Conan yeast - observations so far

[ColmR]

After 2+ weeks my 1066 beer was also only down to only 1018. The beer is a Black IPA but when I took the sample to test the gravity I found out that the colour wasn't nearly black. Decided to add some more "black" with some simple sugar to try to darken it up and dry it out a little. Still chugging along. But so slow... Will dry hop soon. But it's almost 3 weeks in.... I've sort of lost hope with this beer and feel a bit like Father Ted trying to knock the dent out of the car.

[irish_goat]

Did you taste a sample?

[ColmR]

Did you taste a sample?

Yip. Was fine. But too sweet.

[biertourist]

The reason everyone is going nuts over this strain is because it doesnt strip out any of your hop aroma. That attribute comes at a price -> A slow ferment. A lot of posts on HBT say 2 & half weeks for a ferment. All report incredible aroma though.

It's not that it doesn't "strip out aroma"; hop oils stick to cells and get pulled out of solution when the yeast flocculate.  The fact that it's a very slow / low flocculating strain means that if the yeast is still in solution, so are those hop oils.

I don't believe for a minute that this alone accounts for the difference in flavors; it's been proven that yeast bio-transform hop oils into new hop oils (that's how you get citronello mangoy / peachy flavors out of citra), but this requires the yeast to still be in solution and working. -You can get those awesome "kettle hop flavors" by simply late hopping / hop bursting / whirlpool hopping and NOT dry hopping but then you don't get as much oils; typical IPA hop schedules include massive dry hop additions, which normally would occur after yeast have flocculated so you will get lots of oil in solution but you won't get biotransformation of those oils; you'll instead get "dry hop flavors".  These crazy New World varieties almost all shine with late additions and biotranformation producing awesome and unexpected flavors.  My theory is that the magic of Conan is that it gives dry hop additions kettle hop flavors because it is so low flocculating and appears to be so good at bioconverting those hop oils. -You can pump in more oil via the dry hopping technique AND get those awesome kettle hop / late hop flavors. 

It really IS like the yeast strain is designed for really hoppy IPAs made with new age proprietary hops...

--This is the theory I plan on experimenting with a lot this winter. (Saturday I'm brewing a coconut porter but then I plan on putting Conan through the paces with a bunch of experimental batches.)


Adam

[delzep]

So no need/less need for dry hopping then?

[delzep]

Conan yeast wouldn't exactly make for a good BJCP comp beer would it? If the beer is cloudy (IPA) it would surely score 0/3 for appearance?

Although it might make those points back up in terms of aroma I suppose

[Hop Bomb]

If the beer is cloudy (IPA) it would surely score 0/3 for appearance?

www.youtube.com/embed/amgfgU5-lhs

[biertourist]

So no need/less need for dry hopping then?

No, you need the dry hopping to get more oils into solution unless you go really big with the late hop additions but then with typical homebrewer processes of chilling as fast as possible you get TERRIBLE hop oil extraction; this is probably why "hop resting" / whirlpool additions in homebrewing are becoming more popular -get more oils into solution for those late hop additions.



Adam

[biertourist]

Conan yeast wouldn't exactly make for a good BJCP comp beer would it? If the beer is cloudy (IPA) it would surely score 0/3 for appearance?

Although it might make those points back up in terms of aroma I suppose

True.  But they have the highest rated IPA in the world according to the beersnob sights and have an incredibly successful business so do they really care?

Adam

[mr hoppy]

I suppose that brown beer Kimmich is holding up in the video is El Jefe (Alchemist's all Simcoe BIPA)?

[Hop Bomb]

Does anyone want to go splits with me on a 4 pack of Heady? There is a guy online that will sell & ship it. Havent asked for a price yet as Im skint but would like to get a can for xmas to see what the fuss is about.

[Hop Bomb]

I suppose that brown beer Kimmich is holding up in the video is El Jefe (Alchemist's all Simcoe BIPA)?

No the yellowish hazy glass on the table is a can of heady straight off the canning line. The amber colour beer on the table is a can of heady thats been in the fridge for a few months.
& the glass he is holding up is the dregs from that can.

[delzep]

The stewards at the next NHC nationals will have a lot of pressure on them 

Who is selling it online? Heady Topper I mean

[mr hoppy]

Really? I don't know one way or the other but I've left beers lying around for months and never seen that kind of colour change. Also, I've been thinking about using my Conan yeast to do the El Jefe recipe from Mitch Steele's book and he talks about how it's brown not black because Kimmich didn't want it to be too roasty and also didn't want to use Sinnamar.

Very curious about an all Simcoe "black" IPA.

[biertourist]

Does anyone want to go splits with me on a 4 pack of Heady? There is a guy online that will sell & ship it. Havent asked for a price yet as Im skint but would like to get a can for xmas to see what the fuss is about.

$20 a can to get it to the US West Coast...