We are not alone:
From
http://hbd.org/hbd/archive/2311.html#2311-3:
"Tom Gaskell discusses Wyeast London strains
>From what I have heard about Ringwood yeast, I am beginning to believe
>that London Special (1968) is a relative of Ringwood. They both have
>fairly low attenuation, produce diacetyl, flocculate like mad, and
>need plenty of oxygen. In each case, I think Ringwood takes these
>behaviors to the extreme, while 1968 is the less radical step-child.
>I actually saw a brewpub, which uses Ringwood, place submersible pumps
>into their open fermenters, and rouse and aerate the yeast by pumping
>the green beer up a tube resembling a racking cane, which sprayed the
>beer in a fan pattern back down into the rest of the beer in the
>fermenter. The beer was sprayed with enough force to raise one hell
>of a head, and to entrain a lot of air into the brew.
Wheeler's "Brew Your Own Real Ale" discusses what he calls "Northern
Style" English ale yeast, also referred to as "Yorkshire" yeast. He
terms these yeast strains inappropriate for home brewing because of
their need for additional aeration and/or rousing. Ringwood yeast
originated in an old Yorkshire brewery.
Wheeler also describes how the old "Yorkshire squares" stone fermenters
actually accomplished an effective rousing through their design. Wyeast
1968 and 1318 seem to be among this family of yeast strains, although
as Tom notes,. not as severe as Ringwood in their Yorkshire
characteristics. Yeast Labs A09 "English" is allegedly Ringwood.
My experience with London III, 1318, was a sluggish two week
fermentation and less than optimal attenuation. I've since switched to
a pure O2 aeration setup. 1318 has a higher listed temp range (to 74f)
than most Wyeast strains. A while back on r.c.b. a number of brewers
compared notes. Those who used the yeast at the lower ends of the range
were disappointed with its performance, while those who brewed with it
above 70 degrees had no complaints of sluggishness. I plan to try it
again this summer as my warm weather yeast, when I brew in the 71-74
degree range.
Chris"
My italics,
Jim
