learning to love Belgian yeast strains

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: British and Irish ales are my favorite styles of beer. Back in San Francisco I brewed those styles, or American takes on those styles, more than anything else. I've been trying to do them here in Hawaii too, but it hasn't been easy. Most British and Irish ale yeasts prefer cool-fermentation temperatures, ideally around 65 degrees Fahrenheit. The climate in San Francisco (where I lived before moving here) is often perfect for that; the climate in Honolulu... not so much.

I've brewed around nine beers here so far using British Ale yeasts, and the fermentation temperatures have always been over 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Most of the beers have turned out okay--but the fermentations were often violent, with foam-overs and even one spectacular eruption. And the flavors haven't been as clean as what I was getting in San Francisco.

So I'm starting to experiment with Belgian yeasts now. A lot of Belgian strains are happy fermenting above 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and some of them have no problems with temperatures even higher than that. For my first Belgian beer here in Hawaii, I used White Labs 545 Belgian Strong Ale yeast. The label on the vial gives the fermentation temperature range as 70 to 75 degrees, and I think my fermentation managed to remain within that range. I definitely noticed a smoother, less violent fermentation. I'll try to remember to post here about how the final beer turns out.