Wy3278 Lambic Blend¶
WB-BUG-2026-017 · stage: banked · started 2025-08 (month known, exact day not recorded)
Current state¶
Two organisms came out of the blend: a Saccharomyces, still banked and the base of my lambic-style beers, and a Lactobacillus that has since died. The two Brett strains, the sherry strain and the Pediococcus were not recovered. Maybe I'll have another go now that I am more proficient at separating bugs.
Source¶
One of my first attempts at a lambic-style beer was done using Wy3278 Belgian Lambic Blend. Wyeast describes the blend as a Belgian-style ale strain, a sherry strain, two Brettanomyces strains, Lactobacillus and Pediococcus.1
At the same time I had a go at isolating the bugs in this blend, not realising this is not a task for the uninitiated. This was in my early days of doing yeast isolation (in fact I think this was probably my first or second attempt with mixed cultures). It was optimistic to think I was going to isolate all 6 bugs from this blend.
Plating and colonies¶
I don't recall exactly how I ended up with a single saccharo strain (strong POF+, Belgian to the bone) and the lactobacillus. Thinking back, I probably just did not wait long enough for the brett strains to grow, and I have no idea where the sherry strain went.
| Colony | Round | Medium | Days | Temp (°C) | Morphology | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saccharomyces | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | Large, smooth, domed, cream-white; some merged (from the photo) | Kept; banked |
| Lactobacillus | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | not recorded | Kept; later died |
| Brett (two strains), sherry strain, Pediococcus | - | - | - | - | - | Not recovered |
Saccharomyces plate · medium, days and temperature not recorded
Lactobacillus (dominated) plate · medium, days and temperature not recorded
Microscopy¶
I don't currently have microscope photos of this yeast, but will take some for the record once this yeast resurfaces.
Outcome¶
- Wy3278 Lambic Blend - Sacch (WB-BUG-2026-010): banked, one slant. The saccharo strain has become a powerhouse in my lambic-style beers; it is just a solid base to Brett on top.
- Wy3278 Lambic Blend - Lacto (WB-BUG-2026-018): kept, and, well, it died at some point. Retired.
- Brett (two strains), sherry strain and Pediococcus: not recovered.
Open questions¶
The sherry strain¶
Maybe I'll have a go in the future now that I am a bit more proficient at getting the bugs separated, or maybe I can just get the sherry strain from a simpler culture to separate.
- What it is. Wyeast does not identify it beyond calling it a sherry strain. The only yeast species it lists for the blend is Saccharomyces cerevisiae, so the sherry strain is presumably a second S. cerevisiae alongside the Belgian ale strain.1
- A simpler culture? Wyeast 3763 Roeselare Ale Blend is described with the same six components (Belgian-style ale strain, sherry strain, two Brett, Lactobacillus, Pediococcus),2 so it is no easier to separate. Whether it carries the same sherry strain is not published.
- A pure culture. White Labs WLP700 Flor Sherry is a single S. cerevisiae isolate sold as a sherry yeast. It is a Vault strain (made in batches on demand), and White Labs states it does not form a flor pellicle.3 Nothing links it to the strain in Wy3278.
- Telling the two apart. Both yeasts in the blend are S. cerevisiae, so colony shape is unlikely to separate them on a plate. Testing several picked colonies for phenolic (POF) character, or in small test ferments, is more likely to show a difference. The banked Sacch's strong POF+ Belgian character points to the Belgian ale strain rather than the sherry strain; not tested.
Log¶
2025-08 · Source, plating and colonies (days not recorded)¶
Wy3278 Belgian Lambic Blend used for one of my first lambic-style beers; at the same time, a go at isolating its bugs. Medium, days and temperature not recorded. A Saccharomyces (strong POF+) and a Lactobacillus picked and kept. No Brett, sherry strain or Pediococcus recovered.
2025-08 · Banked (day not recorded)¶
Saccharomyces banked as Wy3278 Lambic Blend - Sacch: one slant.
2026-09-22 · Write-up¶
Journey written up from memory. The Lactobacillus died at some point (date not recorded); its page, Wy3278 Lambic Blend - Lacto, is marked retired. Sherry-strain background added under Open questions.