OK to wash this yeast?

I normally brew a nice 1.050 beer every 4th batch so I can wash the yeast and be good for another 4 batches. This last brew was a Blonde Ale with Wyeast 1056, but I forgot to shove the temp probe down the thermowell in the carboy so it was reading the air temp outside of my fermentation chamber and the heater was on for the first 5 hours. It is not a powerful heater, thankfully, but it got the temperature of the wort up to 83F from 65F. I then brought it back down to 65F in a few hours but my first sample after 1.5 weeks of fermentation has a bit of that bubble gum flavor going on. I'm going to let it hopefully smooth out a little more and then keg hoping for the best.

So the question, is it OK to wash this yeast and reuse? Or should I play it safe and buy another pack and start over?

Thanks

$8 for total peace of mind.

I'm partially guessing here, but your beer doesn't taste great because you fermented warm. The yeast however do like warm. Yeast growing temps and beer fermenting temps don't go hand in hand. I doubt your fermenting temps stressed the yeast so wash it and try it. I wouldn't toss it.

On the safe side make a small batch of low abv/low hopped session beer with this yeast. Worst case scenario the yeast is shot and you blew a few dollars on some hops and grain. Best case scenario, you make some nice beer and have answered an important question that will be relavent always. On the off chance the the beer turns out bad. (because of the yeast, not recipe or process) You'll have an answer as well. With experience comes knowledge.

The yeast is fine.

The yeast are still the same yeast 85 degrees for a couple others will not cause and mutations.

Dan said:

I'm partially guessing here, but your beer doesn't taste great because you fermented warm. The yeast however do like warm. Yeast growing temps and beer fermenting temps don't go hand in hand. I doubt your fermenting temps stressed the yeast so wash it and try it. I wouldn't toss it.

On the safe side make a small batch of low abv/low hopped session beer with this yeast. Worst case scenario the yeast is shot and you blew a few dollars on some hops and grain. Best case scenario, you make some nice beer and have answered an important question that will be relavent always, even if the beer turns out bad. You'll have an answer. With experience comes knowledge.

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My guess would be the same. The beer may have suffered but the yeast probably loved the warmth.

I would say go for it also.

Again on the safe side use it for something with an inexpensive grainbill.

Thanks guys, I think that sounds like a good plan. I'll go ahead and make a nice session beer with the yeast washed from this current batch and report back with the results. My guess is the yeast will be fine as well, I am just worried about any possible mutations really.

Well I brewed up a small blonde ale with all cascade hops, 85% 2 row & 15% Crystal 20L, 1.043 OG, 23 IBU's. The sample tastes fantastic, nice easy drinking lawnmower beer. So I think I proved that there was no mutation with the yeast.

Crazy thing is I mashed at 154F for 1 hour and the FG was 1.006. That's 85% apparent attenuation for Wyeast 1056 which is supposed to be 73-77%. I'm not complaining but if I want to hit my target FG with this house yeast I don't think I can simply mash at 158F, I'll probably need to start adding some Carapils. Maybe only mash for 30-45 minutes instead of the full 60 minutes? Thoughts?

That is a lot of crystal. I think I would be checking the accuracy of the thermometer, and did you really mash at 154.

Yeah I did, I use a recirculating eBIAB setup and the temp probe is accurate. Maybe because it is Crystal 20L it is more fermentable than say Crystal 80L? I also fermented at 66F in a temp controlled fridge using a thermowell.

Another thought I had on the attenuation is perhaps the yeast has started adapting to my process? This is the 3rd generation now from a single packet of Wyeast 1056. I guess it could also be my Pale malt as I just dug into a new 55 lb sack and I don't believe it is the same brand as my previous sack.