Cut down the alcohol in your beer with yeast strains made for low-alcohol and non-alcoholic brews. In this guide, brewing expert Bryan Samoy tells how to choose low-alcohol beer brewing yeasts, tips for using them and specific strains to look for.
Have you noticed how low and zero-alcohol beers are suddenly everywhere? It seems like more and more people aiming to cut back on alcohol are choosing them over traditional brews.
Now, traditionally, trying to get rid of the alcohol in beer was tricky and expensive. But what if we could dial down the production of alcohol in our homebrewed beer right from the start?
How Are Low-Alcohol and Non-Alcoholic Beer Brewing Yeasts Different?
When we talk about “low or non-alcoholic” yeast, it means that this particular strain does not consume maltose and maltotriose sugars. Remember that your typical brewer’s yeast consumes about 75–95% of all the fermentable extract in the wort.
Low-alcohol yeast is specially bred to go easy on alcohol production by fermenting only the simplest sugars. While unlike our regular beer yeast, non-alcoholic yeast has been hand-picked to consume less sugar.
So, if the yeast you use can’t eat those sugars, it can’t crank out as much alcohol into your brews. By choosing these “sugar-intolerant” yeasts, you can control and reduce the alcohol content of your beers, making way for delicious, low-alcohol, or even alcohol-free drinks.
Tips for Using Non-Alcoholic and Low-Alcohol Beer Brewing Yeasts
When it comes to using non-alcoholic yeast in your zero-alcohol beer brew recipes, the golden rule is to follow those instructions to a tee and resist the urge to fiddle with it. This type of yeast performs differently, so it’s best not to shake things up too much.
Keep these pointers in mind, and you’ll be brewing zero-alcohol beers like a pro in no time!
Stay on top of yeast safety and pH levels
Traditional brewers are used to their yeast doing serious acidification, which can bring the pH levels way down. Non-alcoholic yeast cannot do that. If you forget about this crucial detail, you might end up with a brew that not only lacks alcohol but also falls short of maintaining a safe pH level and packing in those hoppy flavors.
Ensure the packaging is germ-free and clean
Since non-alcoholic yeasts don’t play by the same rules as your typical saccharomyces, handling and packaging practices should be different. Keep things clean and tidy, and we can’t stress this enough—consider pasteurization.
Pick beer brewing yeasts from reliable sources
When choosing the right non-alcoholic yeast strains, look for ones that steer clear of maltose and maltotriose, focusing on munching down simple sugars instead. Trust me, this extra step helps ensure your non-alcoholic beer doesn’t go sour and is safe to drink.
Use yeast strains designed for non-alcoholic beers
The rising trend of non-alcoholic beers has led companies to develop beer brewing yeasts tailored to produce our beloved beverage. Over the years, notable players in the field such as White Labs have introduced three strains to simplify the brewing process and yield excellent results without unnecessary complications. Many brew shops now stock these White Labs yeast strains (and probably others in the future), but they tend to be more expensive than regular beer brewing yeasts.
Torulaspora Delbrueckii
This intriguing strain of non-conventional beer brewing yeast is a maltose-negative variant, perfect for crafting low-alcohol beers or blending with higher attenuating strains for a nuanced brew. Unlike its counterparts, this yeast steers clear of fermenting maltose and larger sugars, focusing solely on glucose, sucrose, and fructose.
Its unique profile has a pronounced ester production, making it an excellent fit for a fruit-forward IPA or Saison. Derived from apples on a Danish island, this “wild” yeast strain doesn’t pose any threat as a beer spoiler due to its inability to ferment larger sugars.
Full details here: https://www.whitelabs.com/yeast-single?id=176&type=YEAST
Saccharomycodes Ludwigii
This strain of yeast has been found to be useful when brewing low-alcohol beer. We picked this particular strain because of its lower ethyl acetate levels than most strains. This species doesn’t bother with maltose or other larger sugars and will only work with glucose, sucrose, and fructose.
Full details here: https://www.whitelabs.com/yeast-single?id=179&type=YEAST
Zygosaccharomyces Lentus
This “rebel” yeast is not your usual maltose-loving yeast. It takes longer to reduce sugars compared to other strains, but it works wonders in keeping it light with low-alcohol beers.
Lab tests didn’t show much ester production either, but this strain won’t ruin your beer and cannot ferment larger sugars. However, you might need to tweak your recipe to let this beast of a yeast bring your alcohol-free beer to life.
Full details here: https://www.whitelabs.com/yeast-single?id=197&type=YEAST
Removing Alcohol From Beer Used to Be a Real Headache
As the demand for low or non-alcoholic beers keeps booming, choosing low-alcohol beer brewing yeast strains are key for craft brewers to keep up without sacrificing the delicious flavors beer folks love. Sure, there are plenty of ways to strip out the alcohol, but picking the perfect yeast is now an option for whipping up one-of-a-kind, tasty brews.
