Wlp565 - Belgian Saison Blend Fast Ferment

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Mr. No-Tip

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So I put down my first Saison on Sunday using WLP565. I am surprised by the speed of the ferment. I've heard of lots of people having difficulties with Saisons stalling, but that this blend was less likely to stall. Still, I was expecting this to take a few weeks to really finish - to the point that I borrowed a second fermentation chamber so as not to disrupt my brewing schedule leading up to xmas.

I'm about to head off to ANHC, so thought I'd better check the gravity and look at adding my mid ferment .45kg of simple sugar rather than wait till Sunday and potentially miss the primary. 54 hours after pitching, it's dropped from 1056 to 1012. Obviously 1012 is not where I want the Saison to finish, but it's pretty amazing for such a short time. I am adding the simple sugar tonight and hoping for a mid 1000's finish.

This seems odd to me, especially for this style of beer. I am wondering if it's the yeast or some other variables. Other relevant facts:

  • 2l starter left on the plate at 22 for 36 hours + 12 off plate, cooled and somewhat decanted.
  • My oxygen ran out. Quick decision and decided to use some olive oil instead - first time with this experiment.
  • Visible, thick krausen within 6 hours. I've never had that before, even with starters.
  • Have ramped up to 25.5 over the last couple days - not by adding heat, but by bringing the temp controller up within it's range of 8 degrees as the ferment naturally added a few points of a degree every few hours.
What do you think? Has anyone found this yeast to be super quick? Could the olive oil be a factor? I thought not, as the Hull study suggested a slower, not faster ferment with olive oil.

Regardless of cause, is such a fast ferment concerning? It tastes pretty decent from the fermenter even at 1012 - lots of Saisonny flavours without any defects noticeable by my simple palate.

If we don't reach a negative conclusion, I'd definitely recommend other saison brewers give this yeast a go. Could be a nice quick reliable ferment.
 
I have found the notorious "Dupont" 3724 to go like the clappers and then essentially grind to a snail pace. 3711 just goes like the clappers until there is nothing left to eat. I don't know if these are the two strains used in the White Labs blend, but if you did blend these two common strains and have a large viable pitch, I would expect quick attenuation.
 
Is this yeast really a blend? It's not listed as a blend by White Labs.

Got my first ever Saison fermenting away right now, in fact it's almost done.
WL's claim that this yeast can stall - but that's certainly not my experience. In 10-days, I went from 1046 to 1008 (82% attenuation).
Fermentation was started at 22-degrees and allowed to climb to just 23.5-degrees. Despite a lot of brewers recommending Saison's should be fermented at high temps, for my first Saison, I thought I'd go with what the manufacturer suggests 20-24 degrees C.

Initial taste out of the fermenter, warm, is that Saison-yeast vibe (almost like a German wheat yeast) - a little lemon, dill, banana, pepper and spice (almost too spicey right now, but that may subdue with chilling).
Have set the STC to 25 for 24-hours, will then chill, decant and carb - and report back.
 
Spiesy said:
Is this yeast really a blend? It's not listed as a blend by White Labs.

Got my first ever Saison fermenting away right now, in fact it's almost done.
WL's claim that this yeast can stall - but that's certainly not my experience. In 10-days, I went from 1046 to 1008 (82% attenuation).
Fermentation was started at 22-degrees and allowed to climb to just 23.5-degrees. Despite a lot of brewers recommending Saison's should be fermented at high temps, for my first Saison, I thought I'd go with what the manufacturer suggests 20-24 degrees C.

Initial taste out of the fermenter, warm, is that Saison-yeast vibe (almost like a German wheat yeast) - a little lemon, dill, banana, pepper and spice (almost too spicey right now, but that may subdue with chilling).
Have set the STC to 25 for 24-hours, will then chill, decant and carb - and report back.
too spicy for spiesy?

sorry couldn't resist :)

i have this strain cultured and ready to go. might put it on in the next week or two. seems to be nice and fast by the sounds of what you guys have said so happy with that. if i remember i'll report my experiences too.
 
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