Omega Yeast OYL-430 West Coast I DKO Series

OYL-430 West Coast I DKO

DKO stands for Diacetyl Knock Out and is a series of yeast strains engineered to knock out the formation of diacetyl before it starts. Each strain expresses the ALDC enzyme, allowing you to streamline efficiency and quality without the diacetyl hang-up.

This ​“Chico” workhorse now expresses the ALDC enzyme, allowing you to highlight malts and hop combos without diacetyl stealing the show. Well attenuative and moderately flocculating, with crisp, light citrus notes when fermented under 66°F (19°C). This proven performer from California has become a very popular “house” strain. Use for pale ales, IPA, cream ales, or other American styles. All the benefits of Omega Yeast OYL-004 West Coast Ale I but without the worry of diacetyl.

DKO Series OYL-430 West Coast I Benefits:

• Avoid diacetyl hangups with hop creep.
• Diacetyl so low, it’s undetectable.
• Boost quality and faster turnaround time for batches.

OYL-430 West Coast I DKO Series Characteristics:

• Temp Range: 60-73°F
• Attenuation: 73-80%
• Flocculation: Medium-Low
• Alcohol Tolerance: 11% ABV

More About Omega Yeast DKO Strains:

Omega’s DKO series strains prevent the formation of diacetyl while maintaining the identical fermentation behaviors and flavor expressions of their parental strains. The benefit of ALDC-expressing yeast is that the pathway for diacetyl formation is stopped at the source resulting in virtually no diacetyl production throughout fermentation. When these strains are put to use, the diacetyl levels never reach sensory thresholds. Even when using the most sensitive GC-ECD methods, they stay at the lower limits of detection, giving you peace of mind.

What is ALDC?

ALDC (alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase) is an enzyme that breaks down alpha-acetolactate, the precursor for diacetyl, within the yeast cell. ALDC converts the precursor into a flavorless compound called acetoin. Many brewers use ALDC at the start of fermentation to help avoid the formation of diacetyl, which saves on tank time. However, ALDC is pH-sensitive and can be less effective as the pH level drops during fermentation (typically below 5), meaning that it might not be super helpful in the case of hop creep. ALDC is a proactive, rather than reactive, solution; it won’t help you clean up diacetyl once it’s already in the beer. When ALDC is expressed in the cell, as with DKO Strains, it converts alpha-acetolactate to acetoin directly within the cell, therefore preventing alpha-acetolactate from building up and being excreted into the beer where it will turn into diacetyl.

Available only in the US, while we would love to make DKO strains available internationally, many countries’ regulations do not yet allow the sale of organisms developed using modern gene editing, regardless of the type of modification introduced by the technique.

NOTE: During summer months, we include complimentary ice packs with all liquid yeast orders. However, it is difficult to guarantee that the ice packs will stay frozen given transit times and particularly hot temperatures. For this reason, we recommend ordering dry yeast during summer months.