AG'ers: Do you freeze wort for starters?

[Zamial]

AFTER my mash out at 168F and I am waiting for my boil to start, I throw in some ice cubes and cold tap water that I treated with a camden tab. I let this sit for 60minutes or longer, drain and boil it for 15 minutes or until my gravity is at 1.030. Then chill that so I do not get all the crud in the canning process. Bring free starter wort inside and can it after the yeast pitch. I do not always do this but like to when I can.

 

[acidrain]

Yes, I brew 10 lbs of 2-row to 1.040, bag it up into 1 litre portions, and freeze it in plastic bins so they make nice square bricks.
This is WAY cheaper than buying DME all the time, and a lot more convenient.
Then when I'm ready, I pull out what I need, thaw and boil it, then cool to pitching temp.

 

[kpr121]

Yes, I brew 10 lbs of 2-row to 1.040, bag it up into 1 litre portions, and freeze it in plastic bins so they make nice square bricks.
This is WAY cheaper than buying DME all the time, and a lot more convenient.
Then when I'm ready, I pull out what I need, thaw and boil it, then cool to pitching temp.

If I end up ever freezing my wort, this is how I would do it.

 

[Yooper]

Am I the only dummy that makes a starter from DME, boils, cools and pitches yeast each time? The whole process takes, maybe 20 minutes depending on how long it takes to get to pitching temperature. And at $13.50 for a 3 lb bag of DME we are talking $0.28 an ounce. So, a $1 to $2 per starter and not having to have canned/bagged wort stashed throughout the house is fine with me.

What are the 'best practice' methods for storing/making starters in advance?

I usually freeze wort for starters, just out of wort that was left behind in the MLT during a fly sparge. I boil it while I start my wort boiling, then cool it and store it in a tupperware pitcher that I have. It holds 2 quarts. It's pretty easy to have 1.030-1.035 just by boiling it.

When I go to use it for a starter, I just boil it for a minute and then cool and pitch my yeast.

It's not really that much of a time or money savings, but it means that I don't have to worry about keeping DME on hand.

 

[MaxOut]

I just scale one of my house lager recipes up a few gallons and collect the wort in mason jars pre boil. I have a table top burner and a 16 quart pressure canner on my brew system I use to can the jars while I'm boiling the rest of the batch. No extra time and no special brew session for starter wort. I just started doing it this way and has saved allot of time.

 

[Schemy]

I just started freezing wort. I was sitting there one day watching all my second runnings run down my driveway, and decided I could save those for starters. I just run off into ball jars and freeze those. So far its worked pretty well.

 

[AmandaK]

Call me lazy, but I collect and freeze the leftover second runnings in a tall, skinny Tupperware container. Save it from one brew, use it on the next beer's starter.

Boom, done, over.

 

[midfielder5]

Call me lazy, but I collect and freeze the leftover second runnings in a tall, skinny Tupperware container. Save it from one brew, use it on the next beer's starter.

ditto except I no chill -- so I boil, cool and pitch the second runnings wort as a final top off for my yeast starter. I decant, add this, throw it on stir plate and pitch next day.

 

[upNYbrew]

I collect some extra final runnings into PET juice or soda bottles and throw em right into the freezer. Unthaw and boil for 15-20 mins when making starters. This has worked real well, one less thing to worry about buying/having on hand!

 

[sudbuster]

All-Grain brewers -- do you freezer your wort and store it for your starters? I got into a discussion with someone last night and they think that there are few AG brewers who DONT do this. I think the exact opposite -- there are way more that make starters from extract or from "live", recently cooled wort (NOT previously frozen).

Please vote, I'd like to get an idea just out of curiosity.

No. I save my "tailing" malt and mix it together until I have a "brew". Then afterward, without the boil, Fill two cases of quart mason jars. From ebay a few years ago, I aquired a couple of large pressure canners, I "can" the run. IMO, the time spent on this is more than retuned with expediance and a properly prepared starter (yeast nutrients, low hops, Ph, etc). Just sayin'....

 

[kpr121]

I just scale one of my house lager recipes up a few gallons and collect the wort in mason jars pre boil. I have a table top burner and a 16 quart pressure canner on my brew system I use to can the jars while I'm boiling the rest of the batch. No extra time and no special brew session for starter wort. I just started doing it this way and has saved allot of time.

I’m picking up lots of great ideas on this thread, and this is definitely something I will be doing. Gives me something to do with my sad lowly propane burner while the high and holy pompous eBrewery brags about it’s perfect temperature control.

Yes I just personified my brewing gear. Yes I have a problem.

 

[dryboroughbrewing]

I run off a gallon or so of second runnings while the boil kettle gets up to temp, figure it doesn't cost me anything extra and there's enough room in the hops freezer for a few jars of starter wort.