 50% vienna 50% pale ale hopped to about 28ibu with about 20% of the IBU coming from cube hops using european or milder english hops. Keep to about 17* in the first 24 hours and let it rise gently after that. Styrian goldings was my best one.

I get quite dissapointed with Coopers pale when I drink it, there are better ways to make use of the yeast.

 

[Nick JD]

I get quite dissapointed with Coopers pale when I drink it, there are better ways to make use of the yeast.

Same. I have struggled through a 6 pack in the past to get the yeast. It's just bottle conditioned Tooheys Draught with a slightly fruity yeast.

I sub out the PoR for Cascade - much better CPA. Made a couple of wicked OzIPAs with it too.

 

[peas_and_corn]

Coopers is better kegged IMO, the bottled version is highly variable in quality, especially if it's been shipped interstate.

 

[ben_sa]

CPA clone is a regular on tap at my place. Ive triednotto, 05, 04 as well as a few liquids. Next time im going to use bry97 as i have heard it is abit of a hop stripping yeast, but cpa isnt really a hop driven beer... Should be interesting

 

[clarkey7]

As you know Damien - I have made a few Aussie Ales with coopers yeast in my time.......I think you should invite your friend over and get him to pay for a six pack of fresh coopers. Sit it in your fridge very still for 2 days.

Show him how to do the starter and drink the beers together. Worth the effort.
I normally use 3 stubbies in 600ml-800ml 1035 wort in an Erlenmeyer flask ...(about 4-5 heaped TBS of DME in water)..Obviously boil the wort for 15mis, cool and pitch the 3 stubbies dregs and aerate like hell. Starter ready in 2-3 days.......nothing like the vigorous fermentation generated by a re-cultured Coopers yeast...

I usually drink the beers while making the starter....makes the chore more interesting.

Having said all that. I did a fair bit of experimenting a few years ago when BABBs had an Aussie Ale Mash Paddle comp.

The third best beer (first 2 were with CSA stubbies) I made was with Notto at 20-21 degrees. Very close to coopers ester profile in slightly more English Malt dominated grist (Maris Otter/Pale Malt, wheat, Med crystal)...also used Goldings and Fuggles instead of POR in the more traditional version....Some tasters would not believe that Notto could seem this close to Coopers.

Worth a go IMO if re-culturing is off the table.

The WLP009 didn't do it for me...but I only used it once......took awhile to get going and fermented a bit too clean from memory....

Hope this helps,

Dave