Author: Ray Found

Conan. Barbarian. Burlington. Vermont. While each yeast producer refers to it in a different way, the allusion is the same for all– here lies the yeast The Alchemist uses to make the famed Heady Topper. Whatever it’s called, this strain is praised for accentuating fruity hop character while contributing unique stone fruit esters, particularly when used in hop forward beers.

As a resident of southern California, I have access to a yeast supplied by a relatively new local lab, Fermatrix, offering a plethora of strains in both homebrewer and commercial pitches. Interested in trying them out, I snagged a vial of their FX-150 Burlington yeast, which is purported to share the same source as the aforementioned yeasts.

When the BrewUnited Challenge came along with restrictive rules on wort composition but a brewer’s choice regarding yeast selection, I thought this distinctively fruit-forward yeast might give me an edge by imitating additional hop character in a Centennial heavy American Amber Ale. However, unwilling to risk the entire batch chance to win on a hunch, I decided to make this a split-batch comparison with the ever neutral, no-starter-required, Safale US-05 dry yeast.

| PURPOSE |

To evaluate the differences between a split batch of the same American Amber Ale, half fermented with Safale US-05 and the other half fermented with FX-150 Burlington yeast.

| METHOD |

I decided to enter an American Amber in this challenge, which given the restrictions, forced me to consider strategies for achieving the color I desired without using heaps of Crystal 60, the darkest grain allowed. As many entrants did, I opted to toast my own grains, though I sought a novel approach that wouldn’t require the use of an oven or stove-top. My StirCrazy popcorn popper seemed an ideal tool for the task. I placed 6 ounces of Pilsner malt in the machine and cranked it on, within about an hour it had been transformed into an interestingly toasty and nutty malt I estimate was in the 120-150°L range.

Shy of my intended target of Pale Chocolate (200-250°L), the toasted malt had a rather tasty character and no burnt or acrid notes, I was pleased. If you’ve never tried home toasting malt, give it a whirl, I doubt it will become a staple for me, but it was a fun and interesting experiment.

When it came to hops, the challenge required entrants to use a minimum of 2 varieties from a very limited list with both making up at least 10% of the hop bill. Centennial was the only one I though would work well for the style. Concerned the other options wouldn’t meld well with it, I did the only sensible thing and added the requisite amount of the least potent option, Saaz, to the mash in hopes none of its character would survive the brewing process. I should note this wasn’t my first idea, that was immediately and harshly shot down by a competition official who explained, “Using hops as a fuel source would not count towards the 10% requirements.” Hey, I tried. With my recipe in place, it was time to get brewing!

Abomination Amber Ale

Batch Size Boil Time IBU SRM OG FG ABV 11 gal 90 min 65 11.6 1.062 SG 1.016 SG 6.1 %

Fermentables

Name Amount % Gambrinus Pilsner Malt(1.6L) 16lbs 11oz 70 Gambrinus Munich (10L) 4lbs 13oz 20 British Crystal 50-60 1lb 8oz 6.4 Flaked Wheat (1.6L) 7.5oz 2 Home Toasted Pilsner (150L) 6oz 1.6

Hops

Name Amt/IBU Time Use Form Alpha % Czech Saaz 52g (2.9IBU) Mash Hop Mash Pellet 3.75 Centennial 21 IBU First Wort FWH Pellet 10.2 Centennial 240 g/41 IBU Flameout w/ 20 min stand Steep Pellet 10.2 Centennial 200g Dryhop 5 Days Dry Pellet 10.2

Yeast

Name Lab Attenuation Ferm Temp Fermatrix Burlington FX-150 73% 66°F Safale US-05 American Ale Fermentis 73% 66°F

Water Profile

Ca Mg Na SO4 Cl HCO3 pH 83 ppm 0 ppm 0 ppm 119 ppm 61 ppm 0 ppm 5.3

Brew day began with me weighing out and milling the grains, I added the Saaz mash hop addition to it prior to mashing in.

The mash settled in nicely at my target temperature of 154°F where it sat for an hour before I collected the sweet wort and transferred it to my kettle. In short order, the hot break had formed and was encroaching on the lip of my kettle, only to be chased back down by the magical powers of Fermcap-S.

Yielding to convention, I opted for a 90-minute boil due to the large amount of Pilsner malt in the grist. Following a 20 minute steep with a large dose of Centennial hops, the wort was chilled and split into two matching carboys then placed in my fermentation chamber. One carboy received a rehydrated pitch of the familiar and always reliable Safale US-05 yeast, the other was hit with a vitality starter of Fermatrix FX-150 Burlington Ale Yeast. Fermentation started quickly on both, leaving me worry-free while away on business the following few days. During my absence, my brother-in-law dry hopped each beer, which I’d previously measured out, vacuum-sealed, and stored in the freezer.

When I returned home, neither beer had visible signs of fermentation and hydrometer measurements confirmed both had finished at 1.016 SG. I began cold crash, fined with gelatin, then kegged the beers and put them in my keezer to carbonate. They were identical in appearance and ready to present to tasters the following weekend.

| RESULTS |

The bulk of the of data was gathered at a BeerMe Brew Club meeting hosted at Brew Toys in Riverside, CA. A total of 16 tasters, all blind to the nature of the xBmt, were served 2 samples of the FX-150 beer and 1 sample of the US-05 beer then asked to select the one that was unique. This sample size would require at least 9 (p<0.05) participants to correctly identify the odd-beer-out in order to achieve statistical significance, and exactly 9 (p=0.026) were able to do so, allowing for the not-so-surprising conclusion that tasters were reliably capable of distinguishing an Amber Ale fermented with Safale US-05 beer of the same wort fermented with FX-150 Burlington yeast.

Those participants who were accurate on the triangle test proceeded to a brief comparative evaluation of only the 2 different beers. Of the 9 participants completing this portion of the survey, preference was evenly split with 3 people endorsing each batch, 2 claiming to have no preference, and 1 reportedly perceiving no difference. Finally, when asked to guess which beer was fermented with US-05, a rather astounding majority of 7 tasters chose the correct sample.

Once all of the data had been collected, I continued to seek opinions from those with palate’s I trust. BeerMe President and founder of the upcoming Stone Church Brewing, Dave Barone, came by for a tasting and his perception basically matched mine, noting the FX-150 Burlington beer possessed a slight phenolic note, validation I wasn’t experiencing gustatory hallucinations. For those wondering if this was caused by some sort of contamination, I’m highly doubtful since not a single person associated the character perceived in the Burlington batch as being the result of wild yeast or bacteria.

My Impressions: Comparing these beers side-by-side, they were clearly quite similar, far more so than I’d expected given Conan’s fruit-forward reputation, but I felt I could perceive some differences. The batch fermented with FX-150 Burlington seemed to have a slight phenolic note to it that accentuated some of what I feel are negative aspects of Centennial hops, while the US-05 beer had a noticeable dry-toasted character I found quite pleasant. In multiple “blind” triangle attempts, my initial perception of differences was confirmed, as I was capable of consistently identifying the unique sample, but it wasn’t as easy as I’d imagined. Oddly enough, I rather strongly preferred the US-05 beer while the FX-150 yeast produced more of a one-and-done beer for me. Make no mistake, the US-05 beer was by no means perfect, I’ve certainly no plans to brew the recipe again in the future, but I think it was pretty solid from a technical aspect and hence it’s the one I entered in the competition. Seems this beer faced some stiff competition in the American Amber category, and despite garnering respectable scores from from the 3 judges (39/39/41), it failed to earn a spot on the podium. Shucks. Maybe next time.

| DISCUSSION |

We are fortunate to have such a vast array of yeast strains available to choose from to help craft beer with the exact character we’re looking for. Some opt for more neutral strains like US-05 (Chico) in order to let the other ingredients shine, while others use more characterful yeasts in concert with their ingredients to create layers of flavor. I’ve never personally tasted Heady Topper, but I definitely appreciate The Alchemist and brewers like them who choose distinctive yeast strains to be a focal point and define their signature character. I am especially excited the exBEERiments to this point seem to support the notion yeast selection is an important variable when designing a beer.

The results of this xBmt suggest US-05 and Conan à la FX-150 Burlington produce beers most folks experience as being distinct from each other. I’ll admit to being surprised these beers weren’t more disparate in character, as I expected Conan to produce wildly noticeable esters of peach and apricot, while I’ve always experienced US-05 as being a blank slate. Of course, it could be that the intensity of the malt in the Amber Ale I made somehow masked or minimized some of the expected flavors and aroma imparted by the yeast, and while my preference was for the US-05 beer, I absolutely plan to give FX-150, or a similar variant offered by a different lab, another go in a style many swear it shines in– a big ol’ hop heavy IPA.

Finally, it’s possible my experience with FX-150 is unique because of some difference between it and all of the other versions of the lauded Conan yeast, perhaps I’d experience The Yeast Bay’s Vermont Ale or East Coast Yeast’s North East Ale differently. More grist for the proverbial exBEERimental mill.

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