yeast management
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rsmith179
Well-Known Member
A flask and stir plate a primarily used for yeast starters. If you search "yeast starter" on this site, you'll come up with a bunch of different posts regarding this topic. Basically, sometimes a beer requires more yeast cells than a smack pack. If that's the case, you can use your flask and stirplate to basically create a mini-batch of beer which will in turn increase the number of viable yeast cells you'll be pitching.
flyangler18
Well-Known Member
The short answer is 'maybe'. 
They aren't mandatory items, but they will get lots of use in your brewery, trust me. Always make a starter when dealing with liquid yeast. In short, there aren't enough cells in a smack pack (100 billion) at the very peak of freshness to properly inoculate five gallons of wort higher than 1.025-1.030 As such, you need to grow up a starter that gets close to your ideal pitching rate of 100 million cells per 1 ml of wort per °Plato (Plato x 4 = OG, approximately).
A continously agitated starter is the most efficient way of growing yeast, but shaking the snot out of the vessel does just as well, though to a slightly less degree.
Oh- one more thing. Let those starters breathe. No airlock, just a sanitized foil cap.
They aren't mandatory items, but they will get lots of use in your brewery, trust me. Always make a starter when dealing with liquid yeast. In short, there aren't enough cells in a smack pack (100 billion) at the very peak of freshness to properly inoculate five gallons of wort higher than 1.025-1.030 As such, you need to grow up a starter that gets close to your ideal pitching rate of 100 million cells per 1 ml of wort per °Plato (Plato x 4 = OG, approximately).
A continously agitated starter is the most efficient way of growing yeast, but shaking the snot out of the vessel does just as well, though to a slightly less degree.
Oh- one more thing. Let those starters breathe. No airlock, just a sanitized foil cap.
kharmajavah
Active Member
I just revently started making starters (even though White Labs says you don't have to), because my lag time was horrendous - one time, more than 48 hours before I saw signs of active fermentation. I just have a flask, stopper, and airlock. I use the Mr. Malty pictching rate calculator: Mr Malty Pitching Rate Calculator
Then, just mix the appropriate amounts of dry malt extract and water, boil for a few minutes, cool, put in flask, pitch yeast. It'll get started within a few hours at most. Some people discuss when the best time is to pitch a starter, and whether to decant the water- really, I've just given it between a day and two days and had fine results. My last primary fermentation took off within a couple of hours.
Oh - I don't have a stirplate. I just remember to give it a good shake every time I walk by until the fermentation is under way.
Then, just mix the appropriate amounts of dry malt extract and water, boil for a few minutes, cool, put in flask, pitch yeast. It'll get started within a few hours at most. Some people discuss when the best time is to pitch a starter, and whether to decant the water- really, I've just given it between a day and two days and had fine results. My last primary fermentation took off within a couple of hours.
Oh - I don't have a stirplate. I just remember to give it a good shake every time I walk by until the fermentation is under way.
Tonedef131
Well-Known Member
You can pry my stirplate from my cold dead hands.
Yes.
Yes.
BTW, I just bought a second stirplate (used, ugly-but-fully-funtional Fisher) off eBay for $16 shipped. It took about 2wks of low-balling but at that kind of price it's hard to pass up.
Appreciate all the comments -- I get that it is indeed a good route to go but am still very confused. First, the DME slurry created -- can any DME be used? Second, does this concoction reduce the initial number of packs/tubes I need to buy - am I counting on Propogation vs volume purchasing etc?? thanks, doc
Tonedef131
Well-Known Member
1. Any light DME is fine, you don't want to use any of the amber or dark ones.
2. Yes, with a properly made starter you will be able to grow yeast and reduce the amount of yeast you need to purchase. Check out the MrMalty calculator, there is a slid bar that shows how many packs you need based on the starter size.
kryolla
Well-Known Member
it depends on how serious you are into this hobby. It is not mandatory but you will produce better beer. Can you tast the difference, that will depend if your palate has been accustomed to craft beer. If you have the money you can just buy 2 packs of liquid yeast for all your batches. If you buy a stir plate and flask which is around $100 - $150 you wont see a return on your investment until about 14 packs of yeast. A cheaper alternative is using making a stir plate in the DIY section. All commercial brewery use liquid yeast and stir plates of some type.
Also for big beer over 1.060 you use a bigger starter and when you make a starter you increase the oxygen for the yeast to reproduce and in doing so produce oxidized beer thus you decant that bad beer and just use the yeast slurry.
HTH
Also for big beer over 1.060 you use a bigger starter and when you make a starter you increase the oxygen for the yeast to reproduce and in doing so produce oxidized beer thus you decant that bad beer and just use the yeast slurry.
HTH
i'm doing it to save money. I'm tired of paying $7 for yeast each batch of beer i make. Now it's $7 for 9 batches of beer (8 vials and the rest of the starter goes into the beer)
Scenario 1: I buy new yeast each time I brew:
9 batches of beer @$7 each =$63
Scenario 2: I make one 'batch' of cultures from the first starter, and use those:
9 batches of beer from one vial =$7/9, or $.78 each batch.
Scenario 3: I keep the culture going.
If i take the last one of the bunch and make a new starter, and save 8 more vials, that's 17 batches of beer for $7, or $.41 per batch.
Scenario 4: I make 8 more vials from each of the original 8. Which means 9 batches each since I'm pitching the rest of the starter into a batch of beer.
1 (original batch) + 8 total =9
each of those 8 get made into 9 (8 vials and the culture goes into a batch) 8*9+ original 9 = 81
Each of Those gets made into 8 vials (+1)= 729 vials from $7. less than a penny each. Also known as 'just about free yeast'
I think my math is right. I haven't had enough coffee to keep track of n-1 thoughts today.
I don't have space for 729 vials of all my yeasts. I'd need a separate yeast freezer. I'll probably just go with scenario number 3
B
Scenario 1: I buy new yeast each time I brew:
9 batches of beer @$7 each =$63
Scenario 2: I make one 'batch' of cultures from the first starter, and use those:
9 batches of beer from one vial =$7/9, or $.78 each batch.
Scenario 3: I keep the culture going.
If i take the last one of the bunch and make a new starter, and save 8 more vials, that's 17 batches of beer for $7, or $.41 per batch.
Scenario 4: I make 8 more vials from each of the original 8. Which means 9 batches each since I'm pitching the rest of the starter into a batch of beer.
1 (original batch) + 8 total =9
each of those 8 get made into 9 (8 vials and the culture goes into a batch) 8*9+ original 9 = 81
Each of Those gets made into 8 vials (+1)= 729 vials from $7. less than a penny each. Also known as 'just about free yeast'
I think my math is right. I haven't had enough coffee to keep track of n-1 thoughts today.
I don't have space for 729 vials of all my yeasts. I'd need a separate yeast freezer. I'll probably just go with scenario number 3
B
flyangler18
Well-Known Member
You may want to consider banking strains, either by freezing with glycerin or by plating/slanting on sterile media. It sounds intimidating, but it's quite simple.
