Made a starter...what should it look like?

Gritsak · 09-10-2009, 01:19 PM

Made a starter using 1 liter of water to 1/4 cup DME, per recommendation by Midwest. Activator yeast was smacked about 18hrs prior to pitching it in the starter, and was swelled up quite well.

It's been about 18hrs since i made the starter and I'm not really sure what i should be seeing. When i swirl it around, it gets cloudy with a frothy head, but once it sits for a minute it just looks like cloudy apple juice with a layer of yeast on the bottom.

I have it in my thermostat controlled fridge at 70-72 degrees.

Hopefully this is normal, as i plan to brew on Friday or Saturday.

Thanks

dontman · 09-10-2009, 01:21 PM

Yep, sounds all normal.

Might be too soon to crash cool and decant so I would just pitch the whole thing into the wort.

**Pappers_** · 09-10-2009, 01:40 PM

+1 to what Dontman said. I almost never get anything that looks like active fermentation in my starters - no krausen. The growing layer of yeast at the bottom shows that they have prospered and multiplied!

**Laughing_Gnome_Invisible** · 09-10-2009, 02:10 PM

If I can piggy back a question to this thread, what should a starter taste like?

I have seen comments in the past both for and against tasting a starter. I chose not to do it. However, I recently had an infection that I think was caused by unsanitarily washed yeast, so having a ballpark clue about the taste of a 1.040 grav starter would taste like could be helpful before my next batch. I'm talking about a wort from an ordinary bitter.

Catch-22 · 09-10-2009, 06:17 PM

I do my starters in an old "Sea Monkeys" aquarium so that when I'm bored I like to watch them playing baseball and riding in the park.

wildwest450 · 09-10-2009, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Laughing_Gnome_Invisible

If I can piggy back a question to this thread, what should a starter taste like?

I have seen comments in the past both for and against tasting a starter. I chose not to do it. However, I recently had an infection that I think was caused by unsanitarily washed yeast, so having a ballpark clue about the taste of a 1.040 grav starter would taste like could be helpful before my next batch. I'm talking about a wort from an ordinary bitter.

My light dme starters taste like light unhopped beer if that makes sense. Not very good but no wanky off flavors either.

**Laughing_Gnome_Invisible** · 09-10-2009, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildwest450

My light dme starters taste like light unhopped beer if that makes sense. Not very good but no wanky off flavors either.

Yup! Thanks. That makes perfect sense (To me, at least) I will be tasting them from now on. I'm not even sure why I never did, I mean, I taste every other darn thing!

**ajf** · 09-10-2009, 10:23 PM

I liter water to 1/4 cup DME? That's going to be a seriously undernourished starter with an OG of 1.010 - 1.012. I'd step it up with at least an extra 1/2 cup DME, boiled in about 1/2 pint water, and then cooled.

-a,

Gritsak · 09-10-2009, 10:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ajf

I liter water to 1/4 cup DME? That's going to be a seriously undernourished starter with an OG of 1.010 - 1.012. I'd step it up with at least an extra 1/2 cup DME, boiled in about 1/2 pint water, and then cooled.

-a,

That is the ratio Midwest told me to use. Would using smack pack a day prior, like i did, make any difference?

dontman · 09-10-2009, 10:44 PM

Or you can pitch with what you made, because it will still be pretty okay, and learn that for next time you probably want to go with about a cup of dme for the liter.