If the constant stream of brown ales and stouts gracing tap lists this time of year has you wanting something lighter, consider a Belgian dubbel as an alternative style option. Although not as massive as tripels or strong golden ales, it offers complex malt flavors balanced out with an interesting blend of esters and phenolics for an interesting flavor experience.

Belgian beer requires careful yeast selection as yeasts produce various flavor compounds which may not be detectable by taste alone. Esters (fruity aromas and flavors) and phenolics (medicinal plastic-like or spicy components) can significantly alter its character depending on which yeast strains are chosen; both may increase or diminish it as desired.

There are various yeast strains suitable for creating Belgian dubbel beers. Wyeast 1214, White Labs WLP500 and Crossmyloof MONK have all earned rave reviews from brewers for producing outstanding tasting beers despite starting relatively slowly; once fermentation begins they all tend to attenuate effectively while producing relatively intense levels of esters and phenolics.

Safbrew S-33 is another strain with mixed reviews but varied flavor scores, seemingly depending on temperature ranges. It seems to have an unpredictable personality that goes between English or Belgian styles depending on how warm or cool its environment is, close genetic ties to Windsor, and being related to Lalbrew Abbaye as a cousin strain. Safbrew S-33 delivers fruity esters and subtle spice while having higher attenuation than many of the other strains available – and also promotes hop biotransformation!

Your choice of yeast for fermentation will have an immense influence on the final alcohol content of fruit-infused vodka. The higher its tolerance is, the greater will be its ABV (alcohol by volume).

Homebrew supplies stores stock an assortment of yeast strains suitable for crafting wine, beer and spirits. Talk with one of the store staff members about your desired sweetness and ABV levels and they will suggest an ideal yeast strain to meet these goals.

Turbo yeast is an ultrafast fermenting strain designed to quickly ferment sugar/water mixtures to produce pure alcohol (ethanol). Unlike traditional brewery yeast, turbo strain is highly alcohol tolerant and produces minimal methanol during fermentation, making for an efficient process that gets your product on store shelves as soon as possible.

Black Bull Turbo Yeast, however, should only be used with simple sugar/water solutions and is incompatible with complex materials like molasses or whiskey – making it less ideal for advanced spirits such as moonshine or whiskey production.

Turbo yeast allows you to achieve great results by carefully adding ingredients during fermentation. Add fruit, herbs, or spices such as coconut for an island feel, or cinnamon for comforting warmth if making a rum-based beverage.

Black Bull Turbo Yeast is widely considered the world’s premier yeast, producing little to no methanol during fermentation and with an extremely fast turnaround. Additionally, its tolerance to alcohol increases rapidly – reaching 18% by volume within a few weeks! Furthermore, it boasts excellent osmotic pressure tolerance so can tolerate even thick mashes with ease and is extremely versatile; working well across many styles of beer.

Beer styles are one of those topics on which brewers often hold strong opinions, though most usually support guidelines on style descriptions and groupings. When someone objects strongly against any description or grouping it usually stems from misinterpretation of purpose of style guidelines or inappropriate implementation.

Beer style descriptions generally offer a framework for discussing and comparing commercial examples of certain styles. They don’t intend to be restrictive and some styles allow brewers considerable creative license. There is however, usually some distinction between narrow and broad styles which dictates just how much creativity can be applied while remaining within that style range.

An Imperial Stout falls within the style’s guidelines, yet may be made with less malt than typical or at a lower gravity than would typically be used. This could result in an unusually dry, bitter beer not found elsewhere commercially.