Barleywine Yeast

[SMc0724]

I'm trying to determine how much Safale 05 to add in secondary to finish a 12% ABV Barleywine. By finish, I mean I'll use 05 after an S04 & Notty yeast cake from a wheat IPA, does it's work. I know S04&Notty cake will not function well above about 9% ABV, so the S05 will finish above 9%.

The BW is mostly made from extract with a few pounds of various grains boiled in a bag.

I know how to calculate cells needed, what I don't know is how much sugar the cake will leave unconverted, How do I determine how much S05 yeast to pitch to finish ?

 

[SMc0724]

Can I just assume that 4-5 points will need to be converted? That equates to about 50-100 billion cells or one or two packets. ???

 

[Culbetron]

s 04 and Notty have something like 75% attenuation. So that would mean you should finish around 1.025 ideally. But with a bigger beer like this you could finish even 10 points higher.

You would have to pitch a huge starter of s 05 to give it enough viability to stick into a 9% wort and expect it to grow. Why not just add it at the beginning with the yeast cake to let it grow along with everything else and then if the Notty and 04 give up, the 05 will already have grown enough to be able to handle it.

 

[SMc0724]

Culbetron, I obviously still have a lot to learn about yeast. I was not aware of improved viability of 05 by pitching in primary. Where can I learn and read about this?

I can certainly pitch with cake, but was going with suggestions (to pitch at secondary) I've read elsewhere.

Thanks.

 

[boydster]

Basically the 05 won't be acclimated to the acidic, alcoholic environment left when the other yeast are done, and so just pitching the yeast will likely cause it to stay dormant given the hostile environment it is being tossed in to. By pitching a starter at high krausen, you can be sure that the yeast is awake, hungry, and better able to handle working in an alcoholic environment

 

[SMc0724]

Got it.