MichaelEssary
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I have a Mr. Beer kit and it comes with the 2gm packets of yeast. I went to the brewstore and bought a 5gm packet of yeast to use instead. What will be the outcome if I use too much of the yeast in the brew?
What happens if I use too much yeast?
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Nothing. The yeast will eat the sugars available and then fall to the bottom. I've heard that sometimes Mr. Beer beers can have a yeasty taste, but that's not from too much yeast- that's from bottling too soon.
Adding more yeast than the recipe calls for won't harm it.
Adding more yeast than the recipe calls for won't harm it.
MichaelEssary
New Member
Thanks, I kind of figured it wouldn't harm it but I wasn't too sure.
If I use too much sugar and too much yeast will it just have a higher ABV?
I am making some Apfelwein right now and didn't measure exact amounts of brown sugar or yeast.
Perhaps a cleaner and faster ferment than has ever been experienced in a Mr. Beer.
Congrats.
Gordie
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TeleTwanger
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5 grams? I use 23 grams and that's a barely optimum pitching rate for 5 gallons. I wouldn't worry about over pitching unless you're talking cups of yeast not grams.
A Mr. Beer fermenter is 2.5 gallons or so.
He didn't overpitch, but I'm surprised you use 23 grams in 5 gallons. I've never used more than a 10 gram package of Nottingham, and I don't underpitch. In fact, I just took a glance at Mr. Malty's pitching calculator, and for an 1.048 wort, he says I should pitch .8 of a package (10 gram). I wouldn't pitch .8, I'd pitch the whole thing of course, so I'd be ever so slightly overpitching. With 23 grams, you're overpitching. Unless you're making a big, big beer, there isn't any reason to add over two packages of yeast.
TeleTwanger
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Oh right 2.5 gallons didn't know that.
I use 2 11.5 gram packs of safale 04 in +1.050 OG beers and depending on where you look each 11.5 gram pack has 110 billion cells but I've read that only about 85% are viable yeast so doubling that you'd get about 200 billion cells which is, depending on where you look, optimum rates for up to 1.060 og beers.
That being said 1 pack is plenty of yeast but I don't think pitching 2 is over pitching.
