NEW: Yeast Mode Plus

Quality yeast nutrient for consistent fermentation performance

Yeast performance is fundamentally constrained by wort composition. While all-malt wort can supply a baseline level of nutrients, modern brewing practices often introduce variability that pushes yeast outside optimal operating conditions. High adjunct or high gravity worts, non-alcoholic production, and serial yeast repitching can all reduce the availability of essential nutrients required for efficient metabolism and clean fermentation.

In these conditions, nutrient limitation is a common root cause of:

Sluggish or incomplete attenuation
Elevated diacetyl or sulphur compounds
Reduced yeast vitality across generations
Inconsistent flocculation and clarification
Instability in haze-forward styles

Yeast Mode Plus is our yeast-derived nutrient, designed to address these limitations by supplying a balanced profile of bioavailable nitrogen, trace minerals like zinc, and essential vitamins required for optimal yeast function.

Free Amino Nitrogen (FAN)

Free Amino Nitrogen represents the primary assimilable nitrogen pool for brewing yeast. It is required for amino acid uptake, protein synthesis, and cell growth during the early stages of fermentation.

Insufficient FAN levels can result in:

Reduced yeast growth and biomass formation
Premature entry into stationary phase
Increased production of hydrogen sulphide and other off-aromas
Incomplete attenuation

Wort FAN levels can be highly variable depending on malt modification, mash regime, and adjunct inclusion. Low gravity worts contain less FAN due to the light grain bill so a higher dose of Yeast Mode Plus is required. High gravity fermentations (>15°P) need more FAN due to load on the yeast - but the wort delivers a lot of FAN, so a lower dose of Yeast Mode Plus is required. This is reflected in our comprehensive dosage chart at the bottom of this page.

Yeast Mode Plus contains >4.5% amino nitrogen, ensuring a consistent and readily assimilable nitrogen source to support yeast growth, reduce metabolic stress, and improve fermentation completeness.

Organic Zinc

Zinc is a critical cofactor in several enzymatic systems, most notably alcohol dehydrogenase, which catalyses the reduction of acetaldehyde to ethanol. It also plays a role in transcriptional regulation and cellular stress response.

Zinc deficiency is associated with:

Slower fermentation rates
Reduced ethanol production efficiency
Increased diacetyl and acetaldehyde retention
Poor yeast vitality in subsequent generations

While malt contributes small amounts of zinc, typical wort concentrations often fall below optimal levels, particularly after multiple yeast crops.

Yeast Mode Plus contains 1800–3500 mg/kg organic zinc, giving you a hearty 0.69ppm hotside zinc at the standard dosage rate, providing a bioavailable source that supports enzymatic activity, improves fermentation kinetics, and promotes consistent attenuation without the risk of inorganic over-supplementation.

Magnesium

Magnesium functions as a cofactor in numerous enzymatic pathways, including those involved in glycolysis and ATP metabolism. It also plays a role in maintaining membrane stability and supporting yeast tolerance to ethanol and osmotic stress.

Low magnesium availability can contribute to:

Reduced fermentation efficiency
Increased yeast stress under high gravity conditions
Variability in attenuation and flavour expression

While magnesium is typically present in wort, its concentration can be insufficient in highly diluted or adjunct-heavy formulations.

Yeast Mode Plus provides magnesium as part of a balanced mineral profile, supporting metabolic activity, improving stress tolerance, and contributing to consistent fermentation performance.

B Vitamins and Amino Acids

B vitamins are essential cofactors in central metabolic pathways, including carbohydrate metabolism, amino acid synthesis, and redox balance. Key vitamins such as thiamine, riboflavin, pantothenate, pyridoxine, and biotin are required for efficient yeast growth and function.

Deficiencies in these compounds may result in:

Extended lag phase
Reduced fermentation rate
Increased formation of off-flavours
Impaired yeast health over successive generations

In addition to FAN, the availability of a broad amino acid spectrum supports protein synthesis and cellular repair mechanisms, particularly under stress conditions.

Yeast Mode Plus supplies a complete profile of B vitamins and amino acids, enabling robust yeast metabolism, improved resilience, and cleaner fermentation outcomes.

Application in Modern Brewing

The need for targeted yeast nutrition is most apparent in the following scenarios:

High adjunct or low FAN wort compositions
Yeast propagation
Hazy and dry-hopped styles with elevated yeast stress
Non-alcoholic or low-alcohol production
Serial repitching programs where nutrient depletion accumulates

In these contexts, nutrient supplementation is not simply corrective but preventative, enabling brewers to maintain consistency, reduce risk, and optimise yeast performance across batches.

For brewers seeking tighter control over fermentation performance, nutrient optimisation is a critical and often underutilised lever. Get in touch to try it today!

📧 orders@frothtech.co.nz

New & Improved: Yeast Mode Plus