Are Starters Still Needed

[muse435]

I have taken several years off and I’m just now getting back into breeding. I have talked to a few friends and we were discussing what they do different between now and a few years ago. The biggest change they say is due to improved quantity of the yeast they no longer use starters. I have a stir plate, magnet bar and beaker. If I have the equipment, any reason not to do a starter?

 

[Jag75]

I have taken several years off and I’m just now getting back into breeding. I have talked to a few friends and we were discussing what they do different between now and a few years ago. The biggest change they say is due to improved quantity of the yeast they no longer use starters. I have a stir plate, magnet bar and beaker. If I have the equipment, any reason not to do a starter?

I use a starter 99% of the time . The 1% is when I'm fermenting a hefeweizen. I dont use dry yeast .....except for kolsch so I guess I use starters 98% of the time . There's quite of few pitching calculators out there as well . Welcome back to brewing!

 

[VikeMan]

I have taken several years off and I’m just now getting back into breeding. I have talked to a few friends and we were discussing what they do different between now and a few years ago. The biggest change they say is due to improved quantity of the yeast they no longer use starters. I have a stir plate, magnet bar and beaker. If I have the equipment, any reason not to do a starter?

Starters are needed whenever you want/need more yeast cells than you have. That's never going to change. Your friends might be subscribing to manufacturer's claims that one "unexpired" pack of yeast is good for up to "X" gallons of wort at a gravity of up to "Y.YYY." This is IMO dumbed down logic.

The problem with that "pitch rate" is that it's not a rate at all in terms of cells per volume per gravity. Or rather, it's a staggering number of different rates, depending on how much wort you have, what it's gravity is, and how many viable cells the package actually has (after packaging, there will be less viable cells as time goes on).

I recommend using a good yeast calculator and trusting it when deciding whether or not you need a starter, and if so, how big a starter. There are the Mr. Malty, YeastCalc, and Brewer's Friend calculators on line. There's also a yeast calculator integrated in Brewcipher, if you're looking for a free general all-in-one brewing program.

 

[muse435]

thank you both for the insight.

 

[shoreman]

I brew mostly session beers so no starters for the larger pouches of liquid yeast (omega mostly) or dry yeast BUT I do make a starter from any saved yeast (I save in mason jars ) from a previous batch or a Lager.

 

[McKnuckle]

I have taken several years off and I’m just now getting back into breeding. I have talked to a few friends and we were discussing what they do different between now and a few years ago.

You may be posting in the wrong forum. Although I'm sure there are many experts here on this very subject.

 

[Pappers_]

Your friends might be saying that the quality of dried yeast has increased significantly over the last 10+ years, and since dried yeast has a much higher number of cells than liquid yeast, that they have been using dried yeast and forgoing liquid yeast and making starters. FWIW, I would agree with that - I used to use liquid yeast much more frequently than I do now - I still do, and when I do, often need to make a starter, but I am using a wider range of dry yeasts now than I ever did before.

 

[jddevinn]

Typically the target pitch rate is 0.75 (million cells/(mL × °P) for Ales and 1.5 (million cells/(mL × °P) for Lagers.

Determining how much yeast is in a pack is more subjective but there are several estimate models in different calculators.

Overpitching is TYPICALLY better than underpitching.

If you aren't close to the target pitch rate, then yes a starter is still 'needed'.