Two Quick 10 Gallon Recipe Questions...

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Stevorino

Stevorino

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1. I've been making a recipe for a 5 gallon batch. Am I right in assuming that I can just double the quantity of everything and be good to go for a 10 gallon batch?

2. I'm making a starter for this puppy. What's the best way about doing this (Never made a starter before)? Multiple vials of liquid yeast...or can I do one vial? Do I need to gradually introduce it to more and more starter wort/nutrient?
 
You don't need two vials. Get some DME or LME and cookup some unhopped wort on your stovetop that will match or be close to the gravity of your recipe. Put it in boiled jars and then into your fridge. I use pint and quart jars and that makes it easy to step up. I'll put a room temperature pint of starter and the initial yeast pack in a sterile cider jug or flask and stopper it, then step it up with an additional pint or quart 2 days later, which is also 2 days before brew day. the night before brewing I put it into the fridge, then the morning of brewing I pour off the liquid on top, so when I pitch it's just the yeast layer.

It works pretty well and only costs a small amount of extract to do.
 
nathan said:
You don't need two vials. Get some DME or LME and cookup some unhopped wort on your stovetop that will match or be close to the gravity of your recipe. Put it in boiled jars and then into your fridge. I use pint and quart jars and that makes it easy to step up. I'll put a room temperature pint of starter and the initial yeast pack in a sterile cider jug or flask and stopper it, then step it up with an additional pint or quart 2 days later, which is also 2 days before brew day. the night before brewing I put it into the fridge, then the morning of brewing I pour off the liquid on top, so when I pitch it's just the yeast layer.

It works pretty well and only costs a small amount of extract to do.
Click to expand...

Okay...so let's assume the earliest I can make a starter is Friday Night and I have to brew either sometime saturday or sunday morning...Can I make the pint friday night, add another pint of wort to the yeast on Saturday afternoon, and brew sunday morning?

Secondly, I'd really like to brew Saturday morning...is that possible given my timeline? I guess I can make starters tonight too and add the extra pint tomorrow night...
 
In my experience, the starter sometimes needs longer, especially if you are stepping it up. I'd make the starter ASAP today and to make sure it's going before you brew.
 
I always try to make my starters at least 2 or 3 days in advance when I use liquid yeast.
 
DaleJ said:
If you want to step up the starter you'll want to make it today for Saturday.
If you make it Friday night, then just add all your wort at once.

Check out this for starter info: http://www.mrmalty.com/pitching.php
Click to expand...

It's telling me I need over a gallon of starter if I use only one vial of liquid yeast...That's quite a bit different from a quart or two. When pitching 2 vials it still calls for 2 quarts. Thoughts?
 
For 5 gals, one vials with ~2L starter is usually sufficient (for ale).
So, for 10 you'll need to double up, which means twice as much volume or twice as much liquid yeast.

Personally, tonight I'd pitch 2 vials into 1L of starter and step it up to 2L tomorrow for use on Saturday morning.
 
DaleJ said:
For 5 gals, one vials with ~2L starter is usually sufficient (for ale).
So, for 10 you'll need to double up, which means twice as much volume or twice as much liquid yeast.

Personally, tonight I'd pitch 2 vials into 1L of starter and step it up to 2L tomorrow for use on Saturday morning.
Click to expand...

That looks about right using the calculator too. So to make a Starter, Jamil says 1 gram to 10 ml of Wort.

10 x 200 = 2 liters
1 gram x 200 = 200 grams = Approx .45 Pounds of DME for 2 liters of Wort...

So it sounds like I need to find 2 cheap glass gallon jars/bottles at the store...

All this sounding right?

(Thanks for all your help guys!):mug:
 
Yep, about .45lb or 7oz of dme.

2L = ~1/2 gal. (Think of a 2 liter bottle of soda )
So, one jar/bottle should do it.
 
If you don't have a large fermenter to ferment it all in one then I find it easier to make two starters. I use two vials and I make two 1/2 gal starters.
I also make these 3 days before I brew.

As for scaling it up. Get some software like Beersmith and input the recipe as a 5 gal then scale it up. That should work just fine. And it will alow you to see that the IBU's and things still match what you had.
 
FSR402 said:
If you don't have a large fermenter to ferment it all in one then I find it easier to make two starters. I use two vials and I make two 1/2 gal starters.
I also make these 3 days before I brew.

As for scaling it up. Get some software like Beersmith and input the recipe as a 5 gal then scale it up. That should work just fine. And it will alow you to see that the IBU's and things still match what you had.
Click to expand...

Oh crap. I already ordered-- so it's not necessarily just doubling everything?
 
FSR402 said:
If you don't have a large fermenter to ferment it all in one then I find it easier to make two starters. I use two vials and I make two 1/2 gal starters.
I also make these 3 days before I brew.

As for scaling it up. Get some software like Beersmith and input the recipe as a 5 gal then scale it up. That should work just fine. And it will alow you to see that the IBU's and things still match what you had.
Click to expand...

This is a good point, so I essentially am making two 5 gallon starters for my two fermenters. So now I need essentially 2 1-liter starters...
 
I do them in one gallon jugs, it works fine for me. I go to the store and buy spring water jugs then pour all the water into a pot and boil it with DME. Put some star san in the jug and shake it up. I put the DME water back into the Jug and pitch some yeast, let sit for 2 to 3 days with aluminum foil over the top. It doesn't get a full gallon, but you can get about 2/3 of a gallon in there. Which works fine for a 10 gallon batch.
 
FSR402 said:
No it will be fine. But what would really happen is the hops get cut down a little due to higher boil size.
Click to expand...

Oh okay, I'll look at the calculator and see, I might pick up some more hops when I pick up the order later today.
 
Donasay said:
I do them in one gallon jugs, it works fine for me. I go to the store and buy spring water jugs then pour all the water into a pot and boil it with DME. Put some star san in the jug and shake it up. I put the DME water back into the Jug and pitch some yeast, let sit for 2 to 3 days with aluminum foil over the top. It doesn't get a full gallon, but you can get about 2/3 of a gallon in there. Which works fine for a 10 gallon batch.
Click to expand...

That sounds pretty good. I have some 2 Liter Flasks en route to my house, but I don't think they'll make it in time. Because of that, i think I'm gonna have to get some temporary options-- Star San and Plastic Gallon jugs it is!
 

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