Bruce Ticknor at host BeerTaster.ca has posted the wrap up for the 45th gathering of The Session. Not surprisingly, turnout was a little light but the reading was good.
I guess we should have lobbied for a session for The Session session at the Beer Bloggers Conference.
Mike Lynch at Burgers and Brews will host #46 on Dec. 3, and the topic is “An Unexpected Discovery: Finding Great Beer in the Last Place You’d Look.” A few more details when he posts them.
Stan,
This clearly isn’t the place to post this, but at least this entry had the word wheat in it (self justifying posting a semi-related topic).
On p. 111 of Brewing with Wheat you mention a practice called brandhefe where part of the substance that rises to the top during fermentation is disposed of.
In reading a recent book Yeast by Jamil Zainasheff he mentioned that the best way to crop yeast was via top cropping, but that the first layer of yeast isn’t best suited for reuse. Is his reference to the first layer the same as brandhefe? In other words, is the cold break material noticably visible to remove, making the healthy top-cropping yeast available?
On another note, when you see pictures of breweries top-cropping yeast (the Sierra Nevada Kellerweis photo we all know and love), are they skimming that for disposal, or for reuse?
I literally carry Brew Like a Monk and Brewing with Wheat around waaay too much, so I can’t wait for the next masterpiece of yours.
Best,
Brody
Thanks for the flattering words, Brody.
I should probably write a top cropping FAQ to post at Brew Like a Monk or Brewing With Wheat or both, but there is not total agreement in the literature.
I can tell you what works. Some German breweries skim once, some multiple times. They use a slotted spoon, removing trub and hop resins. That gunk may be what JZ and Chris White are referring to. The first reason is to ensure a clean fermentation. Then at 24 to 36 hours they’ll harvest yeast, which can be used for bottle conditioning or another batch.
As I write in BWW, Schneider does not reuse the yeast (except in Aventinus, which starts at a higher gravity) but most smaller German breweries still do.
When I talked to him for the book, Scott Jennings of Sierra Nevada emphasized they are always making changes. They ferment Kellerweis in four open squares, propagating fresh yeast to start the first tank, then using a portion of beer a high fermentation to does each of the other three tanks.
Make sense?