Pitching a RIS on a cake

[DB_Cooper]

I haven't brewed all summer, so I'm a bit anxious to get some beer bottled. I've got a Pliny like IPA that will be 2 weeks in the fermenter next weekend. I'd like to make a RIS and just pitch it on the cake, which I've never done, and hear that it is always considered over pitching.

I'd like to bottle the IPA, so it will be at least drinkable sooner. But I was wondering if I secondaried the IPA with about a half of the cake, and then pitched the RIS on the other half, would I still get some benefit for the IPA, or would it be a waste of time?

Any thoughts? I'm typically not a lazy brewer, but I need some stuff ready for the holidays...

 

[Transamguy77]

I've done it 2 ways, I've just pitched on the cake and I've taken a sterilized measuring cup and scooped out some, cleaned the fermentor and dumped it back in after filling it with cooled wort. Both times I've had no off flavors and fermentation took off really fast, like in a few hours fast.

 

[amandabab]

I pitch on a cake all the time with great results, but a RIS isn't going to be ready for this years holidays.

 

[WoodlandBrew]

If it were me, I would rack the IPA to the secondary ad usual. Then pour the yeast cake into three or four 1 quart mason jars. Then sanitize the ale pale. Brew the beer, cool and pitch from the 2nd jar of slury. I use the second jar because the first one is normally a little thin, the last jar has the yeast that dropped out early.
The stout would probably be drinkable at the end of this year, but might do better with more time.

 

[DB_Cooper]

I wasn't quite clear on the timing, I realize the RIS won't be ready, but I'm rushing the IPA a bit. The IPA will be in the primary 2 weeks when I brew the RIS, so I was wondering if it would help if I put half the yeast cake in the secondary for a week, then bottle. I would probably dry hop the secondary since it's an IPA. Then I would pitch the RIS on top of the remaining yeast cake. Just curious if it would help the IPA to sit on half the cake for a week, or not matter much.

 

[old_tx_kbb]

One thing to consider when pitching to a fresh cake is how big was the beer that the original yeast fermented. If it had an OG over 1.060, from my research, you may want to consider using a huge fresh yeast starter. The Pliny I know is an 8 % brew with an OG of 1.070. I personally wouldn't use a fresh yeast cake from a 1.070 batch because the yeast would be too stressed. I typically brew much smaller propagation batches between 1.050 to 1.060 OG's to use their yeast cakes for my bigger beers.

But that's my opinion, and that's another reason why this is called homebrewing. You can brew it any way you want.

Good Luck.

PS...you may want to look at my previous post about RIS and Barleywine OG's and FG's

 

[DB_Cooper]

So I wanted to report on the results, as they were pretty interesting. So I made a Pliny clone, and bottled it after 2 weeks in primary. I went ahead and made the Old Rasputin clone the same day I bottled and threw it on the Pliny yeast cake. Old Tex had me worried, but I decided to do it as an experiment. I had crazy airlock activity in 2 hours, used a blowoff for 2 days, and then it slowed down. I primaried the RIS for 3 weeks and bottled, no dry hop, and it is incredible. I doubt I could tell it from the real thing. The original IPA was not as good, I should have dry hopped and left on the cake a week or two longer.

Long story short, throwing the RIS on a Pliny cake did not appear to be too stressful for the yeast, and while it might be overpitching, it's one of the best brews I've made over 15 years of brewing.

 

[old_tx_kbb]

dude that is so awesome...congrats!