This is the method I have adopted due to several factors. Living in a somewhat dry part of a dry continent results in severe water shortages from time to time, and municipal water supply restrictions range from moderate to severe in accordance with dam levels. When the most severe restrictions...
As an entry level brewer I did little more than buy a Whitelabs vial, bring it to 70ish degrees, gave it a good shake and pitched it into a carboy full of cool wort. Voila! It worked. Eventually, curiosity, evolution, the desire for better beer, or whatever we are calling it today, took over and...
Image courtesy Wikipedia
We are a pretty diverse bunch here down under as we range from brewing on a stove, 2 pot lauter (http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/60922-2-pot-stovetop-ag-with-lauter/?p=858775). A group of us a few years back refined and furthered the BIAB process, which now has folks...