Harvesting yeast from packet?

I've read a couple threads now on harvesting yeast from a fermenter. Is there a way to harvest (or I guess cultivate is a better word) your "fresh" yeast? Like taking your Wyeast packet for example, splitting it, giving the yeast some food to grow, and then just let it go dormant in the fridge?

yea, just do it like a normal starter.

Yes, in fact this is how I do it. I make 10 tubes of yeast from one pack, then freeze with glycerine. I don't even smack the pack. Look up yeast banking.

Frank-Likes-Beer said:

Is there a way to harvest (or I guess cultivate is a better word) your "fresh" yeast? Like taking your Wyeast packet for example, splitting it, giving the yeast some food to grow, and then just let it go dormant in the fridge?

Click to expand...

IMHO saving 'virgin' yeast directly from the pack is a better option than harvesting from the fermenter, since (with standard sanitation practices) there is virtually no chance of infection or mutations that may occur if you take the yeast from the fermenter.

There are several ways to do it, the easiest is to simply 'split' your yeast pack into a number of smaller test-tubes or vials.
You can store these in the fridge and make a starter when you are ready to use them. Add some glycerin and you can freeze to keep them viable for longer periods.

You can also make and inoculate malt-agar slants with yeast directly from the pack if you want to get more into creating your own 'yeast bank'.