Lithuanian Farmhouse Yeast

So ... if you've been following along on this blog, or SheppyBrew's Facebook Page or SheppyBrew's Instagram Page, you know that the brewer / owner of one of my local breweries, Great Frontier, pulled some  Lithuanian Farmhouse Yeast off his fermentor and gave me a quart of slurry.

That was certainly nice of him. I really appreciate that he did that for me.

So far, I've brewed 3 batches of beer using this yeast.

• Sveikas Lithuanian Farmhouse (262)
• Lithuanian Lovin' Wheat (263)
• Lithuanian Strong Pale Ale (265)

The radical thing about the Lithuanian Farmhouse Yeast is that it ferments hot and fast with a fairly clean flavor. I fermented all three between 80 and 90 degrees for basically 2 days. 

For reference, most of the ales I brew at between 60 and 66 degrees, and are ready to keg in about 2 weeks. Most yeasts would kick out off-flavors if fermented in the 80's.

The yeast-derived flavors that I'm getting from these Lithuanian Farmhouse beers are real subtle. There is a little saison-like peppery flavor, and some citrusy lemony esters in these beers, but not overpowering at all, and in fact, I probably wouldn't notice these flavors if not "looking" for them.

Sveikas Lithuanian Farmhouse is actually dominated by its Munich malt flavor. Lithuanian Lovin' Wheat isn't really that different than the Summer Lovin' base beer fermented with US05. I have not tried Lithuanian Strong Pale Ale, but I expect it will be a hop bomb.

As this yeast fascinates me so much, I plan on continuing to use it. I've been harvesting this yeast, and will continue to do so until it appears to no longer perform for me. 

I don't know if my friend from Great Frontier will be willing to give me more once I "run out". I assume he won't mind, though, as long as he is still brewing his beer. Apparently, he gets the yeast from a local yeast company, but they don't have it as a regular offering. I'm not sure if they are planning on offering it on the homebrew level.

I have to so many things I want to try. I apologize now if you get sick of hearing about me using the Lithuanian Farmhouse Yeast.

Bookmark Sheppy's Blog: Lithuanian Farmhouse to see what other beers I brew with this yeast. 

As always, keep an eye on the regular SheppyBrew Channels to see what is happening with beer and other things: SheppyBrew's Facebook Page; Sheppy's Twitter Feed;SheppyBrew's Instagram Page; and SheppyBrew's Website. Of course, don't forget to visit this blog often as well!

Take care and be healthy everyone.