The Number 8 Starter

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swean

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Hey All,

Going to do NorthernBrewer's Number 8 Strong Dark this weekend. Since the OG is 1084 I'm going to do a starter and I've never done one before. I understand the process, but Mr Malty says to do a 4.4 liter starter. That sounds enormous- can I do that with one step and be alright?

And since I'll need a pound of DME, do I simply pull that pound of DME from the recipe, or add another pound of DME to my boil?
 
That seems like a pretty large starter. How did you do your calculations?

One thing that can help is to use the "intermittent shaking" method, where you shake up the starter solution every 4-8 hours or so. This will allow you to use a smaller starter, although not as small as you could get to with a stir plate. Per Jamil's calculator, you can get by with a 3 liter starter, if you shake it intermittently.

With large starters, I prefer to make them up with DME that is not part of the recipe. The night before brewing, I crash cool the starter by putting it in the fridge. The yeast then drops out of suspension. An hour or so before pitching (like right at the start of the boil), I decant the spent beer from the yeast, and leave the starter out on the countertop to slowly warm to room temperature.

I'm not sure where you're going with "add another pound of DME to my boil?". Starters don't go in the boil.
The HBT Wiki has a decent section on making starters.
 
jds said:
That seems like a pretty large starter. How did you do your calculations?

One thing that can help is to use the "intermittent shaking" method, where you shake up the starter solution every 4-8 hours or so. This will allow you to use a smaller starter, although not as small as you could get to with a stir plate. Per Jamil's calculator, you can get by with a 3 liter starter, if you shake it intermittently.

With large starters, I prefer to make them up with DME that is not part of the recipe. The night before brewing, I crash cool the starter by putting it in the fridge. The yeast then drops out of suspension. An hour or so before pitching (like right at the start of the boil), I decant the spent beer from the yeast, and leave the starter out on the countertop to slowly warm to room temperature.

I'm not sure where you're going with "add another pound of DME to my boil?". Starters don't go in the boil.
The HBT Wiki has a decent section on making starters.
Click to expand...


Okay, that makes sense about the intermittent shaking, I will do that instead.

I plan on making the starter Friday afternoon and brew on Saturday morning, so I won't have time to crash cool and decant. So should I just add the entire solution once the wort is cooled?
 
Between the time you start brewing on Saturday until you're cooled and ready to pitch, I bet you could toss the starter in the fridge to help settle out the yeast, allowing you to decant some liquid off the top.
 

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