White Labs Yeast
White Labs Liquid Yeast
Brewshop offers you the White Labs range of quality liquid yeast. The yeast is supplied in PurePitch packs or vials which we surround with ice packs and ship to you. View the White Labs range of yeast we offer.
Why use liquid yeast as opposed to dry yeast? Purity and variety of liquid cultures. Currently, dry yeast contains some level of contamination because the drying technology is not available to create a sterile product. White Labs takes an extra step by testing each batch of yeast produced to ensure that you receive a product that is free of contamination. There is more variety with liquid yeast because only certain strains of yeast can be dried. Even if they could be dried, most yeast strains do not have the demand to make a large batch of dry yeast economically viable. An increased variety of liquid stains also gives the brewer the flexibility to produce many different beer styles.
Home brewers who enjoy yeast culturing: If a starter is made from a fresh pack, one pack can be added directly to a 2 litre starter, which in 2 days will grow to approximately 240 billion cells, to achieve a pitching rate in 19 litres or 1 million cells/ml/degree Plato (with a 12 Plato/1.048 gravity beer).
How should I store my yeast?
Yeast should be stored in the refrigerator prior to use. Remove the yeast from the refrigerator approximately two to six hours before pitching and allow the yeast to come up to room temperature. The reason for this is to prevent a temperature shock when the yeast is pitched.
What is the shelf life of White Labs liquid yeast?
Short Answer: 4-6 Months
Long Answer: Yeast is a living organism. As such, it needs to be in the right conditions to survive. Dry yeast can stay alive for years, but yeast left in liquid form, even though it's a better product in terms of taste and performance, is more perishable. The shelf life for White Labs Yeast in PurePitch packaging is six months. Yeast used after this point is usually fine, but lag times will be longer. There will be living yeast in most packs for 6-12 months, so if a starter is made to activate the yeast, successful fermentations can be carried out with aged yeast.
Do I need to make a starter and how do I make a starter?
There is an introductory article on the White Labs website which you might find useful. There is also a good calculator for determine the size of the starter you should ideally make.
What White Labs yeast strains match the Wyeast ones?
Mr Malty has a pretty good comparison list along with other yeast reasources.
What breweries are the White Labs yeasts likely to come from?
An unofficial list can be found on Mr Malty.
Why has my order with liquid yeast not yet been shipped?
Because liquid yeast is temperature sensitive we may hold on sending your order if it's unlikely to make it before the weekend. Instead we will hold your order and send as soon as possible the following week. This is to avoid your order sitting in a hot courier warehouse and to ensure minimal time without refrigeration.
I'm new to this liquid yeast stuff, what yeast should I start with?
The WLP001 California Ale Yeast yeast is one of the most popular White Labs strains, and is good for many clean ale styles. Otherwise it's down to personal preference and the style of beer you want to brew. Go wild, try something new - isn't that what you want your wife to say?!
What can you expect from PurePitch® Next Generation packaging?
White Labs goal in creating PurePitch® Next Generation for Homebrewers was to provide a product that will allow hobbyists and small scale brewers a convenient and modular package to pitch a consistent 7.5 million cells/ mL; a commercially recommended pitching rate for standard ale ranges. The same package has proven to be an optimization to PurePitch® for larger professional brewers.
The Pitch: PurePitch® Next Generation combines the ease of the vial and the innovation of PurePitch®, offering a pouch with a cap AND double the pitch at 7.5 million cells/ mL; a commercially recommended pitching rate allowing you to pitch like the pros. No need for starters!
The Quality: White Labs is the industry leader in quality with 38 quality check points for every single strain. The same quality and care are taken for every batch, for both homebrew and professional yeast. You can be assured that all products released from White Labs have passed rigorous tests to ensure the highest viability and purity at the time of QC release.
The Technology: A QR code on each package directs you to all the information you need to make the best beer: the quality report of every lot, additional strain specific information, data, and recipes. The custom online pitch rate calculator will allow you to dial in a pitching rate for any batch and recommend an amount for a foolproof fermentation or adjust the pitching rate to your preference.
The Innovation: The strains are propagated in patented FlexCell™ technology process. PurePitch® Next Generation has a proprietary film designed specifically for White Labs and allows for one way off-gassing to promote yeast health and viability. The cap allows for ease of use, no more scissors or fumbling with two layer film.
The Offerings: With 79 Core strains and countless more in the Vault, White Labs has a strain for every batch whether you’re using a trusty workhorse like WLP001 California Ale Yeast or experimenting with something new and rare in the Vault. Every strain will soon be available in PurePitch® Next Generation.
More liquid yeast information available on the White Labs website.