Culturing yeast - dried vs liquid

[gruvn]

Hi,
I'm setting up a fermentor with a yeast catcher, and will be able to use and reuse the yeast. In my experience, people vastly prefer liquid yeasts over dry yeasts, but I guess what I'm wondering is if there is really any difference between the two. If I am able to reuse a massive slurry of (formerly dry) yeast, there would be no problems with underpitching, which I think would probably be the main problem with dried yeasts.
Personally, I like liquid yeasts just because I have access to a wider selection. I guess I'm mostly wondering from a theoretical perspective. Yeast is yeast, right?

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Actually, I've found it really difficult to underpitch with dry yeast. For an average gravity wort (1.050), one packet of 11.5g dry yeast is the proper pitching rate.

The "dry yeast is bad" mentality is kind of archaic and came from a time when yeast packets came taped on the bottom of "kit and kilo" beer kits and were subject to all the elements due to a lower standard for proper storage and transport. Now you can get high quality dry yeast that is nigh indistinguishable from their liquid counterparts (i.e. 1056 vs US-05) and is actually much cheaper. My LHBS sells Nottingham, S-04, US-05, and WB-06 for $2 per 11.5g packet.

I have a decent yeast bank built up so I don't really use dry anymore but I used dry almost exclusively for a few years, with exceptions when needing specialty yeast. But as far as harvesting dry yeast, it may be more expensive than just buying a packet or two for each batch.

 

[TrubDog]

I wash and reuse both dry and liquid yeast. For all practical purposes, once you have brewed a batch of beer and are ready to wash and harvest - it's all liquid yeast. After washing I always collect the same amount and when it comes time to reuse the yeast, regardless of whether it started as dry or liquid, I make a starter and after 24 to 48 hours I pitch it. Has always worked great for me.

 

[ajf]

Hi,
I'm setting up a fermentor with a yeast catcher, and will be able to use and reuse the yeast. In my experience, people vastly prefer liquid yeasts over dry yeasts, but I guess what I'm wondering is if there is really any difference between the two. If I am able to reuse a massive slurry of (formerly dry) yeast, there would be no problems with underpitching, which I think would probably be the main problem with dried yeasts.
Personally, I like liquid yeasts just because I have access to a wider selection. I guess I'm mostly wondering from a theoretical perspective. Yeast is yeast, right?

I'm like you in that I like liquid yeasts because of the wider selection.
However, in the case of US-05, WLP001, and Wy1056 I cannot detect any difference. I've made several brews using US-05 (because it's cheaper and easier than WLP001 or Wy1056), and used the harvested yeast to make another (usually higher gravity) brew. Never had a problem.

-a.

 

[gruvn]

Thanks guys - it sounds like it's really just a perception thing held over from the early days of home brewing. In all likelihood, I'll probably just spring for a really good IPA Wyeast since I'll be making a bunch and see how many times I can use it.

After all that, I'll probably try culturing some commercial brewery's yeast. Where I buy my (partial extract) kits, they include a packet of dry yeast, but somehow, with all the other effort i'm putting in, it seems so cheap.

Man, how pretentious am I?!