Starter use

Can a starter get over the hill ?

Do you mean can a starter get too old? The answer is yes. All a starter is just a small batch of beer. So if you leave it too long it will go bad, but how long is a subject for a debate. A starter that is a month + old is probably still good to go.

No I was wondering if a starter gets going ,foams up,then just goes to sleep if you don't use it in a day or two .

foyboy said:

No I was wondering if a starter gets going ,foams up,then just goes to sleep if you don't use it in a day or two .

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Well, sure. But that's the point. If you're stepping it up, you can add more wort at that time. If you want to decant the spent wort before pitching, that's the time to chill it so you can pour off the spent wort after the yeast settles.

Any starter that you're not using after it's fermented out can go in the fridge. The whole point of a starter is to reproduce yeast, so once that's done you can store it if you're not using it right away. You can even pour off the spent wort after it's clear and add more wort later to revive the yeast.

Well, naturally like any other beer once fermentation subsides it will go 'dormant' in a sense, yes.

Is that bad? No. A lot of people will wait for the yeast to flocculate and clear down to the bottom so they can decant the starter beer and pitch just the yeast. I personally use real-wort starters so I just pitch the whole damn thing, even if I'm making a gallon starter

iijakii said:

Well, naturally like any other beer once fermentation subsides it will go 'dormant' in a sense, yes.

Is that bad? No. A lot of people will wait for the yeast to flocculate and clear down to the bottom so they can decant the starter beer and pitch just the yeast. I personally use real-wort starters so I just pitch the whole damn thing, even if I'm making a gallon starter

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I wait for it to go dormant, I don't like the idea of pouring 2L of completely oxidized beer into my delicious wort.

bovineblitz said:

I wait for it to go dormant, I don't like the idea of pouring 2L of completely oxidized beer into my delicious wort.

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I would like to hear anyone who has any real experience of this as causing a problem. I usually pitch everything.

OK; if brewing a delicate pilsner, then I would think you would want to decant, but for your basic Pale Ale ..... I see no reason.

Calder said:

I would like to hear anyone who has any real experience of this as causing a problem. I usually pitch everything.

OK; if brewing a delicate pilsner, then I would think you would want to decant, but for your basic Pale Ale ..... I see no reason.

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Probably isn't a problem, but I just don't like the idea.

While the off-flavors imparted by 2 liters of esterified oxidized starter won't be super obvious in 5.5+ gallons of beer, it can impact flavor stability and cause staling much quicker than normal.