1 large starter or stepping up?

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jmancuso

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What is the easiest way to make a starter for a 10 gallon batch? Mr Malty says I need roughly 5 liters of starter about 400 billion yeast cells. Can I just make a 4 liter starter and pitch 1 vial and end up with 400 billion cells?
 
From what I've heard, stepping up only grows enough yeast cells for the volume of each step. To properly step up you must do a step, decant off the fermented wort, put the majority of the yeast in sanitary vessel (jar) while leaving some yeast behind to ferment the next step.

What I've been doing lately, with much success it doing starters (well, and starter over the 1mL that my flask can hold) in my 5 gallon carboy. Stick it in the fermenting fridge to cold crash the yeast, decant off the fermented wort, and then pitch the yeast into the larger carboy when the time comes.
 
I would make a 5L starter in a 3 gallon carboy on a stirplate. If your normal stirbar won't work because of the domed bottom, you can use a barbell type.

Or, just do a simple starter with no stirplate but you'll need 2 vials and another .5L of wort.
 
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