First attempt at yeast harvesting

[shetc]

Hi Guys - This is a photo of my first attempt to harvest some yeast. These are four 8 oz jars of Wyeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes. Does it look okay? There isn't much in each jar - should I combine them into 1 jar?

View attachment 1426361400861.jpg

 

[Adub71]

Did you collect from a secondary fermentor after bottling? I usually grab mine from the primary, when there is 1 or 2 quarts of the sludge yeast. I have read that the yeast from the primary ferment is the way to go.

 

[shetc]

From the primary

 

[McKnuckle]

Those four should be combined. You've got about 90% liquid in each of them.

 

[Gavin C]

Looks right for a yeast rinsing harvest. I used to get the same appearance.

Now I just pour the slurry into the sanitized jars.

You should read the recent article on this topic. The rinsing to separate the trub and collect the yeast is thought by many to be a somewhat obsolete practice.

It's less hassle to collect the slurry as is.
Straight slurry on the left, rinsed yeast on the right

Wyeast 1028 and Nottingham respectively

Link to Article: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/woodland...t-storage.html

 

[jmward21]

You should read the recent article on this topic. The rinsing to separate the trub and collect the yeast is thought by many to be a somewhat obsolete practice.

Do you have a link? I wash my yeast and it is a somewhat lengthy process but I have gotten good results so far.

shetc: mine look very similar to yours. I usually combine the jars into 2 and I will make a starter before I use it. I combine into 2 so I can get 2 uses out of it.

 

[Gavin C]

Do you have a link? I wash my yeast and it is a somewhat lengthy process but I have gotten good results so far.

shetc: mine look very similar to yours. I usually combine the jars into 2 and I will make a starter before I use it. I combine into 2 so I can get 2 uses out of it.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/woodland-brewing-comany-simple-yeast-storage.html

Also check out his website. A great evidence based blog. I learned a lot here http://www.woodlandbrew.com/

 

[jmward21]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/woodland-brewing-comany-simple-yeast-storage.html

Also check out his website. A great evidence based blog. I learned a lot here http://www.woodlandbrew.com/

Thanks for the link, this is great to know. I am always trying to learn more.

 

[Gavin C]

Wyeast 1028 immediately after harvesting from primary.

Leave about 1-2 cm of beer in primary when racking to keg/bottling bucket.

Swirl it up gently and pour into sanitized jars. (I boil mine with the lids and tongs I subsequently use for 15 mins and allow them to cool with the lids placed on top prior to filling)

Jars of freshly harvested slurry

Close the jars not too tightly

Label the jars


Refrigerate

Pitch slurry or make starter as indicated by time between harvest and pitch.

Brulosopher did a good experiment comparing slurry with "clean starter"
http://brulosophy.com/2015/03/02/sloppy-slurry-vs-clean-starter-exbeeriment-results/

 

[David_Trucks]

This might be a stupid question, but is there a way to tell how much yeast is in the slurry? In other words, if there isn't very much yeast, then maybe the slurry is darker or vice versa?

Edit: I did some research, so I guess the question is, how do I know what the slurry density is?

 

[shetc]

Thanks for the replies, guys! Should have responded sooner but I got sucked into reading all the articles Woodland Brewing Research I like the slurry technique, which fits in with my KISS approach to brewing. I have a Scottish 80/ fermenting at the moment, made with White Labs WLP028 Edinburgh Ale. I'll will try the slurry technique when that batch is finished.

 

[serum]

I quite often end up with a fairly small amount of yeast after making a large starter so I'm sure you'll be OK with what you've got there. If you don't think it's enough just take a bit and make a new starter with it.

 

[tagz]

This might be a stupid question, but is there a way to tell how much yeast is in the slurry? In other words, if there isn't very much yeast, then maybe the slurry is darker or vice versa?

Edit: I did some research, so I guess the question is, how do I know what the slurry density is?

Usually people go with 1-2 B cells per ml. It depends on the amount of trub; a pale ale might be closer to 1B and a blonde might be closer to 2B. It's a guessing game but if you assume 1.5B you should be in the ballpark.

 

[David_Trucks]

Usually people go with 1-2 B cells per ml. It depends on the amount of trub; a pale ale might be closer to 1B and a blonde might be closer to 2B. It's a guessing game but if you assume 1.5B you should be in the ballpark.

Thanks!