how much yeast to pitch?

doing a brew that the OG is going to be about 1.072. according to mr. malty pitching rate calculator i should add 1.3 packets of 11.5g dry yeast packs. ok, what do i do. should i just add one packet and let the rest of the sugar chill in fermentation? should i add the 1.3 and dump the rest of the yeast or does it stay good if i seal it and contain it somehow? or should i just dump 2 packets and have one yeasty ass brew?

The yeast will not keep well after the package is open. Depending on the beer I would probably just use both packages OR 1.3 packages and throw away the remainder.

Remember to properly rehydrate the yeast before pitching. The Mr. Malty thing assumes you rehydrate the dry yeast.

I'm interested to hear what the more experienced brewers say about this. Wonder if you can just make a starter from a single pack. Can't really see how two packs would hurt anything. On the other hand I bet a single pack would be enough.

Throw the remainder in the boil. It will effectively digest those yeast into additional nutrient for the pitched yeast. Kinda like yeast hulls and yeast extract combined.

All the Best,
D. White

Who say's I'm inexperienced?

There is no good in making a starter from dry yeast.

Overpitching can effect ester production. All other factors equal, you will get less esters when overpitching because there is less yeast growth. But I don't think your overpitching by that much so it's probably OK. And low ester production is a desired thing in many beer styles.

Add the 2 packs of properly rehydrated yeast. It will not taste yeasty because you added the extra .7 pack. If it tastes yeasty when it is finished there are other reasons why this would be so.

I have pitched dry up to 1.09x

maida7 said:

Who say's I'm inexperienced?

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Ummm...nobody said that. I meant more experienced than myself and thus more capable of offering advice. But since you mentioned it, I'm pretty sure there are a lot of people here significantly more experienced than you, too. Even if you're not "inexperienced."

maida7 said:

There is no good in making a starter from dry yeast.

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You wouldn't end up with more yeast cells from a starter with dry yeast? I found the thread below with people arguing both ways. I don't think I'd ever do it, but if your goal is more yeast cells, it seems like one of the ways you could get there.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/yeast-starter-using-dry-yeast-79535/

osagedr said:

You wouldn't end up with more yeast cells from a starter with dry yeast? I found the thread below with people arguing both ways. I don't think I'd ever do it, but if your goal is more yeast cells, it seems like one of the ways you could get there.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/yeast-starter-using-dry-yeast-79535/

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I see it like this. Say there are 200 billion cells in the dry yeast pack. Throw that into a 2 liter starter and when its done you have only 180 billion. Cause that's all that can live on that amount of wort. Plus during that starter fermentation the original 200 billion were all trying to eat the same food so they end the fermentation undernourished and unhealthy. Now if you made a bigger starter like a 6 liters then they may have enough food to grow a bit. But it would be much easier to just pitch 2 packs. I could be off a bit on the numbers but this is the general idea.

On the experience issue. I know a few things but there is always something to learn.

maida7 said:

But it would be much easier to just pitch 2 packs. I could be off a bit on the numbers but this is the general idea.

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Yeah pitching two packs would be the easy thing to do if you had the yeast. My guess is that most folks would just pitch the single package and be done with it.

+1 to MrMalty.

I'd much rather have fully attenuated beer than worry about some mythical overpitching issue.

maida7 said:

The yeast will not keep well after the package is open. Depending on the beer I would probably just use both packages OR 1.3 packages and throw away the remainder.

Remember to properly rehydrate the yeast before pitching. The Mr. Malty thing assumes you rehydrate the dry yeast.

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ive never actually rehydrated yeast. ive always just sprinkled it on top of the wort, swirled it around a bit, and airlocked it. never had any problems. is there really any difference going through the rehydration process?