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redrocker652002

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I am planning on doing a brew tomorrow. It is loosely an 805 type beer. My yeast, liquid WLP002, has been sitting in my fridge at about 37 to 38 degrees for at least a few months. I have some leftover DME and was thinking of doing a starter today. I have a gallon jug, and if I remember right 100 grams of DME to a Litre of water. Dissolve, boil for a few minutes to kill any bacteria and then pitch the yeast. Shake the container and then cover with aluminium foil and let it sit on the counter overnight. If I do my brew, the yeast will be pitched later on tomorrow so my hope is siting on the counter for the night will help me in two ways. A: Make sure the yeast is still good and B. Get a good start on fermenting. Anybody have any comments on what I am planning? This will be the second starter I am trying to make. I don't think the other ended up working out to well I also have a pack of S05 and maybe some BRY97 just in case. But I would like to use the yeast the recipe calls for. Any input is most appreciated. RR
 
Firestone Walker 805? With 002? I dont think I'm trackin'. If so, wrong yeast, wrong pitching rate, wrong time frame for a starter. But I doubt that's what you are referring to as an 805 style, of which I may not be familiar with. If it is an ale that you are brewing, then you will do just fine with your method. In that amount of time you won't have much population growth, but it will certainly have them at high activity by then.
 
That FG seems waaaay too high. I'd peg it at 1012. OG does seem to check out. However, 1059 also seems way too high of an OG for this beer. Perhaps shoot for 1048? FW does claim 4.7% as opposed to 5.2%, as claims your recipe. Your recipe also states a 10 gallon preboil volume and a 10 gallon batch size. This doesn't make sense unless you're adding water to volume in the end, which could be a crap shoot depending on boil off rate. Watch your preboil gravity and make your calls from there. If you haven't read Ray Daniel's book yet, you're missing out. Go read Designing Great Beers, it's a gold mine. If you need to know gravity points in a pinch, let me know.
 
i think I screwed up. It is a 5 gallon recipe that i have. I went out with a buddy ad had a few, so I may be off. Either way, I have all the stuff to brew it, so I am in LOL. Depends on what time I wake up, and if I am feeling it. Good night all. Be safe. And I screwed up This is the recipe I am following.

https://brewgr.com/recipe/27601/805-blonde-ale-clone-blonde-ale-recipe
 
Brew day was put on hold due to life events. Might give it a go today or tomorrow. My plan is to use a starter this time. I have a pack of dry yeast at the ready just in case, but this will be my second attempt at a starter. We will see.
 
Did you do the starter yet? Reading the original post, you said to boil, then pitch the yeast. I hope you let the starter wort cool to room temp before pitching. If you pitched without letting it cool first, you killed the yeast.
 
homebeerbrewer said:
Did you do the starter yet? Reading the original post, you said to boil, then pitch the yeast. I hope you let the starter wort cool to room temp before pitching. If you pitched without letting it cool first, you killed the yeast.
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I have not done anything as of yet. I am going to make the starter a bit later with the plan to actually brew being tomorrow. And yes, I know to cool the starter wort before I pitch the yeast into it. My plan is to put the pot into the fridge and get the starter wort down to around 70 degrees or so. I think that is the pitch temp, but I will look on the yeast package before I do it. Thank you for the reply, I appreciate all input. RR
 
homebeerbrewer said:
What I do is put it in the sink with cool water above the level of the starter wort. Putting a hot pot into the fridge could warm the fridge, which may be enough to spoil something inside.
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Good thought, I never thought of that. The pot should be small enough to cool fairly quickly in the sink. Thanks. RR
 
I put my pot in the sink in an ice water bath. My groundwater is over 80° right now. I don’t have the patience to cool it with straight water. Just a thought if you’re in a warm climate.
 
Blackdirt_cowboy said:
I put my pot in the sink in an ice water bath. My groundwater is over 80° right now. I don’t have the patience to cool it with straight water. Just a thought if you’re in a warm climate.
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Thank you. I am just south of San Francisco, so warm is not us. LOL. I am going to try the proper starter wort this time, it is just an open the can, pour and add another can of water and go. I am out of DME, so this is a good reason to try something different RR
 
To that can of starter wort, add boiled and cooled water to make sure nothing is alive in the water. And, make sure to sanitize the outside of the can before opening. Critters can be lurking on the outside, waiting for the can to be opened.
 
homebeerbrewer said:
To that can of starter wort, add boiled and cooled water to make sure nothing is alive in the water. And, make sure to sanitize the outside of the can before opening. Critters can be lurking on the outside, waiting for the can to be opened.
Click to expand...
Great advice, I never thought about hitting the can with Starsan as well Thank you
 
Well, as I posted in another thread, my yeast did not survive I don't think. It has been in the beer since Sunday about 1pm, and I am not seeing anything at all, no activity thru the airlock. My question to the experts is, do I dump it, should I throw my pack of S05 in it, or should I wait until Thursday or Friday and go to my LBS and see what they have that might be a better substitute for the WLP002? I don't mind any of the choices as this has been a really good learning experience for me, as I made a few errors I think in the process. But, if I can salvage it I would like to do so. Just,, if for no other reason, I see what it tastes like. RR
 
No activity through the airlock is not an indication that it's not fermenting. What are you fermenting in? A bucket? The lids sometimes don't seal completely, and the CO2 will escape from there. Open it up and take a peak inside. If you see foam on top, it's fermenting. then put the lid back on and let it go. If not, pitch more yeast. Another way to check for fermentation is to use your hydrometer. If it's dropped any, it's fermenting.
 
redrocker652002 said:
Well, as I posted in another thread, my yeast did not survive I don't think. It has been in the beer since Sunday about 1pm, and I am not seeing anything at all, no activity thru the airlock. My question to the experts is, do I dump it, should I throw my pack of S05 in it, or should I wait until Thursday or Friday and go to my LBS and see what they have that might be a better substitute for the WLP002? I don't mind any of the choices as this has been a really good learning experience for me, as I made a few errors I think in the process. But, if I can salvage it I would like to do so. Just,, if for no other reason, I see what it tastes like. RR
Click to expand...
You have done this before. Be patient. It has only been a few days and have you taken any readings to verify if fermentation has started?
 
homebeerbrewer said:
No activity through the airlock is not an indication that it's not fermenting. What are you fermenting in? A bucket? The lids sometimes don't seal completely, and the CO2 will escape from there. Open it up and take a peak inside. If you see foam on top, it's fermenting. then put the lid back on and let it go. If not, pitch more yeast. Another way to check for fermentation is to use your hydrometer. If it's dropped any, it's fermenting.
Click to expand...
Got it I will look. I am pretty sure I got the lid on there good, but you are right, I never know unless I look. Thanks. I will also get another packet of WLP002 and throw it in there if nothing is going on. Maybe a fresh pack will start things up
 
OK. So I went to my LBS and talked to the guys there. Well, actually I went to just get another pack of WLP002 to dump into my wort and see if I can salvage anything. While talking, and looking at some of the kits, I mentioned how my first pack of yeast seemed to not take. One of the questions he asked was what temp I stored it at. I told him in the fridge, and my wife keeps the fridge in the mid to high 30's, so it was probably around 37 to 38 degrees. He said that might have killed off the yeast. So, maybe it was doomed from the start. LOL. Either way, I bought another pack and a kit to brew next weekend. So, all in all, not a bad trip really. LOL
 
I’m thinking the umm was because the guy you talked to doesn’t know what he’s talking about. You are supposed to store liquid yeast in the refrigerator. Heat kills yeast. And, of course, freezing them.
 
Blackdirt_cowboy said:
I’m thinking the umm was because the guy you talked to doesn’t know what he’s talking about. You are supposed to store liquid yeast in the refrigerator. Heat kills yeast. And, of course, freezing them.
Click to expand...
My wife keeps the fridge temp in the mid to high 30s. I think it was at 36 when I opened it just a bit ago. His thought was that thectemp may have caused the issue. Either way, there was no Krausen or Amy hint of fermentation when I opened the lid. So I dumped in more yeast. If it doesn't do anything in the next few days I'm dumping it and trying again with dry yeast.
 
rburrelli said:
Have you taken that gravity reading yet?
Click to expand...
No. I opened the lid and it looked as it did when I put it in 5 days ago. In my opinion, and I know that isn't much, the yeast didn't do what it was supposed to. Whether it was dead in the package or my starter killed it, either way it didn't look or smell like anything happened
 
redrocker652002 said:
My wife keeps the fridge temp in the mid to high 30s. I think it was at 36 when I opened it just a bit ago. His thought was that thectemp may have caused the issue. Either way, there was no Krausen or Amy hint of fermentation when I opened the lid. So I dumped in more yeast. If it doesn't do anything in the next few days I'm dumping it and trying again with dry yeast.
Click to expand...
What was the use by date in the original package of yeast? 36° is fine to store liquid yeast. Did you buy it at your LHBS or order it online?
 
Blackdirt_cowboy said:
What was the use by date in the original package of yeast? 36° is fine to store liquid yeast. Did you buy it at your LHBS or order it online?
Click to expand...
The use date was early November if I remember right. It was shipped to me, and I think it had a cold pack in it, but it has been so long I don't remember.

As a side note, the new yeast has been in the bucket for about 2 hours and it has already moved all the liquid in the airlock from one side to the other, and looks like bubbling may be soon. I know I don't know much, and please take this in the spirit intended, but this time I think I was right. Either the yeast was dead when I got it, died in storage or my starter wasn't right and it killed it. My next attempt will be to just buy a package of liquid yeast and make a starter, let it sit on the counter for a few days and see what happens. If I can, I will put the good starter in a jar and in the fridge for future use. But, for right now, I think I am going to stick with dry until I get the hang of it.
 
I'd say that the yeast died during shipping. 36 degrees won't kill it. It is possible that your starter killed it, but only if you pitched when it was still hot. If you do get liquid yeast, get it from you LHBS. They get it shipped to them too, but they buy in bulk and it's packaged better than an individual pack would be. Yeah, stick with the dry yeast until you get some experience under your belt. Brewing isn't rocket science, but there are things that you'll learn as you go. Just don't give up.
 
homebeerbrewer said:
I'd say that the yeast died during shipping. 36 degrees won't kill it. It is possible that your starter killed it, but only if you pitched when it was still hot. If you do get liquid yeast, get it from you LHBS. They get it shipped to them too, but they buy in bulk and it's packaged better than an individual pack would be. Yeah, stick with the dry yeast until you get some experience under your belt. Brewing isn't rocket science, but there are things that you'll learn as you go. Just don't give up.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the reply. I think, for now, that is what I am going to do. There re plenty of dry yeast options out there, and they are a bit less finicky I guess. I might, just for the heck of it, buy a pack of liquid yeast and just try and make a starter. If it works, I can put it in a jar and use it for another batch later on. I did have some luck with a WYeast, cannot remember the number of it though, but the last two I did just did not work out.
 
redrocker652002 said:
No. I opened the lid and it looked as it did when I put it in 5 days ago. In my opinion, and I know that isn't much, the yeast didn't do what it was supposed to. Whether it was dead in the package or my starter killed it, either way it didn't look or smell like anything happened
Click to expand...
There's no way nothing happened after 5 days.
Either the yeast you pitched is still in her growing phase, she has started to ferment, or some wild yeast or bacteria will have taken over. I've left well-boiled wort in a closed pot for 2 days and it started to get foamy and developing a "musky" smell and flavor. It was fermenting!
 
IslandLizard said:
There's no way nothing happened after 5 days.
Either the yeast you pitched is still in her growing phase, she has started to ferment, or some wild yeast or bacteria will have taken over. I've left well-boiled wort in a closed pot for 2 days and it started to get foamy and developing a "musky" smell and flavor. It was fermenting!
Click to expand...
I can only tell you what I saw, which was nothing. No foam, nothing floating on the top, nothing. Same as when it went it. Call it what you want, but that is what I saw.

On a side note, I just measured my temp in the closet and it is at about 65 degrees. I think that is in range for the yeast, but I am going to turn a heater on and see if that helps. Either way, this is going to be my last attempt to save this one. If it doesn't show me anything by the end of next week, it is going down the drain. Not worth the effort, and who knows if it is going to be any good anyway.
 
redrocker652002 said:
If it doesn't show me anything by the end of next week, it is going down the drain.
Click to expand...
You may want to taste it first...

redrocker652002 said:
I just measured my temp in the closet and it is at about 65 degrees.
Click to expand...
That's a good temp actually for that yeast. As long as it's steady at that and doesn't drop to 60F or lower during the night, which is what I fear is happening, and hence she's very slow coming along.
 
IslandLizard said:
You may want to taste it first...


That's a good temp actually for that yeast. As long as it's steady at that and doesn't drop to 60F or lower during the night, which is what I fear is happening, and hence she's very slow coming along.
Click to expand...
Sorry for my snotty reply, I am getting a bit frustrated. I have been at this for a while, and it seems I am going backwards not forwards. But, a good thing just came of this I figured how to rig a heater and fan in my closet and hook up my inkbird temp monitor. So, with that being said, my hope is that I can keep the temp right around 46 to 47. I am going to let it run, and leave it be for a week. I need to learn patience, that has been an issue all along. thank you for your posts and to all who post, I honestly and truly appreciate your taking the time to help me out. RR
 
In the future, take a gravity reading to verify whether or not fermentation has started. I’ve had beers finish in less than 5 days. If there’s a leak in the lid and you peak inside after fermentation is done, it may appear as if nothing has happened.
 
Kickass said:
In the future, take a gravity reading to verify whether or not fermentation has started. I’ve had beers finish in less than 5 days. If there’s a leak in the lid and you peak inside after fermentation is done, it may appear as if nothing has happened.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the reply, I will do that and give it a taste in a few days. I have no idea why the second packet hasn't shown any activity either, but what the heck, it was bound to happen. I bought a kit from Morebeer while I was there, so another brew day will be next weekend. Gonna jump right back on it, but this time dry yeast will be the option. All good, not gonna give up quite yet. RR
 

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