How to make a yeast starter - Pictorial

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
mrmalty says i need 4 liters, lol

It won't be OVERpitching, but it certainly isn't necessary to pitch that much.

So, can you just use the 4:1 water to dme ratio to make any size starter? Dilute by 25%?

Seems like it would be better taste-wise by decanting the poopy beer off before pitching a big starter

You want your gravity at about 1.040.

Taste won't make a difference. It's just yeast...they eventually fall out of the beer. This is an option, tho. Personally, I like to pitch a starter that is still active, so the yeast go nuts on the wort and don't have to come out of dormancy.

i use a cup dme per quart.. never checked the gravity but it never has been an issue. also only pitch 1 or 2L of single-step cells.

That's probably a bit much...1.040 - 1.050 is better, otherwise you're stressing the yeast a bit. 5 oz per 800mL will get you about there. Weight is a better measurement than volume for DME, of course.
 
Taste won't make a difference. It's just yeast...they eventually fall out of the beer. This is an option, tho. Personally, I like to pitch a starter that is still active, so the yeast go nuts on the wort and don't have to come out of dormancy.

The starter wont have oxidized beer with the yeast? Pitching the active starter definitely makes sense, though...
 
The yeast eat up all the oxygen and the co2 keeps the oxygen at bay while they are fermenting. If there is any oxygen left, the yeast will eat it up when they start going through their next reproductive stage in the fermenter. No concerns at all.
 
Ok I think I get it but this will be my first starter so tell me if I am doing something wrong .

Boil 1 liter of water and just over a cup of "light" DME
Pitch 1 vial of White Labs yeast at around 75*
Cover with foil and shake/stir occasionally ?
After 3-4 days refrigerator overnight (or until brewday)
Pour "beer" off and let yeast come up to room temp
Mix and pitch :tank:


And some "kits" I have seen recommend pitching 2 yeasts . With a starter is this necessary?
 
Ive heard its best to pitch starters @ high krausen. I usually dont make mine early enough to let them finish fermenting either. I would prob refridgerate after only a day or two. All in all, youre plan looks good. Enjoy!
 
I got two questions, since this thread is still kicking....

I am reading about washing yeast, I am going to do it for the first time in a few days.

1: Instead of washing, can I buy a White Labs oh lets say 005, start it 48 hours, change out DME/beer for fresh wort (that is oxygenated by shaking) and keep stepping up until I get enough to put back into vial and have extra for fermenting 10 gallons of brew?

2: Loose foil on my beaker, just keeping wild yeast from falling in to beaker, right? I will be using a strirrer.
 
Having watched some of the Brewing Network's older video podcasts showing six-pack batches, and since I have some one-gallon glass carboys on hand, I'm going to start making some six-patch batches. Would making a 1-litre starter make any sense? Since the yeast packets are for 5-gallon batches I was figuring that I could use half a pack for each 1-gallon batch for more than enough yeast....
 
Having watched some of the Brewing Network's older video podcasts showing six-pack batches, and since I have some one-gallon glass carboys on hand, I'm going to start making some six-patch batches. Would making a 1-litre starter make any sense? Since the yeast packets are for 5-gallon batches I was figuring that I could use half a pack for each 1-gallon batch for more than enough yeast....

Wish I knew what you are talking about. Can you direct me to the six pack (or patch) that you are talking about? Sounds more along the lines what I am looking for. I would appreciate it.:)
 
Just did this for the first time with Wyeast 1084 Irish Ale yeast. Interestingly the smack pack's manufacturing date is Jan 26 2010 - the LHBS guy was excited about how young the shipment of yeast they just got was. Anyway this thing is sitting on my counter in a 2L cola cola bottle and smells terrible. :)
 
+15 for a starter.... well, guess its only +1, but a starter is a great way to rest at ease that the yeasties are viable.
 
Possibly a dumb question from someone with zero experience with both liquid yeast and starters:

Do you activate the smack pack a couple of days before doing the starter or do you just pitch in the yeast into the starter without smacking?
 
Possibly a dumb question from someone with zero experience with both liquid yeast and starters:

Do you activate the smack pack a couple of days before doing the starter or do you just pitch in the yeast into the starter without smacking?

smack it like it owes you money, wait till it swells up, pitch it into your starter wort.:mug:
 
Please excuse the noob question, but what exactly is the "stepping up" I keep seeing references to? Mr. Malty is advising a 3L starter for my next brew (1.069 OG Honey Porter). I don't have anything handy to store such a large starter - could a 1L starter be "stepped up" to 3L in multiple containers (2-3 half gallon growlers)?

Also, is a 1L starter still a significant improvement over just pitching the smack pack if Mr Malty is advising 3L? The smack pack is very fresh if that makes any difference.
 
you make a starter of say 500mL.
let it flocculate.
decant off beer.
add 1L (1000mL) wort to yeasties.
decant.
add 2L of wort.
repeat until desired volume is reached.


i typically make a 2L from the smack-pack equivilent cell count (i slant and stir plate) and split it between two 5er batches.
 
Please excuse the noob question, but what exactly is the "stepping up" I keep seeing references to? Mr. Malty is advising a 3L starter for my next brew (1.069 OG Honey Porter). I don't have anything handy to store such a large starter - could a 1L starter be "stepped up" to 3L in multiple containers (2-3 half gallon growlers)?

Also, is a 1L starter still a significant improvement over just pitching the smack pack if Mr Malty is advising 3L? The smack pack is very fresh if that makes any difference.

Mr. Malty calls for overkill. You don't "absolutely" need a 3L starter, but you could easily split between containers:

1/2 gallon is almost 2 liters. You could make a 1L starter with the standard method, then split that between two of the 1/2 gallon containers when stepping up (doubling the amount of DME with more water) and that will be fine.
 
Ok, so I just started washing yeast. I have been making 10 gal. batches with a friend and dumping the yeast cakes together, adding water just like in the tutorial, decanting off (after about 30 minutes) into a large mason jar, waiting another 30 minutes and then decanting into two Snapple containers (16 oz.) I am ending up with about an inch of yeast at the bottom of the bottles. Do I just pitch all of that into a starter? Is there somewhere that tells you how much washed yeast to start your starter with :confused:? Thanks.
 
great question about washing yeast.. I wonder the same thing.. (I'm going to give it a shot at the beginning of next week)

I'd like to find small test tubes to put them in that are cheap and don't take up too much space, I'll make a starter with them before I pitch.. still working on the stir plate..

how small can the containers of washed yeast be ? any good ideas for cheap containers ? how long can you keep them ?
 
I have a couple of questions about starters and this seems like a nice cozy thread.

1) Why do you want to step up the starter? What is the benefit of starting at 500ml and stepping up to 2000ml? If I started with 2000ml would it take longer to get to the same point?

2) I have been pulling of a third running of my AG batches and using for extra wort. I boil it down until it is to 1.035-1.040 and place in sanitized bags than freeze. Do I need to boil it again before the starter or just defrost and pitch.
 
It is good to cool wort as rapidly as possible before pitching yeast, does it also matter for starters? Or can you let your starter cool for a longer period of time? Apologies if this has already been answered already, but I'm making my first starter as I type, and the question didn't occur to me until now.
 
You would run the same risk of infection with your starter as a normal 5 gal batch to just let it cool as it wants. Cooling rapidly and pitching gives the yeast you want in there the best chance to become the dominant species in the wort.
 
I have a question... in my insomnia last night I decided to try to see if a pack of Wyeast 2206 was dead or not since I brewed a Dunkel Friday and the fermentation seems weak. I mixed the starter, but forgot to boil the DME and water :eek:. I looked at it today and it is bubbling, but will this still be good to pitch? I havent tried a starter before, so I would appreciate any feedback. I used 2 cups of water and 1 cup of DME (plain white). I guess my biggest concern should be infection, right?
 
yep, but at this point don't worry about it. Hopefully you have enough yeast in there to combat any bacteria and, even more hopeful, there was nothing too nasty in there to begin with.

Good luck! And I would drink this one fast...the longer it sits the more likely the infection will turn up.
 
once I make up one of these 1L starters (24 hr prior to pitching) do I just sit it on the counter in the kitchen? do you need to keep the temp at a certain point for the 24hrs?
 
I made a yeast starter according to the instructions from the original post. It has been 24 hours since I made the starter and see no yeast activity. I had to have the liquid yeast vial shipped and it was sitting in the heat for a while so I'm wondering if the yeast has gone bad. Or do you think I can go ahead and pitch the yeast in the wort? Orrrr, should I give the starter some more time? Thanks!
 
It might have fermented out while you weren't looking (overnight, maybe?) but when you swirl it, does it have any lacing? Do you see any bubbles? Does it have a seperated layer of yeast on the bottom? There should be some indication that fermentation has taken place.

What kind of "heat" are we talking about? What temperature?
 
i usually dilute it to 800 mL before i put the foil on

How long until you start seeing some activity? Did my starter at about 3:30 pm yesterday and it's now 6:30 am and I'm not seeing anything. I'm shaking the container every hour or more - except overnight. I was hoping to brew later this afternoon, but if I'm not at high krausen....

EDIT: When I swirl is now it bubbles like mad and would come out of the top if I didn't have my hand over the foil. I'll have to turn on the light and look more closely to see if I can notice a separate layer of yeast at the bottom.

EDIT 2: WOW! What a difference a starter makes! Can't believe the activity in my carboy! Thanks again to the folks here who so graciously share their knowledge!
 
When I boil 2L of water and 200g of DME for 15mins I end up with 1.6L of wort. Do I need to top that off to make it 2L again? According to my BeerTools Pro software the 1.6L wort would have an O.G. of 1.046. If I should top it off is it ok to use tap water, like when I'm topping off my 5gl batches?
 
got a question guys, i'm going to make my first brew in a couple days, its a belgian dubel and the yeast MFG is august 10, 2010. Do I need to make a starter for this? its pretty new...i'm new to all this so I wanted to keep it as simple as possible...if I can skip out on the starter for now, that would be great...the starting gravity of this beer is 1.065

thanks
 
Make a starter. Hell, step it up some...you have 10 days. Or buy more yeast if you don't have 30 minutes to spare. :p

SRSLY, tho...it is advisable to always make a starter, especially if your OG is above 1.060. Making a starter is damn easy...go for it. It'll be like a "test" beer...sanitize everything and make a small beer without hops to prepare for your bigger beer! :)
 
alright, i guess i'll do it then...so I don't wanna affect the taste of my beer so I suppose i should just use light dry malt extract then? and have it in room temps for about a day or so and swirl it every once in a while. and when I'm ready for it, leave it in the fridge overnight to settle for the following day and decant the beer. Do i got it correct? what ratio of water to dme should I shoot for? thanks

Db you are very close to me, i'm in san leandro
 
Back
Top