We’re pleased to announce the release of three new beta cultures: Flanders Specialty Ale, Wallonian Farmhouse II and Saison/Brettanomyces Blend II. While we have homebrew vials of all the new beta products stocked on the website, we only have commercial culture available currently for Saison/Brettanomyces Blend II. If you’d like commercial pitches of any of the other beta products, please email us and we’ll schedule our strain propagation accordingly. Below is a description of each of the three new beta cultures.
TYB-Beta 7 – Flanders Specialty Ale – This is a single strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolated from a fascinating Belgian producer of a wide array of traditional Belgian beer styles. This is a versatile yeast that will ferment fairly dry and produce a balanced flavor and aroma profile laced with a myriad of esters and phenols. While fermenting to dryness similar to our Dry Belgian Ale, there remains a pleasant fullness in the mouthfeel and a malt backbone that shines. If you would like the final gravity to remain a bit higher, we recommend mashing around 156 F. Temperature: 68 – 80 ºF | Attenuation: 80%-90% | Flocculation: Medium
TYB-Beta 8 – Wallonian Farmhouse II – This is a single strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolated from the same source as our Wallonian Farmhouse strain, a well-known brewery hailing from the Walloon region of Belgium.Slightly less attenuative and exhibiting a more restrained phenolic and expressive ester profile than our original Wallonian Farmhouse, this yeast is a great choice for any classic saison style beer in which a balance of fruitiness and rustic farmhouse character is desired. Wallonian Farmhouse II works very well in conjunction with Brettanomyces owing to its robust and complex ester and phenol profile, so well that it has the honor of being the dominant saison strain in our new Saison/Brettanomyces Blend II culture. Temperature: 68 – 80 ºF | Attenuation: 80%-82% | Flocculation: Medium-Low
TYB-Beta 9 – Saison/Brettanomyces Blend II – The cultures in this new and unique blend include two saison-style Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolates (Wallonian Farmhouse II and a strain of traditional Belgian origin yet to be assigned a TYB number) and three Brettanomyces bruxellensis cultures (TYB184, TYB207 and a strain of American origin yet to be assigned a TYB number).This blend will produce a beer that is bursting with classic saison character with a rustic kick of Brettanomyces fruitiness and funkiness. While exhibiting a mild hay/barnyard component, the overall character is heavier on the fruit-forward end of the spectrum compared to our original Saison/Brettanomyces Blend. The Brettanomyces portion of the culture tends to generate character rather quickly owing to the nature of the strains used. Temperature: 72 – 80 ºF | Attenuation: 82%-85% | Flocculation: Medium-Low