Add yeast at bottling for Late Summer Saison?

Ok guys, here is my situation and question(s)... This is my first attempt at a higher gravity beer and on brew day my hydrometer broke so I had to use a friends. His is old, worn and beat up so the only reading I could get was 10% ABV for starting gravity. I pitched 2 dry packets of T-58 yeast and had a nice strong fermentation for 2 days and then bam nothing on the airlock, so I gently recirculated the yeast and have steady action(1 bubble every 45 sec-1min) since. I fermented at a high temp for the first few days, mid 80's, to really get that nice Belgian-y set of characteristics, I am in no real hurry to bottle this beer, but I do want to add yeast at bottling to add complexity, herein lies the questions;
1. What is the best way to do this?
2. How much and what type of yeast?
3. how do I make sure I do not get bottle bombs?

Any help is greatly appreciated..

First, I wouldn't even worry about this if I were you. Since this is one of your first beers, you should have a lot of other things to focus on in regards to improving your beer, and any "complexity" that you may gain from re-pitching is going to be negligible. If you decide to anyway, on to your questions:
1. Add the yeast to your bottling bucket at the same time as your priming sugar, assuming that you've cooled the sugar solution properly.
2. If I were going to re-pitch, I would do something neutral like US-05 or the same yeast I used to ferment in the first place and probably 1/3 packet of dry or 1/2 packet of liquid.
3. Buy yourself a new hydrometer and learn to read the gravity-point scale instead of the potential alcohol scale. Take readings over several days and make sure the gravity isn't continuing to change, so you know it's done. Also make sure that you're not pitching a yeast that is more attenuative than the one you fermented with in the first place - most homebrew shops can tell you this, otherwise you can look it up.

I've only re-pitched once just for the heck of it and I don't think I got anything out of it, honestly, but that's just me. I went to NHC last year and there was a pretty good presentation on bottle conditioning, which you can find here: http://www.ahaconference.org/wp-con...e_Conditioning_Like_a_Pro-Jennifer_Helber.pdf

Hopefully this helps.

Thanks, it's not one of my first beers, one of my first high gravity beers, as for the hydrometer, I know how to read one, broke mine in the sink while getting ready to sanitize, new one should be here in the mail any day now. I will check out the presentation.
The reason I am interested in bottling with more yeast is because almost all of the high end Belgian ales use this method and the current school of thought, among the Belgian brewers, is that it adds flavor and complexity over time in the bottle.

What was the recipe?

What was the expected OG and FG?

Howl long has it been Fermenting?

My guess is that you really need to let the yeast do it's job. Don't rush a bigger beer, especially a saison or you are risking bottle bombs. Give it plenty of time to fement out fully. If you bottle before the original yeast is finished and then add more yeast, get ready for lots of explosions and beer and glass flying everywhere.

I have done 9% beers and left then in the fermenter for 6-8 weeks and never had to repitch at bottling. They carbed up just fine.

ChadChaney said:

Thanks, it's not one of my first beers, one of my first high gravity beers, as for the hydrometer, I know how to read one, broke mine in the sink while getting ready to sanitize, new one should be here in the mail any day now. I will check out the presentation.
The reason I am interested in bottling with more yeast is because almost all of the high end Belgian ales use this method and the current school of thought, among the Belgian brewers, is that it adds flavor and complexity over time in the bottle.

Click to expand...

Not sure you are right there. A lot of beers are filtered and re-pitched with a fresh batch of the original yeast. Orval does bottle with Brett, that will change the beer over time. They also use bottles that will stand the pressure of further fermentation.

Right, I am not worried about not having enough yeast for carbonating, I just want to enhance the flavor and complexity in the bottle..

3.3lbs Munich LME
3Lbs Bavarian Wheat DME
3.3Lbs Pils LME
1LB Cracked Wheat
1Lb Granibus Honey Malt (steeped)
1Lb Belgian Candy Sugar (clear, rock)
Small amount of Grains of Paradise

Sazz Hops
Cascade Hops

2 Dry Packets T58 Yeast

Pitched at 70 degees
Fermented at mid 80's for 36 Hrs
Now chugging along at 76 degrees..

Just want to add that Belgian funk at bottling, thats all.

unless you're going to bottle condition with Brett, the slight amount of sugar added for carbonating won't add too much to your flavor in using another strain.

Thanks, thats the answer I was looking for I think, LOL..