Safale 04

[RabMaxwell]

Hello all i am thinking of ordering a 500g brick of Safale 04 & US 56.But as for the Safale 04 i have made some excellent beers with. But i also have had a lot of problems getting it to attenuate properly. So for the people who have consistent success with this bastard yeast what's your secret before i buy 500g of the stuff.I have also bought a vacuum packing machine from E-bay and it's shiny. Cheers Rabmaxwell(Brewing in Ayrshire)

[mysterio]

Probably really giving the wort good aeration is key, and so is pitching a proper amount of yeast... I'd probably say a minimum of one packet per 5 gallons.

I use US-56 a lot and I've noticed a marked increase in attenuation by simply pitching a second packet of yeast in a 5 gallon batch. In fact with two packets my attenuation peaked over 80% compared to lower 70s with one.

As an aside, with liquid yeast I always find attenuation is a lottery draw, which is why I much prefer dry yeast now.

[RabMaxwell]

Hello DaaB i usually aerate the hell out of it with an aquarium pump. I think i will pitch more yeast was thinking 65g for 110 Litres and see how i get on .On another note i have just kegged six cornies and one of them wouldn't hold pressure .Then i noticed it had a small pin prick hole near the lid (shit) Hopefully i will be able to fix it tomorrow with the mig i know i have some stainless wire somewhere anyway time for a beer. Cheers Rabmaxwell (Brewing in Ayrshire)

[RabMaxwell]

I think it's a special mix can't remember what i will need to just use C02 not the best but should do if careful . Cheers

[RabMaxwell]

Thank god looks like i have managed to fix my leaking cornie. I was a little concerned as i kept burning holes in a test piece of stainless. But the keg went ok thankfully i was going to brew today before this happened looks like it will be tomorrow now. cheers Rabmaxwell (Brewing in Ayrshire)

[Andy]

Rab - time for some new kegs ?

viewtopic.php?p=18534

[tribs]

Its meant to be the same strain as wyeast 1098 (whitbread dry) which I have just used on back to back batches.

From what I can tell it takes off like a rocket and then quits after 2 -3 days. I have been rousing the yeast for the rest of the first week of fermentation on the second batch and it has been slowly approaching the yeasts attenutation range (73-77 IIRC).

The first finished quite a bit short so I've just left it in the keg in the hope it'll consume more of the sugars during conditioning. They both taste great though.

[PieOPah]

In fact with two packets my attenuation peaked over 80% compared to lower 70s with one.

Okay, what exactly is attenuation and how are you measuring it?

[PieOPah]

Thanks DaaB

[steve_flack]

There's actually two attenuations - apparent and real. The one people usually quote is apparent. So if a beer goes from 1040 to 1010 that's 75% apparent attenuation. This isn't the real attenuation though as as the sugar gets converted it becomes alcohol and alcohol is less dense than water so making the attenuation appear more than it really is.

[steve_flack]

Yep, yeast suppliers quote the apparent attenuation.

[tribs]

Real Att. is technically correct but Apparent Att. is easy to calculate.

[DJP]

I pretty much always use Safale 04 and I get around 78% attenuation using one sachet in 25 litres.

I have been making starters with it, but recently I tried just tipping it straight into the wort. If anything it seemed to take off quicker that way - so that might become my standard way of using it.

[eskimobob]

I have been making starters with it, but recently I tried just tipping it straight into the wort. If anything it seemed to take off quicker that way - so that might become my standard way of using it.

I have to admit that S04 the starter I made on Friday took off like a shot so you might be on to something there. I might not bother with the starter and just chuck it in next time I use it.

[DRB]

Why does my beer ferment down to 1006 when using safale 04.no probs with it,it's just that it say's ferments down to 1012 just curious why this is, or is it sometimes it will hit 1006 and sometimes it will go to 1012.