Yeast Starter Directions

I've created detailed instructions which I pulled from different books, websites and forums on how to create a yeast starter for my IPA. The main reason for this is to be almost a script for when I actually do the yeast starter...I'll just print this out so that I don't forget anything or screw it up otherwise. Please let me know if I have something wrong or make any suggestions...Thanks!

How to Create a Yeast Starter

Ferocious IPA extract kit from Midwest.
OG = 1.064-1.068
FG = 1.012-1.018
IBUs ≈ 82

Sanitize: flask, stirbar, pot lid, thermometer, and foil to cover flask, and funnel

Boil just over 1 quart of water and then stir in 1 cup of Munton & Fison Light Dry Malt Extract while continuing to boiling. Boil for 15 min, stirring regularly. Cool the wort by placing it into an ice bath in kitchen sink (be sure not to get any ice water into the wort), agitate pot to cool wort faster. When wort is 80 degree F or below, pour starter wort into flask using a funnel. Then add a 1/2 teaspoon of yeast nutrient to the flask. Pitch White Labs 007 English Ale yeast into flask as well as the stir bar. Then cover the flask with a piece of foil and place on stirplate. Turn on stirplate and wait roughly 2 days. Once kraeusen has been attained, place flask in fridge for a day to allow yeast slurry to settle. On brew day, take flask out of fridge about an hour before you begin to make your wort. Decant any beer that formed on top of the yeast layer by carefully pouring it out of the flask. This helps ensure that there will be no off flavors from the yeast starter.

A couple of things I noticed wrong were these:

1. You add yeast nutrient to the boil, at the 15 minute mark, not straight to the flask. This is per the directions on the yeast nutrient container, unless you are using a different type of nutrient than me. I'm using wyeast.

2. Starter should be added to the wort at the 8 to 18 hour mark, as this is when high kreusen is achieved, and starter yeast is at it's most active.(as per JZ's instructions on mrmalty.com)

3. Yeast in starter should be at the same temperature as the wort you're pitching it into, give or take a couple degrees, but as little as possible. This helps prevent shocking the yeast.

4. Starter should be directly pitched at high kreusen, instead of cooled to remove starter wort. The amount of starter you pitch into the amount of wort shouldn't be enough to leave any off flavors in your beer. You just don't want to play with the temperatures that much. keeping your starter yeast warm and happy will result in a better finished beer.

These are the tips I've picked up about starters. Of course, someone will argue all of them, but they're there for you to either use or ignore. These are the things I do, so as they say "To each his own". good luck.

mikeysab said:

A couple of things I noticed wrong were these:

1. You add yeast nutrient to the boil, at the 15 minute mark, not straight to the flask. This is per the directions on the yeast nutrient container, unless you are using a different type of nutrient than me. I'm using wyeast.

2. Starter should be added to the wort at the 8 to 18 hour mark, as this is when high kreusen is achieved, and starter yeast is at it's most active.(as per JZ's instructions on mrmalty.com)

3. Yeast in starter should be at the same temperature as the wort you're pitching it into, give or take a couple degrees, but as little as possible. This helps prevent shocking the yeast.

4. Starter should be directly pitched at high kreusen, instead of cooled to remove starter wort. The amount of starter you pitch into the amount of wort shouldn't be enough to leave any off flavors in your beer. You just don't want to play with the temperatures that much. keeping your starter yeast warm and happy will result in a better finished beer.

These are the tips I've picked up about starters. Of course, someone will argue all of them, but they're there for you to either use or ignore. These are the things I do, so as they say "To each his own". good luck.

Click to expand...

Some additional info that can help demonstrate that there are many ways to achieve the desired results, with small little twists to various methods and as long as it works its not incorrect. My yeast starter is started on Wednesday prior to the Saturday I intend to brew. I use Wyeast smack packs so I smack my yeast up on Wednesday and let it swell over night.

The next day, Thursday I create my wort (minimum of 1300ml) following almost exactly as is described here and in the original post, and pitch the yeast and in my basement it goes until late Friday night before I go to bed at which time I put it in my fridge to cool it and settle the yeast.

The next morning before I setup everything to brew I decant 80% of the beer off the top of the yeast and place it on my kitchen counter to let it warm up. While I am brewing and prior to pitching the yeast the yeast has warmed up to room temp (which will be close to the temp of the cooled wort when I go to pitch it) and a nice kreusen is re-forming in the starter flask indicating that the yeast it back at it.

Once ready to pitch I give it a nice swirl to capture all the yeast I can and pitch away.

Since going this route I have seen fermentation start in less then 30 min.

David

Why don't you ditch the pot and boil everything in the flask? I weigh out the water in the flask and heat it on the stove to about 130-150F. When it's heating, I weigh out the DME in a stainless mixing bowl and then add nutrient. Then, I pour the heated water into the bowl and mix with a wisk. The mixture gets poured back into the flask through a funnel and the appropriate number of drops of Fermcap-S are added. Cover with foil and boil for 5 minutes. Add sanitized stir bar carefully at the end of boil. Chill.

That brings up another question...do you need to boil the water or just heat it to 150F?

I boil directly in an erlenmeyer flask as well. There's less chance of contamination that way. Since the flask is sitting at 212 degrees for 15-20 minutes, there aren't many organisms that will survive in/on it. You've gotta be really careful and watch for boil overs, it'll boil over fast fast fast!

I tend to trust Jamil's advice and go with a 10:1 ratio of water to DME. 2 litres of water with 200 grams of DME. I've never decanted the spent wort yet, but I think I may try the chilling, decanting, pitching concentrated slurry next time I brew. High krausen pitching has worked great so far. Action in the 5 gal within an hour or two.

Your way will work just fine as well, we've all got our personal brewing practices and as long as you're keeping your yeasts' environment steady and clean...you're 99% there.

goodgodilovebeer said:

I boil directly in an erlenmeyer flask as well. There's less chance of contamination that way. Since the flask is sitting at 212 degrees for 15-20 minutes, there aren't many organisms that will survive in/on it. You've gotta be really careful and watch for boil overs, it'll boil over fast fast fast!

I tend to trust Jamil's advice and go with a 10:1 ratio of water to DME. 2 litres of water with 200 grams of DME. I've never decanted the spent wort yet, but I think I may try the chilling, decanting, pitching concentrated slurry next time I brew. High krausen pitching has worked great so far. Action in the 5 gal within an hour or two.

Your way will work just fine as well, we've all got our personal brewing practices and as long as you're keeping your yeasts' environment steady and clean...you're 99% there.

Click to expand...

+1 to the 10:1 ratio. To break down the math a little further it's for every 10 milliliters of water you add 1 gram of DME.

Yeast nutrient during the boil. I don't boil in the flask because it's too hard for me to control boil over (and SWMBO doesn't like me doing it in the kitchen as it is). I pour the boiling starter wort into the flask, which already has the stir bar inside it, and let it sit for a few minutes and then move it to the water bath. Pitch everything into the 5 gallons of wort between 16 to 24 hours after beginning the starter.

This is how I do it
1)measure the amount of water you need in the flask then pour it in a pot to boil
2) measue dme 10 to 1 and dump it in the pot and stir I use a whisk
3)pour some more water in flask and boil it which will sanitize the flask and stir bar and you use the water to replace the evap from the pot
4)after boil is done pour water from flask into pyrex cup then the wort into the flask and top off
5)then put flask back on until you JUST reach a boil then take it off and cool it and put the foil on.

No need to pre-sanitize and with a quart starter no need to decant and refrigerate and it will finish fermenting within 18 to 24 hours, after that take it off the stir plate and pitch it but make sure the stir bar doesnt get pitched as well.

With my hydro sample which is about 8 oz I put that in the flask and give it a good shake since there is still residual yeast it will ferment and step it up by adding 1L to make my next starter for the following week brew session. I like to re-use yeast

I'm going to be starting with just over 2 Pints (1 quart) of water, meaning I'm going to need 100 grams of DME. Does anyone know roughly how many cups this equals...I don't have a scale.

3/4 to a cup

OK, my problem is: How do I get the stir bar out of the flask?

After my recent troubles with Nottingham I even do a starter/proof with dry yeasts. I'd love to just swirl the flask to get the yeast suspended and dump into the wort but I have not found a good way to retrieve the stir bar.

pilotdane said:

OK, my problem is: How do I get the stir bar out of the flask?

After my recent troubles with Nottingham I even do a starter/proof with dry yeasts. I'd love to just swirl the flask to get the yeast suspended and dump into the wort but I have not found a good way to retrieve the stir bar.

Click to expand...

Place a second magnet or stir bar on the outside bottom of the flask. Move the magnet around until the stir bar inside the flask is found. Then use the second magnet to hold the stir bar in place as the starter is slowly decanted from the flask.

So simple. Thanks.

I've been fishing around with a sanitized surgical tool. It's a bit like an adult game of Operation.