Harvesting Sweetwater IPA.

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Kingfish

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I have been wanting to harvest yeast from this beer since I first saw the bits floating in the bottom of a bottle several years ago.

I made 500ml of 1.020 wort using extra light dme. It was the first time working with dme and I have to say it takes some getting used to...Very messy stuff.

Was also my first time using StarSan. I had always used Iodafor(sp). I like StarSan MUCH better.

I carefully emptied the cold bottles into my big mug but saved the last 1/5 or so and then flamed the bottle lips with my butane torch and poured the remaining into the wort. Put some sanitized foil over the top and gave a good shake. I have no clue when or if I will see any signs of activity. If I don't, I will pitch this all into 1000ml of 1.030 wort after 5 days. If I do, I will cold crash 2 days after activity ends.

Wish me luck.

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Good luck! I always pick up a 12 pack or two of 420 and/or IPA when we go on vacation in October (HHI), but I've honestly never realized the yeast in the bottles. Im very interested in how this turns out, because I will definitely try this if it works for you! That IPA is awesome. You planning a clone if the yeast takes off? Got a recipe?
 
I have not decided what I am going to do with it. I have mostly lost my taste for IPAs lately. Will probably do an amber.

I expect this to be a very fast fermenting yeast so I will use it to make something when the pipeline is low....Which right now is nonexistent. If it works out I will freeze several vials.
 
Pretty sure they just use WLP001. My brother interviewed for a brewer position there and got a kind of behind the scenes tour.
 
But either way, it's a feather in your brewing cap if you pull it off.
I am looking to do the same thing for a wit with yeast from Vedett extra white,but that's just because I can't get the yeast over here. OH, and I'm a cheap skate, oh and to prove to some lads over here that it can be done.
 
bottlenose said:
Just keep in mind that many breweries ferment with one yeast and bottle with another.

I see this repeated here & there on HBT. It is probably true as stated. However, I've listened to interviews with dozens (over 50, at a guess) and only ONE has stated this as his practice. It doesn't make much economic sense. Not trying to be a jerk--just sorta thinking aloud & sharing FWIW.
/OT
 
Coming along better than I hoped. Have a very nice yeast layer at the bottom. Will try to get a pic in the morning.
 
Could not get a good picture this morning but I did take a smell...It smells awesome. Just like a hydrometer sample of a real beer. Tonight I am going to boil up 1000ml of 1.030 wort and pitch this whole 500ml into it. Will give that a few days then cold crash, decant and do a 1000ml 1.040 and then do as many 1500ml 1.040 "starters" as needed to get a pitchable population.
 
Actually, I think I have changed my mind. I think I will go ahead and crash today and see what I have. Then 500ml of 1.030 tonight. I think I need to do this in much smaller steps than I had initially planned.
 
Everything is going great. The cold crash 4 days ago did not produce a cake so I just tossed in my 500ml of 1.030. I have a great population going. Nice creamy layer settling on the bottom. When I swirl it, I get a lot of CO2 coming out of solution. It is in the fridge right now and will decant tonight and pitch into 1000ml of 1.040. It looks like I have about half as much as is in a vial of commercial yeast.

I have yet to have any krausen or a really active fermentation at all yet but I guess that is to be expected...All I know is my population is growing. I need a stir plate.
 
Another step complete. Looking good. I think I will do a 1500ml of 1.040 this evening and that will be my last step. Plan on brewing an amber this weekend.


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Decanted tonight and pitched into 1500ml of 1.040. I am very pleased with this experiment so far. The last starter went from 1.040 to 1.010 and that is without a stir plate, just occasionally swirling. Going to let this ferment, crash for 2 days, decant and pitch into the amber this weekend. I plan to collect the yeast, wash it and freeze in glycerin.
 
Here are the steps...
500ml 1.020
500ml 1.030
Crash for a day or so and decant - 1000ml 1.040
Crash for a day or so and decant - 1500ml 1.040
Crash for a day or so and decant - Pitch
 
It'll be interesting to see how the yeast behaves in a full fermentation. Yeast that managed to make it into a bottle I would expect to have very low flocculation characteristics, since we cold crash the fermentors and centrifuge the beer to remove yeast during transfer to the bright tanks where it is force carbonated and later packaged from. I'm impressed you managed to culture a viable colony of yeast at all post centrifuge... And I bet our lab guys will be interested as well. I'll pass this on to them for sure. Keep us posted... and keep drinking SweetWater!
 
Oh my god!!!!

I never expected this. Last night at about 8:00 I pitched the cake into the starter in my one gallon plastic "carboy", gave it a good shake and set it on the counter. I did not touch it until I got home today about 3:00. I meant to swirl it before work but ran out and forgot about it.

I would say I have a healthy population eh?

The krausen is indeed all the way to the top.

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dedhedjed said:
And I bet our lab guys will be interested as well. I'll pass this on to them for sure.
If you want a sample of my little friends, I will be home most of the weekend (live in Cumming now).
 
dedhedjed said:
Yeast that managed to make it into a bottle I would expect to have very low flocculation characteristics...
Does not seem to be the case in this last starter.
 
From 1.040 to 1.014 (hydrometer is a little off) in 24 hours....Probably took much less than that.

Smells great and tastes ok.

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Anyone have any clue if this will be enough or should I make one more starter?

This is in a one quart jar.
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Did not get a chance to brew today. Will try again next Saturday. I will definitely be making a 1.5L starter. I would make a 2L but I don't think I have room in my jug to contain the krausen if what happened last time happens again. Hell, with the amount of yeast I have I think I will be greatly over pitching.

My plan is to make a 1.058 dark amber or light brown. I am counting on the 1968 combined with a bit of crystal and a mash temp of 155 to leave me with about 1.017 FG at about 30 IBU (using all Fuggles). I am going for something pretty malty and fairly sweet. Want to see if I can make something my non beer drinking SO will like. Also will put a couple 6 packs back for the first cold snap.
 
dedhedjed said:
It'll be interesting to see how the yeast behaves in a full fermentation. Yeast that managed to make it into a bottle I would expect to have very low flocculation characteristics, since we cold crash the fermentors and centrifuge the beer to remove yeast during transfer to the bright tanks where it is force carbonated and later packaged from. I'm impressed you managed to culture a viable colony of yeast at all post centrifuge... And I bet our lab guys will be interested as well. I'll pass this on to them for sure. Keep us posted... and keep drinking SweetWater!

I'll be interested as well. Sweetwater ipa is on of my favorites, when I could get it. I've never noticed any sediment in the bottles or the kegs, I guess they never hung around long enough to make a sediment layer. dedhedjed, feel free to pm me a recipe for the ipa.
 
kpr121 said:
Good luck! I always pick up a 12 pack or two of 420 and/or IPA when we go on vacation in October (HHI), but I've honestly never realized the yeast in the bottles. Im very interested in how this turns out, because I will definitely try this if it works for you! That IPA is awesome. You planning a clone if the yeast takes off? Got a recipe?

I just went to HHI and Charleston last week. Nice place. Played golf at the Seapines Resort Ocean Course. Woulda liked to play the Kiahwah Island Ocean Couse lol
 
dedhedjed said:
It'll be interesting to see how the yeast behaves in a full fermentation.
We will find out in a couple weeks. Brewed a 1.054 brown Saturday, did "no chill" and pitched the yeast Sunday after throwing it all into a 1.5 Liter starter they went for 12 hours, tossed in the whole starter.

6 hours after pitching I had bubbling in the blow off bottle. It is sitting at 64° in temp controlled chest freezer with probe stuck to fermentor and insulated well. This is the only beer I have brewed where I with I had a clear fermentor.

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Nicely done! Ill be in Hilton Head next week so I will definitely be picking up some SW IPA. Have a question for dedhed or anyone else who might know. Any other beers that Sweetwater makes that would be better to harvest yeast? You had mentioned that they centrifuge the IPA, do you guys do that with all your beers?
 
I just went to HHI and Charleston last week. Nice place. Played golf at the Seapines Resort Ocean Course. Woulda liked to play the Kiahwah Island Ocean Couse lol

Not a big golfer but family has gone there ever since I was a little kid. We just love the beach without all the craziness that you get a Myrtle or others.
 
Nicely done!
I'm one of the brewers at SweetWater... We use Wyeast 1968 in IPA.

Funny to hear that. I have been to the brewery several times; the last time was the BBQ event.

A buddy and I were hoping to get a tour so we were talking to one of the guys tending bar. He said that Sweetwater used a proprietary mix of 5 different yeasts for their beers; and it was the same yeast for all their year round beers.

I was thinking this was a little off, but didn't argue.
 
Cracking great job there Kingfish! Looks like you did exactly what you set out to do and more to boot!
 
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