Aside from water and any adjuncts, yeast will be the last major ingredient in your beer. Yeast converts the fermentable sugars in your brew to alcohol, and contributes a good portion of the flavor profile. There are two main types of brewing yeasts, Ale yeasts and Lager yeasts. Ales typically ferment best at room temperature while lagers typically ferment best at lower temperatures in the 40 - 50 degree F range. Some yeast strains are more tolerant of higher alcohol and are used in bigger beers like dubbels, trippels and barley wines.

We offer both liquid and dry yeast cultures. Liquid yeast cultures are more costly, but since so much of your beer's flavor profile comes from the yeast, using specific liquid yeast strains will allow you better control to create the exact beer you are trying to produce. Old West is proud to offer liquid yeast from Wyeast Laboratories, Inc., a premier supplier of pure liquid cultures for the home and micro brewer. All of our Wyeast packs are XL 125ml smack packs. XL packs contain a nutrient pack and can be used after only three hours with no starter. Looking for a strain you don't see here? Please send us an email and we'll do our best to find it for you.

Note: liquid yeast can be killed by excessive heat and can be a little tricky to ship in the summer. During warm weather, liquid cultures should be sent at least 2nd day air unless you are close enough to us to get it within two days by ground.