On Mr Malty, yeast washing, and slurry thickness

So I'm looking to brew up a 2.5 gallon batch of RIS with a SG of ~1.120. This past weekend I made a pale ale @ 1.050 using S-05 yeast. I didn't whirlpool, and there's lots of trub.

My question is, do I:
1. Dump the whole cake into a new fermenter and throw the stout onto it?
2. Give the cake a swirl and pour off the top layer of beer/yeast? (a thin slurry? Need ~240 mL per Mr Malty)
3. Add sterile water to more easily see the separation, and do the above? (an even thinner slurry?)
4. Wash the yeast in advance, refrigerate, and allow it to settle into a thick slurry (Need ~100 mL per Mr Malty), then pitch?
5. Just pitch a full new pack of S-05 (also per Mr. Malty)

#5 is obviously easiest, but am I correct in thinking that this fresh yeast, having to start out in 1.120 wort, will not grow as healthy as those which have already performed the easy 1.050 fermentation?

Yes, I need to RDWHAHB, and I will, but I also want some opinions. Thanks

#4 or #5. definitely not #1 unless you're trying to avoid yeast-derived flavors and aromatics.

He used S05, I agree not to use option #1 but not for the reasons stated below.

Scoop out the proper amount of your slurry and pitch it into your RIS. If the slurry needs to sit, just pop it into the fridge in a sanitized container, it will be fine for a few days/week. Let it get back to room temp before pitching.

I usually leave Mr. Malty's sliders at the default settings and add ~25% to the volume needed.

RBlagojevich said:

#4 or #5. definitely not #1 unless you're trying to avoid yeast-derived flavors and aromatics.

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So despite the fact that scooping will include yeast slurry mixed up with break material and other crap, you think that is a reasonable approach? I must be worrying too much about the effect of trub on the new batch...

You may want to take the cake and refrigerate it, or wash the cake and use all of the collected yeast. Either way, refrigeration will buid up the yeasts glycogen reserves before they go dormant and they will have some stored energy to reproduce in your RIS.

It is just a suggestion, I have been wrestling with direct pitching onto a cake or washing and refrigerating.

I like to pitch starters at high krauesen, so I definitely don't chill and decant. However for a cake (which I have yet to pitch onto) I have been pondering what would be the healthiest for the yeastie beasties.

Obviously washing will rid you of trub, which will ensure there are no residual flavors from your previous batch.

However, since it is dry yeast, you may as well pitch new packages, unless you are willing to experiment and directly pitch onto the cake.

My suggestions from most favorite to least...#5, #4, #1

Yes, it is very reasonable. As long as you are going to a bigger beer (or the same beer) with your slurry I would not be concerned one bit about the trub and/or imparting off flavors. If you need to store it for more than a couple of weeks, then by all means wash the yeast.

I would *not* pitch onto an entire cake, that's like using a 5 gallon starter. Scoop out the proper amount of slurry and enjoy

greenbirds said:

So despite the fact that scooping will include yeast slurry mixed up with break material and other crap, you think that is a reasonable approach? I must be worrying too much about the effect of trub on the new batch...

Click to expand...

+1 for using as much of the slurry as needed, without washing. Since these yeast are coming straight out of one beer and going into another there's no need to wake them up or even refrigerate them.
Also, check out the recent Brew Strong episode on repitching yeast (Brew Strong - Repitching Yeast). Many of these questions are addressed, along with some good pointers for using the pitching rate calculator.

I would wash the yeast, but when you reach the point where you would split it up into several jars, I would pitch that in the RIS. That's a big beer and can use a big starter of yeast.