Advice on Pitching a BIG beer?

I am going to do 2 big extract beers, a Barley wine @ 1090 and a Stong Old Ale @ 1093 OG. I want decent attenuation and I am used to using Dry Yeasts. Any suggestions on how much and when I should use for these? I have heard that champagne yeast could be used but that it should be pitched after the first yeast has slowed down but the more I read the more confused I get.

I would pitch 2 re-hydrated packets if you have them. You could do a small beer, and pitch the big ones on the cake, that works great.

Also, if you are using any simple sugars, add them after the fermentation starts to slow. Cant remember where I read it, but the theory goes something like this...

If you add the simple sugars (sucrose, corn sugar, candi sugar, etc.) the yeast will go for them first and may leave more of the more complex sugars unfermented. If you start them out on the tough stuff, then treat them to some easy work as they are slowing down, attenuation will be greater.

I just got a 1.090 tripel down to 1.008 in 7 using this method.

I am not sold on using Chanpagne yeast. I did a barleywine (1.096 OG) and it attenuated fine and carbonated fine using Nottingham. I guess that begs the question of what yeast you are using?

I did my Imperial Pumpkin beer (which started out at 1.1) and pitched Munton's Gold dry yeast....it came out just fine (1.008 FG).

Using the JZ calculator (assuming you are doing 5 gallons) I am getting 2 packets of dry yeast needed. (don't forget to rehydrate using the proscribed method).

I agree also on the champagne yeast, if you use that you will get no flavor out of it and end up with a dry, tasteless beer. Also, pitching after fermentation does not work (from experience.) You will just end up with a bunch more dead yeast on the bottom of your fermenter.

And as for sucrose, what happens is that as yeast metabolize it, they soon stop producing the enzymes needed to metabolize maltose after 1 or 2 generations, meaning they will be unable to finish out your beer...

I am assuming though that since you are doing a barleywine there won't be much if any sucrose in your recipe.