Back in March I purchased a couple vials of Cry Havoc yeast and brewed one batch with one of the vials and planned another special brew for the other one, but it never happened and I subsequently forgot about the other vial. I found this old vial of cry havoc yeast in the back of my fridge and it says best if used by April 08.
I figured what the heck some of them must still be alive in there and made a 1/2 gallon starter last night. I know because the majority of the yeast is not viable I might have to step this up a couple of times before brewing, but I want to brew with this yeast this weekend. How would I go about figuring out 1) approximately how many cells were still alive in the vial 2) How many steps will I need to get this thing to ptichable level and 3)whether or not I will have enough time to get the starter to an appropriate pitch rate before Saturday Morning?
Any advice on this schedule would be appreciated.
I figured what the heck some of them must still be alive in there and made a 1/2 gallon starter last night. I know because the majority of the yeast is not viable I might have to step this up a couple of times before brewing, but I want to brew with this yeast this weekend. How would I go about figuring out 1) approximately how many cells were still alive in the vial 2) How many steps will I need to get this thing to ptichable level and 3)whether or not I will have enough time to get the starter to an appropriate pitch rate before Saturday Morning?
Any advice on this schedule would be appreciated.