Apres Ski
WHC Apres Ski is a dry lager yeast that originated in the Swiss Alps. What sets it apart is temperature range. It stays clean and crisp fermenting warmer than a conventional lager strain tolerates, which cuts tank time without the esters and fusels that usually follow.
The finish is clean and sessionable with subtle floral and light fruity notes rather than the sulphur-forward profile some lager strains give you. Attenuation runs 73 to 80%, so mash temperature steers it toward a fuller Helles or a drier Pilsner.
Brewing with Apres Ski
- Ferment 46 to 61F on a traditional schedule, or push warmer for faster turnaround. One brewery reported a clean result fermenting under pressure at 64F, finished in six days.
- Pitch heavier: 100 to 200 g/hL, roughly 19 to 38 g for a 5-gallon batch. That is the highest recommended rate in the WHC lager range.
- Worth considering as a house lager strain if you want lager character on an ale-like schedule.
- Pitch dry, no rehydration needed.
Styles: Pilsner, Helles, Bock, Marzen, Vienna lager, German and Czech lagers
Technical specifications
| Species | Saccharomyces pastorianus, Swiss Alps origin |
|---|---|
| Attenuation | 73 to 80% |
| Fermentation temp | 46 to 61F (8 to 16C) |
| Flocculation | Low to medium |
| Alcohol tolerance | 12% ABV |
| Nitrogen demand | Medium |
| Pitch rate | 100 to 200 g/hL (about 19 to 38 g per 5 gal) |
| Format | 500 g vacuum-sealed brick |
About WHC Lab
WHC Lab is an Irish yeast producer supplying dry brewing strains to craft breweries across Europe and North America. This strain ships as a 500 g vacuum-sealed brick with a published technical data sheet, and it can be pitched dry with no rehydration step.