dos_perros
Well-Known Member
Wow! I just read all 44 pages of this today and really want to give this a go when it gets a little nicer here in Idaho. I am thinking a nice saisson made with my local yeasties would be awesome!
Howto: Capture Wild Yeast
- Thread starter ericd
- Start date
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it's actually easier to get a culture of yeast growing when the temperature outside is around +2°C for about two weeks straight. Much more then that and it becomes too much of a breeding ground for mold (At least, that's what happened to me)
dcHokie
Well-Known Member
I captured my wild yeast at about 42 F here in DC.
I stepped it up twice and left it uncovered on the kitchen counter for a month (well, cheesecloth loosely placed on top of jar). I just pitched it into 5 gal of Belgian Pale Ale wort on Friday and it was chugging away after 8 hours. Smells good & the krausen looks just like every other primary ferm. with a laboratory yeast.
yeah, you're right. I just had problems here in Calgary if the temp went above 2°C to 3°C (35°F to 37°F).
dcHokie
Well-Known Member
For anyone interested, here is a pic. The BB fermenter in the background got the wild yeast (foreground is other half of the batch that got a 1.5L wyeast starter).
That looks absolutely fantastic. I wish I'd taken pictures when I stepped up to a full batch of mead now.
Cubslover
Well-Known Member
This is very intriguing, I might have to try this once!
jtakacs
Well-Known Member
just read the whole thread, amazing. going to start my own project. thanks to everyone...
veeellgee
Member
Just posted an article on my blog about my adventure in yeast wrangling if anyone would like to see another success story 
http://potablesandedibles.com/2011/02/homebrew-wild-yeast-experiment.html
http://potablesandedibles.com/2011/02/homebrew-wild-yeast-experiment.html
jtakacs
Well-Known Member
snow in the hills (rare here), rained two days ago, been sunny, its chilly out, everything is budding, couldn't resist. wort is outside.
Cascadegan
Well-Known Member
it seems like having pasteurized bottle conditioned beer in the wort would help... my plan is to shake a bottle of some american wheat beer (to mix in yeast/sediment), dump it into a pot with some water, add DME and boil
1. dead yeast cells would help yeast growth (this is yeast nutrient right?)
2. alcohol may keep out bacteria, but presumably yeast would be able to hold its own better
3. alpha acids from hops keep out bacteria
thoughts?
1. dead yeast cells would help yeast growth (this is yeast nutrient right?)
2. alcohol may keep out bacteria, but presumably yeast would be able to hold its own better
3. alpha acids from hops keep out bacteria
thoughts?
ssf
Well-Known Member
seems like people are all over the map with techniques here, so here's another procedure to add to the mix:
made a small starter (2 oz DME in 400 mL water, boiled with nutrient, pellet hops, and anti-foam for 5 min), set out using three small jars covered with paint straining material in mid-40F evening on balcony near orange tree and numerous blossoming flowers, brought back in during high 50F morning, tossed into sanitized flask. currently giving it some stir plate time. will check back with any results.
made a small starter (2 oz DME in 400 mL water, boiled with nutrient, pellet hops, and anti-foam for 5 min), set out using three small jars covered with paint straining material in mid-40F evening on balcony near orange tree and numerous blossoming flowers, brought back in during high 50F morning, tossed into sanitized flask. currently giving it some stir plate time. will check back with any results.
drummstikk
Well-Known Member
Ssf,
You probably don't want the paint straining material. How will insects carrying yeast enter your wort? Remember, there may be some yeast on the dust from your house, but if you want yeast from the wild, you'll find them being carried around by a fly or other insect.
You probably don't want the paint straining material. How will insects carrying yeast enter your wort? Remember, there may be some yeast on the dust from your house, but if you want yeast from the wild, you'll find them being carried around by a fly or other insect.
veeellgee
Member
Actually, the wild yeast is in fact blowing around in the air. You don't need bugs landing in your wort to catch it! I used paint straining bags and was actually very successful - see post above...
ssf
Well-Known Member
Actually, the wild yeast is in fact blowing around in the air. You don't need bugs landing in your wort to catch it! I used paint straining bags and was actually very successful - see post above...
veeellgee, your original post was one of the most helpful in this thread to me, and strongly influenced my technique.
after a couple nights with no luck, I changed my position to one underneath an orange tree and very close to a dense flower bed. in 24 hrs I had this:
I'm gonna give it a few more days as is, then try to step it up and wash it...
veeellgee
Member
veeellgee, your original post was one of the most helpful in this thread to me, and strongly influenced my technique.
after a couple nights with no luck, I changed my position to one underneath an orange tree and very close to a dense flower bed. in 24 hrs I had this:
I'm gonna give it a few more days as is, then try to step it up and wash it...
Fantastic!
Very glad to have helped. Keep us updated!
chaydaw
Well-Known Member
I just stumbled upon this thread. I captured mine with a chance hydrometer tubes worth of wort that I had left out. Sure enough I cam back downstairs and it was fermenting away. Its now on the stirplate!!
Thank you to everyone who has posted in this thread so far, it's all been very helpful!
I captured my wild yeast with about 400ml~ of leftover wort from a brewday two weeks ago. This sample was placed in a beaker with a paper towel rubberbanded over the top to keep large bugs out and placed in my garage which had temperature fluctuations of between 35-60F.
The sample took about three days before I could see or smell anything which started out as a very chunky and dark material (almost looked like break material) laying on the bottom and it smelled of rotting vegetables or vomit. At about 6 or 7 days in the smell changed to a much more agreeable belgiany estery/phenolic combo and the visual appearance started to look like a normal Sacch. fermentation with a krausen and co2 bubbles rising.
This went for perhaps 3 days until activity ceased and then I could clearly see white creamy yeast flocced to the bottom resting on the aforementioned scummy looking stuff.
So I took a gravity reading and it had dropped from 1.040 to 1.010 so it's right at 75%AA, not bad for undomesticated little critters.
The flavor was good, very much like the smell, it also had some sourness, I'm guessing lactic acid.
So last night I washed my yeast with some boiled and cooled water and separated the white creamy looking yeast from the chunky stuff that first appeared. However I also saved that portion in some water as well and will hold onto it for further testing.
My plans now are to brew an American Blonde in the next few weeks and reserve a gallon to pitch my wild caught yeast into (having built up a starter beforehand.)
Will update as the experiment continues.
I captured my wild yeast with about 400ml~ of leftover wort from a brewday two weeks ago. This sample was placed in a beaker with a paper towel rubberbanded over the top to keep large bugs out and placed in my garage which had temperature fluctuations of between 35-60F.
The sample took about three days before I could see or smell anything which started out as a very chunky and dark material (almost looked like break material) laying on the bottom and it smelled of rotting vegetables or vomit. At about 6 or 7 days in the smell changed to a much more agreeable belgiany estery/phenolic combo and the visual appearance started to look like a normal Sacch. fermentation with a krausen and co2 bubbles rising.
This went for perhaps 3 days until activity ceased and then I could clearly see white creamy yeast flocced to the bottom resting on the aforementioned scummy looking stuff.
So I took a gravity reading and it had dropped from 1.040 to 1.010 so it's right at 75%AA, not bad for undomesticated little critters.
The flavor was good, very much like the smell, it also had some sourness, I'm guessing lactic acid.
So last night I washed my yeast with some boiled and cooled water and separated the white creamy looking yeast from the chunky stuff that first appeared. However I also saved that portion in some water as well and will hold onto it for further testing.
My plans now are to brew an American Blonde in the next few weeks and reserve a gallon to pitch my wild caught yeast into (having built up a starter beforehand.)
Will update as the experiment continues.
ssf
Well-Known Member
here's an update on my end:
stepped up my wild starter to about a liter for a few days:
and pitched about 2/3 of it into ~4 gallons of a patersbier I threw together this weekend:
you can check out my sig link for more info. will post results when I keg this one.
stepped up my wild starter to about a liter for a few days:
and pitched about 2/3 of it into ~4 gallons of a patersbier I threw together this weekend:
you can check out my sig link for more info. will post results when I keg this one.
PolishStout
Well-Known Member
has anyone tried catching wild yeast in a public women's restroom???
ChefJoeR
Well-Known Member
Does it matter the type of DME that you use?
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
No, but you may want to hop it to around 8-10 IBUs to inhibit bacteria and mold growth.
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
PolishStout
Well-Known Member
would it make sense that if yeast were captured from colder climates it would be better for colder fermenting and/or lagers?
Read this at work today. I'm from Australia and live right near some classic Australian bushland (dense with eucalypts). Going to try and get some wildies for some cider/apfelwein. I can imagine how well a slight eucalypt taste/smell would go with that. If it doesn't turn out that way then hey, at least I have some cider, right?
its hard for me to believe that your yeast will produce smells that are really like the air you get it from.
I tried to get some wild yeast last week in NH (air smells great) when the temps hit 50F. left a pan of wort out for two days. So far there is a little white gunk around the edges of the jar I put it in but the stuff smell pretty lousy. A friend of mine just sent me some agar plates to try tho. going to see how that works when the spring weather returns.
I tried to get some wild yeast last week in NH (air smells great) when the temps hit 50F. left a pan of wort out for two days. So far there is a little white gunk around the edges of the jar I put it in but the stuff smell pretty lousy. A friend of mine just sent me some agar plates to try tho. going to see how that works when the spring weather returns.
Hey, rwabdu don't throw that wort sample out just yet!
If you read my above post I went the same direction as you and left out some wort to be naturally inoculated. My timeline was as follows.... about three days before I could see anything, which started as some white gunk like you have on the edges of the container. It also smelled fairly nasty like yours (a mix of rotting veggies and puke) but I left it for about 4 more days and low and behold the white gunk slowly turned into a normal looking krausen and the smell changed to a more fruity, estery, Belgian smell.
I've since pitched it into a gallon test batch of a simple blonde ale and it took off going gangbusters..... also, the original smell of the rotting veggies hasn't shown up again.
Started last night: http://twitpic.com/4cxkqw
I went with 2L ~1.030 wort, .5 oz of aged hops boiled for 30 minutes with 1/4 tsp of yeast nutrient. I chilled and aerated the wort and left some outside, some upstairs, and some next to my barrels (all covered with cheesecloth).
Tonight or tomorrow morning I'll move the starters to bottles/growlers to get them away from oxygen. Im hoping to brew a lambic-ish beer using the best one(s) in a couple weeks. If all goes to plan by next spring it should be ready for some fruit from the mulberry tree in my backyard (a true DC Lambic).
I went with 2L ~1.030 wort, .5 oz of aged hops boiled for 30 minutes with 1/4 tsp of yeast nutrient. I chilled and aerated the wort and left some outside, some upstairs, and some next to my barrels (all covered with cheesecloth).
Tonight or tomorrow morning I'll move the starters to bottles/growlers to get them away from oxygen. Im hoping to brew a lambic-ish beer using the best one(s) in a couple weeks. If all goes to plan by next spring it should be ready for some fruit from the mulberry tree in my backyard (a true DC Lambic).
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
Is that carboy in the lower left hand corner labeled "fruit salad"?
It is a blend of a funky pale sour with guanabana (aka sour sop) and a lactic brown ale with blackberries and black raspberries. If you can think of a better name I’m all ears…
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
No, I thought it was a funny name. It is very fitting.
here are some pictures a week later. smells like crap. any idea what I got? im going to try to plate them before mold takes over. (i innoculated 3 jars over different amount of time: 2 days, 1 day, 12 hours
the first and second picture is very goupy, almost like slaiva, thick and sticky nasty stuff, doesnt smell good at all. sticking with it tho.
the bottom picture was crusty on top, when i was platting it, it broke and made a crunchy sound. it smells better tho, like sour beer! this is the only one id think about tasting, but I havent tried it yet. maybe I will work of making a batch some time in the next few weeks.
the first and second picture is very goupy, almost like slaiva, thick and sticky nasty stuff, doesnt smell good at all. sticking with it tho.
the bottom picture was crusty on top, when i was platting it, it broke and made a crunchy sound. it smells better tho, like sour beer! this is the only one id think about tasting, but I havent tried it yet. maybe I will work of making a batch some time in the next few weeks.
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
It looks likely that you have some sort of yeast in there. Keep rolling with it. Periodically add some more sugars to let the yeast continue to multiply. Eventually the nasty smells should go away as the wort becomes too acidic and high in alcohol content for enterobacter and other stuff that can make you ill.
Yup, going by Guinard's book, it's normal for enteric bacteria to set up shop first before the yeast take over.
It's also a crap shoot, you might just not catch anything good. You can always start over.
Some of these look really good!
It's also a crap shoot, you might just not catch anything good. You can always start over.
Some of these look really good!
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
Depending on the size of the batch you intend to try, I would say you need at least half the normal pitching volume. Wild yeast tends to be rather aggressive so it's not necessary to pitch what you normally would (IMO). I would guess at where you are based on the size of the yeast cake in the bottom.
ssf
Well-Known Member
dcHokie
Well-Known Member
For anyone interested, here is a pic. The BB fermenter in the background got the wild yeast (foreground is other half of the batch that got a 1.5L wyeast starter).
My update: I bottled about 2.5 gallons of my batch of wild ale over the weekend. I left alone in primary for 2 months and it finished fairly low, but not too dry. The small gravity sample I tried was reminiscent of a belgian strain (similar to Wy Ardennes), but with a bit more of a fruitier nose, slightly peachy notes. I'm actually pretty surprised at how 'normal' it turned out. Hopefully it'll get a bit more interesting over time, so I'm cellaring these bottles for a while.
I blended the other half of this batch into 2.5 gallons of a belgian pale, then gave it a healthy dose of JP & Lindemans dregs and oak cubes and am stashing it away for a year or so.
