Not mixing in yeast?

I got an bag of all-grain wort and a recipe for stout. It came with a dry yeast and says to sprinkle it on top, and to not stir it in.

I was thinking of buying a liquid yeast, or at least hydrating and creating a starter of the dry yeast, but ... is there any conceivable reason they wanted the dry yeast just floating on top?

Thanks,
Keegan

is it all grain that you have to mash and sparge, or is it just grains you steep in water then add extract?

is it a midwest supply kit? ?

their directions always call for just pouring the dry yeast atop the wort. they do this i think because it is really simple to do, and the new brewer has enough to worry about already, at least that's the impression i got from their crazy how to brew video... it will work if you just pour it in, but you would be better served to: rehydrate the dry yeast in some warm water for about twenty minutes... then pitch it. or buy some liquid and make a starter a day before you brew your beer.

mrkeeg said:

I was thinking of buying a liquid yeast, or at least hydrating and creating a starter of the dry yeast, but ... is there any conceivable reason they wanted the dry yeast just floating on top?

Click to expand...

Because yeast mixes itself in fine and stirring invites infection. I never stir in my yeast. It simply isn't necessary to stir in order to get a good ferment. the yeast ride all sorts of currents around the fermenter.

Ah, okay, thanks.

It's actually "all grain" wort, ie: no work for me except adding the yeast and hop... not an extract. Perhaps I'm not using the correct terminology?

So, if I make a starter, and dump it in, it effectively mixes itself somewhat rather than sitting on the top, but this should not be a problem. I guess I was just worried there may be some hocus pocus alchemy that requires the yeast to sit on the top for best results. I won't worry!

Thanks,
Keegan

Janx, yours is a really interesting thought! I've tried sprinkling the yeast with 2 batches and got poor results and then frenzied stiring of the yeast with better results (gurgling being the result) on my next 4 batches.

Do you recommend the sprinkling for both dry and liquid yeast? I'm about to give up on the dry yeast because of my varied results and just go with a starter from liquid. Do you think this switch is uneccesary for a newbie such as myself (I only brew from kits at present)? I haven't had a bad batch yet, but I've had to restir my primary twice now to get any bubbling at all.

I'd really appreciate your thoughts on this.