Old Pack of Wyeast Berliner Weisse

I just picked up a very old packet of Wyeast 3191-PC Berliner-Weisse Blend at a discount from my LHBS. The date on the pack is Septermber 2012, so at this point it's almost 9 months old. I'm wondering about the best way to grow it up. If this was a pure yeast strain, I'd make a small starter to see if I got any kind of activity, then step it up. But since this is a mix of yeast, lactobacillus, and brett, I'd like to grow it up in a way that keeps whatever bugs there are left alive.

So how should I grow this up? I could make a starter on my stirplate, but I'm worried that would favour the yeast over the lacto, and the numbers of the latter would be too small by the time I pitched.

I could also make a starter from some apple juice, not on a stirplate, which might favour the lacto?

Or I could split the pack into two starter, one with dme and one with apple juice, then pitch both when I brew.

Anyone have any experience or advice on growing up old blends like this?

Your third option was my approach for culturing bottle dregs for my Berliner.

The dregs of a few bottles were all mixed together, then split into two separate cultures to encourage the growth of all the organisms in there.

I pitched a little differently though. I pitched the juice culture at 100F for about a week, then dropped the temp to 65F and pitched the LME culture. Kind of tedious, but the results were good.

Thanks, that's helpful. Did you pitch the juice along with the lacto, or try to cold crash it first? I don't want to add too much apple juice, but I don't know if lacto will drop out if I put the starter in the fridge for a day or so.

I'd divide the yeast blend in 3 and grow 3 different starters with conditions that favor each and then combine at the end.

Andrikos said:

I'd divide the yeast blend in 3 and grow 3 different starters with conditions that favor each and then combine at the end.

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How would I create conditions that favour brett over ale yeast?

metic said:

How would I create conditions that favour brett over ale yeast?

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Good question.
I'd use super-unfermentable (to Sacc) sugars and high temps. And time.

The Brett character in a Berliner is mild and optional according to BJCP. You will retain some Brett through either culture method, but most sourness comes from Lacto and Pedio. The light/ low abv Berliner usually doesn't sit long enough for much Brett charactrr to develop.

And yes, I crash and decant my starters.