Saison II

[barleywhiner]

I am assuming that 566 from BSI and White Labs are the one in the same... I brewed with White Labs' version at my last position about 4 years ago, but I'm looking for some guidance from those that have used it a little more recently. So, a few questions...

1) What temp should I let it rise to? They recommend only 78, but that is not what I seem to remember this yeast thriving at. Has anyone gone as high as 90 with it? I like a really phenolic saison, but certainly not fusely.
2) I plan on first brewing a Wit with the yeast and then using it for a saison. How long will I need for it to rest cold before I can crop it, or will I need to just transfer and then try to get what I can?
3) For the wit, I would like to avoid it being too phenolic. Will fermenting this yeast at ~74 stall it out?

Any other insights from your collective experience is welcome.

[jfulton]

In my experience, trying to reign in the lab culture/first generation of this strain at anything below 80 will make it stall out. I never got as high as 90, but I definitely went in the mid 80s, without it being fusely. I did ferment second generation with the SP below 80, I think 78, and it finished in the middle of its attenuation range. Not sure about the flocculation, can't recall those details.