Can I salvage an opened package of liquid yeast

[Patrick Villarraga]

Brewing a small batch tomorrow and won’t need the the whole package of liquid yeast can I save it and keep it in the fridge for my next batch? How would I make a slurry? What would the steps be?

 

[RPh_Guy]

Do you have DME on hand?
Make a starter for the remainder of the package.

 

[day_trippr]

For example, if you use half a 100B cell pack that's reasonably fresh, pour the other half in 50 grams of DME dissolved in 500ml of water and cooled to say 70°F, shaken frequently, and allowed to fully ferment out (24 hours anyway) before pouring it into a sanitized sealable jar and stuck in the fridge 'til next brew day. That'll store roughly 100B cells at Day Zero...

Cheers!

 

[Patrick Villarraga]

For example, if you use half a 100B cell pack that's reasonably fresh, pour the other half in 50 grams of DME dissolved in 500ml of water and cooled to say 70°F, shaken frequently, and allowed to fully ferment out (24 hours anyway) before pouring it into a sanitized sealable jar and stuck in the fridge 'til next brew day. That'll store roughly 100B cells at Day Zero...

Cheers!

Currently no DME. Do I have any other options?

 

[Patrick Villarraga]

Do you have DME on hand?
Make a starter for the remainder of the package.

Not at the moment

 

[RPh_Guy]

You can use wort from the batch (preferably before adding hops).

With sanitation in mind, drain about 300-500mL into a sanitized container of some kind. Dilute it to around 1.035-1.040 with bottled water and then keep it covered. Let it cool before adding the yeast.

 

[Patrick Villarraga]

You can use wort from the batch (preferably before adding hops).

With sanitation in mind, drain about 300-500mL into a sanitized container of some kind. Dilute it to around 1.035-1.040 with bottled water and then keep it covered. Let it cool before adding the yeast.

ok so would a sanitized mason jar work? When can I cover it and keep it I. The fridge? How long would it be good for?

 

[RPh_Guy]

Mason jar is good.
Loosely cover with foil for about 24 hours or more.
For storage: sanitize and apply the lid, leaving it slightly open, about 1/8th turn.
In the fridge it'll last several months. Use it to make a starter.

 

[NeoBrew]

As day trippr implied in his post, the 500ml version will get you about 100 billion cells to start with. From there you can use any yeast calculator to estimate the survival rate of the yeast. Then when you decide to brew again you can grow up more cells based on that estimate.

This is the one I use.

 

[RPh_Guy]

For example, if you use half a 100B cell pack that's reasonably fresh, pour the other half in 50 grams of DME dissolved in 500ml of water and cooled to say 70°F, shaken frequently, and allowed to fully ferment out (24 hours anyway) before pouring it into a sanitized sealable jar and stuck in the fridge 'til next brew day. That'll store roughly 100B cells at Day Zero...

Cheers!

As day trippr implied in his post, the 500ml version will get you about 100 billion cells to start with. From there you can use any yeast calculator to estimate the survival rate of the yeast. Then when you decide to brew again you can grow up more cells based on that estimate.

This is the one I use.

Hmm, let me give it a shot.

If the yeast package is 6 weeks old, a 500mL frequently shaken starter will yield around 80 billion cells.

 

[day_trippr]

There ya go. Benchmark...

Cheers!