Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale - Love That Yeast

[Bribie G]

Anyone else here remember Peet's Irish Ale yeast? Capable of fermenting small blocks of depleted Uranium!

I once fed it to a Porter @ 1092, then chucked it into a keg in a fridge @ 4C & it was still going 5 months later!

If 1084 is the same strain ('wouldn't surprise me), it's good for high gravities & low temperatures.

I recently used Wyeast 1084 Irish on the cube of RIS I'd had sitting for a year or so and it chewed its way through it in 10 days from O.G. 1090. Then I remembered that I had forgotten to put in the half kilo of brown sugar so that went in and it chewed through that in about another three days.

 

[O-beer-wan-kenobi]

Thank you.
I have read it makes a unique Pale, so hopefully it will be a cracker. I split the batch and have made half with Nottingham and half with 1084.
Really highlights what a difference a yeast can make.

Hey Muscovy, what was the Pale like with the Wyeast 1084? What temp did you ferment at and was it clean?
I have only done Stouts and Irish Reds with this yeast and was considering to use it for a Pale.

 

[bradmccoy]

I just finished fementing a pale with this. Took it down from 1057 to 1005. Fermented around 22C (slightly higher than this yeast is supposed to be used at, as I don't have temp control atm). Going to bottle tonight. Will update with results but out of the fermenter it tastes pretty good.

 

[Donske]

Rehashing an old topic but what sort of attenuation are people getting with this yeast?

I've got what is meant to be a dry stout that looks to be done at 70% apparent attenuation, 1.050 OG, seems to have finished at 1.016, I was hoping for around 1.010, I know it's not much difference, just want to double check that sounds right.

 

[O-beer-wan-kenobi]

The Wyeast website says attenuation between 71-74%.

In my experience I have had higher attenuation. Looking at my notes my stout went form 1.043 to 1.010 and my Irish Red went from 1.056 to 1.010. Both were fermented at 18/19 degrees

I guess it will depend on the grain bill and mash temp and pitching rates. How long has it been in the fermenter? Maybe it will drop some more if you leave it a bit longer?

 

[TheWiggman]

I had a smack pack dated April so I thought this might need some encouragement. Took it out of the fridge, smacked, and let it sit. 2h later there were already signs of action. Overnight it was puffed up and raring to go.
Started in a 1l starter showing plenty of krausen (most I've seen on a starter to date).
I decanted the starter on the grass which was made from kettle leftovers from an oatmeal stout. Oh, the smell. Intoxicating. Should have bottled it.

Put in a dry stout at 1.055 Sunday midday and yesterday afternoon it was already down to <1.040. I might even have a free fermenter for an English Barleywine this weekend at this rate.

 

[Donske]

I had a smack pack dated April so I thought this might need some encouragement. Took it out of the fridge, smacked, and let it sit. 2h later there were already signs of action. Overnight it was puffed up and raring to go.
Started in a 1l starter showing plenty of krausen (most I've seen on a starter to date).
I decanted the starter on the grass which was made from kettle leftovers from an oatmeal stout. Oh, the smell. Intoxicating. Should have bottled it.

Put in a dry stout at 1.055 Sunday midday and yesterday afternoon it was already down to <1.040. I might even have a free fermenter for an English Barleywine this weekend at this rate.

If they are are your thing definitely harvest some for a run at a mild or 2, 1084 is a cracking yeast for the style, especially if there is a touch of biscuit and rye malt in the grist, really plays well with those malts in my experience.

 

[Weizguy]

Started in a 1l starter showing plenty of krausen (most I've seen on a starter to date).
I decanted the starter on the grass which was made from kettle leftovers from an oatmeal stout. Oh, the smell. Intoxicating. Should have bottled it.

I have taken to tasting and bottling my yeast starters now, and not disappointed so far. Most of my starters are made on filtered kettle leftovers.

I recall W1084 being a workhorse, but I will have to report attenuation figures later, once I get to my brew log.

 

[TheWiggman]

Cheers gents. Yes really enjoy the darker beers. I harvest all my yeasts so will definitely put a mild in the pipeline. Unfortunately already have about 6 brews lined up and don't drink heaps so it'll be a while yet.

 

[mje1980]

I've had a vial of this for a while. Just brewed a mid gravity blonde with it. 1.037 - 1.008 in 3 bloody days at 16-18 haha. Quite clear too. Got a pale mild on 1/3 of the cake and when it's done I'm putting a wee heavy into the whole yeast cake. Have been fermenting at 16-18 aiming for fewer esters, though I may up it for the wee heavy. So far I'm liking the results.

 

[mje1980]

Now, i really like the flavour of some of the more fussy/finicky uk strains but the combo of good flavour character and ridiculously fast and furious fermentation performance have got me loving this strain I must say. No ******* around, it just rips in and does the job reliably. Bloody good yeast

 

[mje1980]

Yesterday I pitched a 1.071 wee heavy onto the mild yeast cake. Few hours it had a nice thick krausen, so today I took a gravity sample, 1.015 already. Fridge set at 18, which I thought might slow it down a touch, but obviously not .

 

[TheWiggman]

I've run a starter of this and I'm tossing up whether to do an English IPA or 4 pines-a-like stout. Has anyone used this with an English IPA before? Going by descriptors it's not recommended.

 

[contrarian]

I do like this yeast but have found that beers fermented with it can take a while to peak whether in the leg or bottles.

I made fathodzillas better red than dead and it started to get its prime after about 3-4 months in the keg and I have found this with a few other beers fermented with this.

For that reason I probably wouldn't use it for a hip forward beer which I would prefer to drink young.

I know some other brewers have had this experience as well so it's not just me!

 

[Spookism]

I used one of these for the first time when I did I brew on Sunday.
Didn't swell up as much I thought it might and so far my brew is showing no signs of fermentation. (3 days)

Any thoughts?

 

[Midnight Brew]

Did you just smack and pitch or did you make a starter?

What was the date on the pack?

Og of the beer?

 

[Spookism]

Did you just smack and pitch or did you make a starter?

What was the date on the pack?

Og of the beer?

Smack and pitch, left it for 4 or 5 hours.

Not sure, recently brought from a retailer though

1.065

 

[TheWiggman]

That's a pretty serious underpitch for 23l I'm assuming. If the pack is old then even more so.
In case anyone gives a crap, I ended up going for a dry stout. 3.2kg pale, 0.5kg roast barley, 0.45kg torrified wheat, 0.10kg choc malt. 60 min addition of EKG to 40 IBU, should be a winner.

 

[Bribie G]

Although the pack says smack and pitch, when the pack swells I always do a starter over at least 24 hours with spare wort kept in a Schott bottle.
Using that method for an Irish Red or a Dry Stout at over 20 degrees this yeast is usually finished and gone home in four or five days, dropping out and starting to clear from the top of the brew.

Assuming it's a very close relation of Guinness yeast, they run their primary fermentation in Dublin for ordinary draught Guinness at 24 degrees for 40 hours.

 

[Spookism]

Rightio then, still learning. Thought I didn't need to do the starter thing.
Will pull that out next time.

I remember that I also hadn't aerated the brew, so I gave that a go and since then the brew has started to ferment.
Hopefully it's not to ruined by the exposure to air and not getting the yeast sorted properly...