1056 and wlp002 together in imp stout??

[beerman123]

So i've got two imperial stout brew days coming up. Was going to make big starters for both and use the 1056 to ferment the fist stout having an estimated OG of 1.094 and and the wlp002 to ferment the second stout of OG 1.107. Maybe this is more common than I know of but I had the crazy idea of possibly pitching both yeast strands into the same starter and then pitching to my 1.094 stout on Saturday. Then, when that has fermented out, pitch my 1.107 stout to the entire yeast cake left behind. Anyone have experience with such a thing or any comments on whether this would work/ be a good idea?

 

[m1k3]

Pitching from a small beer to a big beer is a great idea. You're planning huge and huger.
I don't repitch on yeast after I do a 1.090 beer. In fact, I rarely brew over 1.080...
Have you? At least on my system it takes a ton more grain. (I know your question is not about the efficiency challenges.)

So, back to yeast.... 2 packets of yeast is still a low pitch for 1.090 beer. It will work.

And blending those two yeasts... that will work too.
https://www.morebeer.com/products/white-labs-worlds-yeast-blend.html

Pitching on a yeast cake is a great idea... but 1.050 is a better gravity for the starter beer next time.

 

[beerman123]

I have only brewed over 1.080 on my system once before and yes it has been at the expense of efficiency. This imperial stout was no exception to that. I brew with the grainfather and have limited tun capacity so I feel on larger grain bills I can never quite get the proper mash thickness and therefore less sugar extraction. Need to continue to play around with it, work in progress...

As for the 1056 and wlp002 that I combined, fermentation went hard and fast for 3 days and then things slowed down drastically. I lost some yeast through the blowout tube, but that was to be expected....Not sure what impact this will have on attenuation but I will wait and see.

Alos, Appreciate the advice about the starter 1.050 brew...have never pitched onto a full yeast cake before so clearly didn't know what I was doing.

 

[Denny]

Pitching 2 yeasts simultaneously is a crap shoot...you have no idea which will dominate and no way to control it. Yeast from a 1.094 fermentation should not be reused IMO.

 

[beerman123]

@denny can i ask why yeast from a high og fermentation shouldnt be reused? Just curious since I have zero experience with this. Is it that the yeast are too stressed at that point? What would I be risking pitching fresh wort on top? A stuck fermentation?

 

[beerman123]

What would I risk if I reused this yeast? A stuck fermentation? Is it simply due to the yeast being stressed from te higher abv?

 

[day_trippr]

Yes, and Yes...

Cheers!

 

[Denny]

What would I risk if I reused this yeast? A stuck fermentation? Is it simply due to the yeast being stressed from te higher abv?

Stuck fermentation and off flavors. The ROT is not to reuse yeast from an OG over 1.060-65. I'm a yeast abuser and push that to 70-75. But after that even a hardened yeast abuser like me stops. One possibility is that you could take a portion of it and build a new starter from it. But pay close attention to that starter for signs that it may not be going well.

 

[Dcpcooks]

My experience leads me to never reuse yeast from a beer over 1.070-1.080. It will really stress that yeast. Maybe off flavors or poor attenuation or both leaving you with a weird sweet beer. Just my two cents.

 

[schatzke]

High gravity beers mean higher costs(more grain) and longer age times(usually). These 2 monster brews you are planning deserve the best you can give them in terms of yeast and yeast health.