czeknere

Recipes 

Picked up a bottle tonight and wanted to try out the yeast starter kit I got for Christmas. I read through the posts here about harvesting from the bottle, and was unsure about one thing:

After I make the starter and the yeast gets active, is there anyway to wash and store it? I would like to use it, but not sure what I would use it for yet. Plus, it would be pretty cool to say I've got some yeast from Duvel in my fridge.

I'm wondering if I can get the starter going, let it fall out and then proceed to wash it as usual. Any thoughts?

Brewsmith

Recipes 

I wouldn't wash it, I'd step it up and then just pitch it. I'd pour the bottle and leave about an ounce of beer in the bottom. I'd flame the mouth of the bottle, make about 50mL of starter wort and pitch the beer/yeast slurry into the wort. After fermentation decant off the top liquid and pitch the yeast into a pint starter. I'd then repeat this with a 2 liter starter before pitching into a 5 gallon beer.

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czeknere

Recipes 

Well the issue I'm having is that I don't know when I would get to actually use the yeast (don't know when or what I'll be brewing next)...thats why I was hoping I could get it going in a starter, then wash it and store it. Is this possible or should I just leave the lovely bottle of Duvel in the fridge until it's closer to brew time?

Brewsmith

Recipes 

Drink the Duvel a week or two before brewing. It's pretty hard to contaminate yeast in the bottle, but I know I've screwed up yeast by trying to store it after fermentation.

__________________
Fermenting:#151 Fortissimo IPA, #152 Porter
Kegged:#150 Fat Tuba Pale Ale, #149 Dim-Wit, #148 Dead Bee Wit
Up Next:Barleywine
My Recipes
Tuba Sonata
Smith & Co. Custom Tap Handles

brewt00l

Recipes 

1. Drink Duvel now
2. Before you are ready to brew w/ the yeast, buy another Duvel and culture the yeast then

or....

1. Drink Duvel now
2. When you're ready to brew, buy a vial of WLP570

remilard

Recipes 

Slants for medium term (3 months) storage and 10% sucrose solution or distilled water for longer term storage.

If you don't want to take yeast culturing that far but still want to step up to a starter from the bottle, buy another Duvel closer to when you want to brew.

The Soft Underbelly

Recipes 

I just have to reiterate the most important information related in this thread thus far. What ever you do, drink that Duvel now!

czeknere

Recipes 

Lol. I've actually never had one, which is why I picked it up from the new Ale House that opened up near me. I was more pumped when I saw that it was bottle conditioned and hoped that I could use the yeast. Maybe I'll crack it open tomorrow to celebrate the New Year and get another one before brewing again. At least then I'll have a good excuse to drive half an hour for beer (which I guess I really don't need an excuse for ). Currently enjoying the Barleywine Ale from Rock Art Brewing, but the Duvel might have to be opened soon.

What type of beer could I use the Duvel yeast for?

nutcase

Recipes 

I got a bottle of this right now I'm gonna drink and was wondering about this. Did anyone harvest the yeast and how did it turn out? Someone was telling me that the yeast in Duvel might be a champagne type yeast they added only for bottling.

lordbeermestrength

Recipes 

nope, they bottle condition with top-cropped yeast from a later batch. So if you get a fresh bottle the yeast should still have some viability.

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Beer, happy Produce of our Isle/Can sinewy Strength impart,
And wearied with Fatigue and Toil/Can cheer each manly Heart.
Labour and Art upheld by Thee/Successfully advance,
We quaff Thy balmy Juice with Glee/And Water leave to France.
Genius of Health, thy grateful Taste/Rivals the Cup of Jove,
And warms each English generous Breast/With Liberty and Love!
(Rev James Townley, 1751)