Escarpment Elysium – Liquid Ale Yeast

Escarpment Elysium is a modern, hybrid ale strain built for hop-forward beers and quick turnarounds. Bred from two aromatic parents, it brings a huge pineapple-forward ester profile with notes of guava and lemon, plus high flocculation so it drops clear and is easy to harvest. If you’re looking for a yeast that makes your hazy or hoppy beers smell like a tropical fruit stand while still fermenting efficiently and predictably, this one is worth a close look.

This yeast was developed using yeast breeding to capture what’s known as “hybrid vigour” – combining two aromatic strains to boost ester production and improve clarity and reusability. The result is a strain that brings a strong pineapple ester character, excellent fermentation efficiency (68–76% attenuation), and reliable performance in both clean IPAs and mixed-style brews like fruited sours.

What Elysium Brings to Your Beer

• Flavour profile: Pineapple first, with supporting guava and lemon. Think juicy, tropical fruit rather than spicy or phenolic.
• Fermentation profile: Medium attenuation (68–76%) for a beer that finishes balanced – not bone-dry, but not sweet and sluggish either.
• Flocculation: High. It settles out quickly once fermentation is done, giving you clearer beer and easy yeast cropping.
• Alcohol tolerance: Medium, around 10% ABV, so it can comfortably handle IPAs, DIPAs, and stronger hop-forward ales.
• Phenolic / diastatic: Non-phenolic (no clove/pepper), and non-diastatic (STA1-), so it won’t over-attenuate or dry things out unexpectedly.
• Biotransformation: Medium activity on thiols and terpenes, giving a balanced hop biotransformation profile that plays nicely with modern hop varieties.

Because it’s not phenolic and not diastatic, Elysium behaves predictably in the cellar. That also makes it safe to use alongside other clean ale strains without worrying about long-term contamination from diastatic yeast.

Styles Elysium Works Well In

Elysium is designed for hop-forward, aromatic beers, but it’s flexible enough to cover a few different territories:

• IPAs & Pale Ales: Great for modern NEIPA, hazy IPA, DIPA, and juicy Pale Ale. The pineapple ester character stacks nicely with tropical hops.
• Quick / kettle sours: Well suited to fast sours where you want bright tropical fruit character on top of tartness.
• Dry-hopped sours and fruited sours: Pineapple and guava notes pair naturally with citrus, passion fruit, mango, and berry additions.
• Experimental mixed-hopping beers: If you like pushing thiol-heavy hops or products, Elysium’s medium biotransformation can help unlock extra aromatics without going overboard.

Choose Elysium over a more neutral American ale strain when you want the yeast to contribute real fruit character but still keep things clean and drinkable. It’s a good match for brewers who like expressive, juicy beers without going into full-on Belgian or English ester territory.

Fermentation Tips & Best Practices

Elysium is comfortable across a fairly broad temperature range of 18–26°C (64–79°F). How you run it will shape the pineapple character:

• Cooler end (18–20°C): Cleaner profile with a bit less fruit. Good if you want hops to dominate and esters to sit in the background.
• Middle range (20–22°C): Nice balance of clean fermentation and noticeable pineapple/guava esters – a sweet spot for many IPAs.
• Warmer or free rise (22–26°C): Escarpment specifically notes that warmer or free-rise ferments boost pineapple esters. Ideal if you’re chasing maximum juiciness.

With its high fermentation rate, you can typically expect to be near final gravity in 3–5 days, especially on the warmer side of the range. After primary, allow a short conditioning period for the yeast to drop out – its high flocculation makes it easy to get bright beer, or a soft haze if your grain bill is geared that way.

Because Elysium is easy to harvest and repitch, it’s a strong choice for back-to-back IPA or sour production. Collect yeast from the cone or fermenter bottom once fermentation is complete and the beer has chilled a bit, and store cold for your next brew. Keep your sanitation tight and repitch rates consistent for repeatable results.

Pairing with Hops, Malt, and Other Strains

Elysium really shines when you pair its pineapple/guava character with the right hops and recipe design:

• Great hop partners: Citra, Mosaic, Galaxy, Sabro, Nelson Sauvin, El Dorado, Idaho 7, Strata – anything with tropical, citrus, or stone fruit leanings.
• Biotransformation opportunities: Its medium biotransformation means it responds nicely to early dry hop additions during active fermentation, softening hop bite and boosting juicy aromatics (thiols and terpenes).
• Malt bill ideas: A base of Canadian 2-row or Pilsner with some wheat and oats will support a hazy, soft mouthfeel that matches the tropical character. For sours, keep the malt simple and let the ester profile and acidity share the spotlight.
• Blending potential: While it’s great on its own, advanced brewers could blend a small portion with a neutral American ale strain to dial back esters, or with a Brett culture in a secondary for mixed-fermentation projects where you want a fruity base profile.

Choose Escarpment Elysium when you want a tropical, pineapple-forward ale yeast that ferments fast, drops clear, and is easy to reuse. It’s a practical, workhorse option for hop-forward beers and quick sours that still gives you a distinct, expressive house character.