Two Yeasts to Pitch

[jpskin]

I am relatively new to brewing and I have a random question: Do people ever throw two different strains of yeast in when they pitch to combine characteristics? Does anyone know if they can coexist or will they do battle to the death?

jpskin!!!

[DannyW]

when I use multiple yeasts, I prefer to ferment them separately, then taste and blend post-fermentation.

For those at NHC, we did this with the "Luther's Einbeck" and ended up with 66% of one yeast, 16% another and 17% a third. If we had fermented them together, who knows what yeast might have dominated. This way, we can get the best tasting blend.

Now what am I going to do with 10 gallons of sub-optimal historical beer?