What does a stepped-up starter look like?

Hey, all.

So, earlier this week, I thought I was "the yeast whisperer." There was a special edition yeast (Wyeast Biere de Garde) that I really wanted to work with again, and the only chance I had of getting it back was a few bottles aging from last year. I poured the ends of few bottles into a glass jug, added wort, waited.

In a few days, a little bit of activity. I added the ends of a few more bottles, and it really got going...krausen and everything.

So I tried to step it up again, and added two more pints of wort. Now...nothing, really. There's a layer of flocculated yeast on the bottom of the jug, but I want more! Can I expect it to krausen again? What am I looking for as I step up the starter?


Thanks,

CB

climateboy said:

Hey, all.

So, earlier this week, I thought I was "the yeast whisperer." There was a special edition yeast (Wyeast Biere de Garde) that I really wanted to work with again, and the only chance I had of getting it back was a few bottles aging from last year. I poured the ends of few bottles into a glass jug, added wort, waited.

In a few days, a little bit of activity. I added the ends of a few more bottles, and it really got going...krausen and everything.

So I tried to step it up again, and added two more pints of wort. Now...nothing, really. There's a layer of flocculated yeast on the bottom of the jug, but I want more! Can I expect it to krausen again? What am I looking for as I step up the starter?


Thanks,

CB

Click to expand...

before adding your second wort addition, did you cold crash your yeast and decant the beer?

If not, I would do that now, then add fresh wort (let the yeast come to room temp), and shake/stir the hell out of it.

krausenmustache said:

before adding your second wort addition, did you cold crash your yeast and decant the beer?

If not, I would do that now, then add fresh wort (let the yeast come to room temp), and shake/stir the hell out of it.

Click to expand...

Aha! I did not cold crash the yeast before the second wort addition. I will do that. Can I keep repeating this cycle until I've built up a big enough population?

climateboy said:

Aha! I did not cold crash the yeast before the second wort addition. I will do that. Can I keep repeating this cycle until I've built up a big enough population?

Click to expand...

I dont see why not.

I wouldn't judge a succesful starter or yeast harvest on whther or not I see a krausen....I have only ever seen one krauzen on all the yeast harvests or starters I have made....The only thing you need to look for is the amount of yeast in the cramy layer between beer and sediment...that dictates how large an amount of yeas tyou have...

I wouldn't cold crash a starter I was stepping up, you don't want the yeasties to go dormant if you are still feeding them wort to eat...if they are asleep, they aren't going ot do the job you want them to do, which is to eat, procreate and flocculate.

If you cold crash all you are gonna get is a lot of lag time and unhappy yeast going through cycles of hot and cold.

Whether it's a harvest, a wash, or a starter, the YEAST band is all that matters.

Revvy said:

I wouldn't judge a succesful starter or yeast harvest on whther or not I see a krausen....I have only ever seen one krauzen on all the yeast harvests or starters I have made....The only thing you need to look for is the amount of yeast in the cramy layer between beer and sediment...that dictates how large an amount of yeas tyou have...

I wouldn't cold crash a starter I was stepping up, you don't want the yeasties to go dormant if you are still feeding them wort to eat...if they are asleep, they aren't going ot do the job you want them to do, which is to east and procreate.

Whether it's a harvest, a wash, or a starter, the YEAST band is all that matters.

Click to expand...

Thanks, Rev. All I have is one band at the bottom, but it is definitely creamy yeast colored. Since I've been adding pressure-canned wort, I haven't been pouring in the trub from the bottom of those jars, so there might be less in the starter.