I'm a bit confused with the term "Turbo".
Coming back to brewing I read up on modern practices and discovered that whilst I had been away someone had invented a "Turbo Yeast" that could do wonderful things in terms of alcohol production in a very short space of time.
One I read about could produce 14% of alcohol within 24 hours and a second one could produce up to 23% alcohol in less than a week if it was given a sufficient amount of sugar.
Okay, here's where the confusion comes in.
I can understand why occasionally someone would want to "hurry up" a brew, get it fermented out in a shorter time and use a "Turbo Yeast" for the purpose ...
... but then I see someone describe a brew as a "Turbo ???? " and then seem to use an ordinary yeast or leave the brew in the FV for up to four weeks!
To add to the confusion the adverts for the "Turbo Yeasts" stress how the speed of the fermentation reduces or eliminates many of the byproducts that come from the fermentation process; but are these not the flavours that we cultivate and enjoy when we finally drink our product?
We all know that it is the "flavour" in a red wine that can leave us with a crushing headache the next day; but who would want to drink a flavourless red wine?
Oh, and to add insult to injury, the "Turbo Yeasts" seem to cost about five times as much as an ordinary yeast. Why? In theory all one needs is a single yeast cell and under ideal conditions it will rapidly reproduce itself anyway.
So, could someone please explain to me:
o Why "Turbo Yeasts" seem to be so popular?
o Why, apart from speeding up the fermentation process, anyone would need to use them?
o When is a brew a "Turbo" Beer, Cider or Wine?
Many thanks in anticipation.
Coming back to brewing I read up on modern practices and discovered that whilst I had been away someone had invented a "Turbo Yeast" that could do wonderful things in terms of alcohol production in a very short space of time.
One I read about could produce 14% of alcohol within 24 hours and a second one could produce up to 23% alcohol in less than a week if it was given a sufficient amount of sugar.
Okay, here's where the confusion comes in.
I can understand why occasionally someone would want to "hurry up" a brew, get it fermented out in a shorter time and use a "Turbo Yeast" for the purpose ...
... but then I see someone describe a brew as a "Turbo ???? " and then seem to use an ordinary yeast or leave the brew in the FV for up to four weeks!
To add to the confusion the adverts for the "Turbo Yeasts" stress how the speed of the fermentation reduces or eliminates many of the byproducts that come from the fermentation process; but are these not the flavours that we cultivate and enjoy when we finally drink our product?
We all know that it is the "flavour" in a red wine that can leave us with a crushing headache the next day; but who would want to drink a flavourless red wine?
Oh, and to add insult to injury, the "Turbo Yeasts" seem to cost about five times as much as an ordinary yeast. Why? In theory all one needs is a single yeast cell and under ideal conditions it will rapidly reproduce itself anyway.
So, could someone please explain to me:
o Why "Turbo Yeasts" seem to be so popular?
o Why, apart from speeding up the fermentation process, anyone would need to use them?
o When is a brew a "Turbo" Beer, Cider or Wine?
Many thanks in anticipation.
