3+ Week Old Yeast Starter

[JFittMA01]

Hi All! First post. I've seen similar posts that had differing responses so I thought I would reach out on my scenario.

I have a yeast starter in the fridge for 3+ weeks. Nice cake at the bottom. I would usually remove from fridge while I set up my brew day, decant, swirl and pitch when wort is to temp.

Can I still use same method - or would you suggest decant, add wort and spin on the plate for how long???

Sorry if this has been asked before but I won't want to dump a batch if I can help it.

TIA

 

[Dinadan]

I just sit the yeast out for a while to warm up and then pitch straight out of the bottle. To me, three week old, refrigerated yeast cake is really not at all old. I am not sure just how long it lasts, but longer that that for sure. But! I am a bit of a newbie myself.

 

[JFittMA01]

Thanks for the reply. ill give it a try.

 

[Dog House Brew]

I would warm it, add a little wort, shake the crap out of it for a dose of O2. Then I would pitch the entire thing. You don’t need to put it ion a stir plate. Not sure what your vessel size is. I use a glass gallon jug when my timing gets off. I add some wort, and the yeast to the jug. Shake to fill it with foam. By the time I’m ready to pitch, it is already rocking. Sort of a Shake’n not Stirred starter.

 

[JFittMA01]

Yeah, I was thinking of using some of the work from my brew to jump start it a bit. Would you decant first? I saw on another thread from an experienced brewer that best results when yeast is 5 or 10 degrees cooler than pitching temp.

 

[Dog House Brew]

I’d wam and decant what is on your 3wk starter. Add some fresh and shake it up. All you need is for it to get started. I’d pitch the entire starter, assuming you are doing a 5 gallon batch. That said, I don’t think 3 weeks is very long. Getting it going will definitely help your lag time.

Oh and welcome

 

[JFittMA01]

Great. Thanks...

 

[hottpeper13]

It's called a vitality starter. I take a quart mason jar from the boil at the 10 min mark, chill and pitch on my yeast then ( anywhere from 4-8 hrs) pitch the whole thing. Most yeasts have around a 4 hr lag time and I get the foam cap by morning.

 

[JFittMA01]

Awesome. Thank you!

 

[IslandLizard]

It's called a vitality starter. I take a quart mason jar from the boil at the 10 min mark, chill and pitch on my yeast then ( anywhere from 4-8 hrs) pitch the whole thing. Most yeasts have around a 4 hr lag time and I get the foam cap by morning.

I often do that, and exactly with few weeks old starter slurries. I also oxygenate that vitality starter. Just stick the wand in there for 5-10 minutes at a low flow rate of 1/32 or 1/16 l/m.

 

[RM-MN]

Lets go with real science. 3 weeks is like new, as there is nearly no change in the yeast vitality.

http://www.woodlandbrew.com/2012/12/refrigeration-effects-on-yeast-viability.html
"Conclusion:

While the initial viability can vary greatly, the viability over time dose not change a measurable amount over the course of one month."

 

[JFittMA01]

Nothing more credible than science and actual experience.

Thanks for helping me feel comfortable with using the starter. Awesome!

 

[matt_m]

I've used 2-3 week old starters as a matter of course with 0 issues. I leave them with the spent wort on top until brew day, then dump most off, swirl to get everything back in suspension, and lately stick them back on the stir plate to keep it that way until the wort is chilled in the fermenters. I've never tried the vitality starter, I think I will next batch.

 

[JFittMA01]

I plan on decanting most of the spent wort out of my starter and pitch on about 16 oz of new wort, swish it up and onto the stir plate until I get to pitching temp and then pitch all of it in. I'll let you know how it goes!

 

[rhys333]

Hi All! First post. I've seen similar posts that had differing responses so I thought I would reach out on my scenario.

I have a yeast starter in the fridge for 3+ weeks. Nice cake at the bottom. I would usually remove from fridge while I set up my brew day, decant, swirl and pitch when wort is to temp.

Can I still use same method - or would you suggest decant, add wort and spin on the plate for how long???

Sorry if this has been asked before but I won't want to dump a batch if I can help it.

TIA

You have a lot of fresh new cells there and three weeks isn't long enough time in storage to cause any concern in most situations. I woudn't think twice about decanting and pitching directly into wort.

 

[IslandLizard]

You have a lot of fresh new cells there and three weeks isn't long enough time in storage to cause any concern in most situations. I woudn't think twice about decanting and pitching directly into wort.

The key to actual viability lies in how big the "+" part is:

I have a yeast starter in the fridge for 3+ weeks.

 

[rhys333]

The key to actual viability lies in how big the "+" part is:

A reasonably sized starter in a moderate strength beer should have enough new cells, even with a 10-15% loss over 3 to 4 weeks. IMHO, we tend to overthink yeast.