Home > Ingredients > Yeast > Yeast By Region
  • Belgian

    Belgian (and French) yeast is extremely unique in character and generally has no overlap in character with other regions. These are all warm fermented ale varieties that are typically known for phenolic flavors including black pepper, smoke, bubblegum, etc. They are typically capable of very high attenuation which for most styles means a very dry and crisp finish with higher alcohol. This yeast makes Trappist Style Dubbels, Trippels, and Quads as well as Saison for example.
  • German

    German yeast is dominated by cold fermented lager strains, but not entirely. They are well known for neutral crisp finishes with preservation of malt character. Many will contribute a very slight sulfur note. Fruity ester production is generally very low with the exception of Kolsch and Weizenbier. This is another region with very little overlap. German yeast makes distinctly German beers.
  • North American

    Typically known for some of the most neutral fermentation profiles with less fruity esters than U.K. ale strains but slightly more than cold fermented lager strains. Note that this category is for typical American strains of yeast but many recipes will call for U.K. strains for American beer style or American yeast strains for non-American beer styles.
  • Other

    These are all the strains that are from countries not represented elsewhere or strains that are not particularly region-specific. Some of these are strains that were once native to a region but engineered to be something completely different.
  • United Kingdom

    U.K. native strains are all of the top fermenting (ale) variety and are primarily known for pushing the highest fruity ester character when fermented at their upper temperature ranges.  For the most part, U.K. and American strains have a lot of overlapping characteristics so it's important to read the descriptions and applications for the individual strains. For example, some U.K. strains are extremely popular in distinctly American hazy IPAs due to the full mouthfeel and fruit character they express.