how to best use my stored brett starter (pix)

a few months ago i made a starter with a vial of WLP650 (brett B). i let is run for 7 or 8 days, poured some into the secondary of 2 different brews and kept a quart of the leftover starter. i put a piece of aluminum foil tightly over the quart jar, secured it in place with a tight elastic band, and it's been sitting in my cellar for 2 or 3 months. pix of the jar included below. note that there is likely a pellicle under there, and some weird growths down from the surface/pellicle. pretty cool in my opinion.

i now want to add brett to another batch. what's the best way to do this? just pour off some of the liquid? should i avoid the pellicle? do i need to rouse the yeast from the bottom of the jar (see last photo)?

well, you would have a hard time pouring off the fermented wort, so adding it to a larger vessle with some fresh wort would be the best thing?

badlee said:

well, you would have a hard time pouring off the fermented wort, so adding it to a larger vessle with some fresh wort would be the best thing?

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my thinking and/or hope is that there is still plenty of brett in suspension in the liquid, so i would only need to pour some of the liquid into my new batch to get brett in there. i'm not too worried about how much gets pitched, the brett will work its magic in a wide range of cell count (yes, i know, a lower pitch will have a greater effect but take longer).

i guess i'm asking for confirmation or opinions on the fact that brett is floating about in the liquid and isn't just in the cake at the bottom.

eff it, i think i'll just plunge a wine thief in there, pierce the pellicle, try picking up some of the stuff at the bottom of the jar, then top it up with some fresh malto-heavy wort.

slightly off topic, but that looks more like a kombucha scoby than any brett pellicle i've seen

dcHokie said:

slightly off topic, but that looks more like a kombucha scoby than any brett pellicle i've seen

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good point, hadn't thought of that. it's possible that an assortment of nasties got in there (maybe when it was on the stir-plate?) and have set up their own colony.

i'll taste of the liquid before adding any to my new batch. in a worse case i might need to order some new brett. or maybe i'll have my own house blend of bugs! (although it might be too early to properly assess what their impact/flavor is)

Could be, looks pretty similar, no?

dcHokie said:

Could be, looks pretty similar, no?

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quite similar. the growth in your pic is smoother and more solid, whereas mine is more dusty/bubbly/powdery. it falls apart pretty easily, just knocking the jar a little made a bunch of little chunks fall off the "main growth" and slowly float to the bottom. you can see the floaties in the pic. this is why i took the picture in my dark cellar with a flashlight instead of moving it to somewhere with better light.

is your pic from kombucha?

sweetcell said:

quite similar. the growth in your pic is smoother and more solid, whereas mine is more dusty/bubbly/powdery. it falls apart pretty easily, just knocking the jar a little made a bunch of little chunks fall off the "main growth" and slowly float to the bottom. you can see the floaties in the pic. this is why i took the picture in my dark cellar with a flashlight instead of moving it to somewhere with better light.

is your pic from kombucha?

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Interesting, looks like you may just have a slowly descending pellicle.

My pic is from kombucha and the scoby is quite firm (consistency of beef tendon in pho, if you are familiar).

i'm familiar with the consistency of kombucha mother, SWMBO has had one in the fridge for 2 years now.

i'll have a better idea of its consistency and appearance when i move the jar to somewhere better lit, and peel back the foil. i'll give the liquid a taste, and if it's decent i'll add some to the new batch i want to funk up.

I think I'd swirl up the starter and add some to your beer. Then take some of you beer and add it to the starter to feed the brett.

Calder said:

I think I'd swirl up the starter and add some to your beer. Then take some of you beer and add it to the starter to feed the brett.

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brilliant! thanks!

sweetcell said:

note that there is likely a pellicle under there, and some weird growths down from the surface/pellicle. pretty cool in my opinion.

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in case anyone cares, pix of the pellicle here:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f127/pellicle-photo-collection-174033/index87.html#post4959248