Kiveik Yeast

Kveik yeast has grown in popularity thanks to its wide range of fermentation temperatures, but it’s not just for farmhouse style beers. The yeast has a lot to offer for both the new brewer with no temperature control or the expert looking to create unique flavour profiles and fast fermenting beers.

Kiveik is a unique strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that has an exceptionally wide temperature range for fermentation. This allows the yeast to function well at warm temperatures while still producing a clean profile without off flavours. As temperatures rise the yeast can produce a fruity ester profile and even help to biotransform hop terpenes, giving beers a ripe, tropical and juicy character.

For many traditional Norwegian farmhouse ale breweries, loki yeast is the only yeast they use. It’s a fast-acting, high flocculating yeast that doesn’t put off off flavours when used in the right conditions. They may pitch the yeast as dried flakes, or they may collect a wet slurry and use it to make a starter for the wort.

One of the great things about loki is that it’s very easy to obtain, particularly in the US. It’s easy to find on the shelves of homebrew shops, and a lot of yeast labs now sell it (Oxo’s X41, Omega’s OYL-071 Hornindal, Yeast Bay WLP-4051 Lutra). If you’re interested in giving loki a go, there are plenty of resources online for tips and tricks. A lot of brewers are finding it works very well for them.