First Time Using Slurry.... Not sure what to do

[Sdiddy84]

So a bit of a back story,

I got a SS Brew bucket for my B-Day back in June and when that batch was done I wanted to save some of the slurry.

I usually over build a starter but didn't this time because I'm lazy. So once my brew was completed and kegged, I decided last minute to save some of the slurry. I basically took my brew bucket swirled it a bit and dumped some of the slurry into a sanitized mason jar.

I plan on brewing on Thursday but I'm confused on what I should do with regards to pitching the slurry and if its even ok to use. I do have some dry yeast as backup if this isn't a good idea.

Should I decant and pitch away? or Decant and do a starter? Decant and do a vitality starter? Or just use the dry yeast.
I should also mention that this beer will end up in a competition in November.

 

[day_trippr]

If it looks and smells ok you can use it. Anything that seems off should be a red flag as it's not worth risking a batch over bad yeast.

Looks like roughly 100 ml of slurry. If that was yeast from a week ago I'd recommend decanting the spent beer and doing a 2 liter starter to end up with a decent pitch for a five gallon batch. But three months old to boot, you might need to do two steps, as better than half the viability has likely been lost...

Cheers!

 

[PeteSeattle]

What @day_trippr said.

Decant. Maybe even wash with distilled water to separate hop debris. And then starter. But that’s just me.

I wouldn’t let more than a month pass a slurry.

 

[Sdiddy84]

If it looks and smells ok you can use it. Anything that seems off should be a red flag as it's not worth risking a batch over bad yeast.

Looks like roughly 100 ml of slurry. If that was yeast from a week ago I'd recommend decanting the spent beer and doing a 2 liter starter to end up with a decent pitch for a five gallon batch. But three months old to boot, you might need to do two steps, as better than half the viability has likely been lost...

Cheers!

Would I have to wash the yeast before the two stepper or just decant? I'm guessing the little discoloration at the bottom of the jar is the hop debris but is it enough to worry about?

The reason I ask is because I've never washed yeast before and have no clue how to do it.

Ps thank you day_trippr, your always the first to respond with any question I have. And you have never lead me astray.

 

[PeteSeattle]

it’s fine probably to use if decanted. I’m just paranoid about getting a vegetal flavor from the old hops.

So to wash what you have decant the existing beer gently. Fill with distilled water and swirl. Cover and let it the hops settle but the yeast should still be somewhat suspended. This is what you want to harvest so decant the yeast into another sterile jar leaving the hop material behind. Now use what you’ve harvested for making a starter.

It’s involved but not as difficult as it sounds.

Edit: I’ve also done it half way by not doing a starter but cleaning out a fresh yeast cake. It took off right away under 3 hours. Also if you ferment in a bucket you can top crop the kruesen and pitch that immediately.

Cheers!

 

[Sdiddy84]

it’s fine probably to use if decanted. I’m just paranoid about getting a vegetal flavor from the old hops.

So to wash what you have decant the existing beer gently. Fill with distilled water and swirl. Cover and let it the hops settle but the yeast should still be somewhat suspended. This is what you want to harvest so decant the yeast into another sterile jar leaving the hop material behind. Now use what you’ve harvested for making a starter.

It’s involved but not as difficult as it sounds.

Thank you so much. I'm gonna try that and see how it goes.
One question though.
9nce I add the distilled and swirl, should i stick it in the fridge to get some settle happening and keep an eye on it? Or leave it on the counter and keep an eye on it?

 

[PeteSeattle]

Thank you so much. I'm gonna try that and see how it goes.
One question though.
9nce I add the distilled and swirl, should i stick it in the fridge to get some settle happening and keep an eye on it? Or leave it on the counter and keep an eye on it?

Oh yeah. I let it settle in the fridge.

 

[day_trippr]

Unlike an entire yeast cake, we're only looking at ~100 ml of slurry here, and that little bit of hop debris is unlikely to be noticed in a batch of beer. Thus I'd be inclined to skip the washing and the loss of cell count that entails and get to the building part

Cheers!

[edit/ps] I totally missed the "brew on Thursday" thing. Given the age of the yeast it would be a real challenge to step that jar up to a five gallon pitch in time.

 

[PeteSeattle]

Unlike an entire yeast cake, we're only looking at ~100 ml of slurry here, and that little bit of hop debris is unlikely to be noticed in a batch of beer. Thus I'd be inclined to skip the washing and the loss of cell count that entails and get to the building part

Cheers!

[edit/ps] I totally missed the "brew on Thursday" thing. Given the age of the yeast it would be a real challenge to step that jar up to a five gallon pitch in time.

After looking at the attached pic I’m inclined to agree.

 

[seatazzz]

You could just do a vitality starter and save yourself some time. Once your wort is in the boil kettle, take some off into a heavy glass jar or measuring cup, and chill in your fridge or freezer down to 70-75. When it's chilled, decant the beer off your yeast slurry, and add your chilled wort. I do this in whatever vessel I'm going to ferment in to save time. Swirl it around to mix it up, and leave it until your wort is ready to pitch. What someone said above, that little bit of hop debris (and they are spent, won't add any flavor to your new beer) won't hurt it. I've done this a few times now and the yeast take off much faster than with rehydrated fresh dry yeast. You WILL know by the smell if your slurry is good or not; "bad" yeast have a distinctive aroma that will make your nose hairs curl.

 

[PeteSeattle]

You could just do a vitality starter and save yourself some time. Once your wort is in the boil kettle, take some off into a heavy glass jar or measuring cup, and chill in your fridge or freezer down to 70-75. When it's chilled, decant the beer off your yeast slurry, and add your chilled wort. I do this in whatever vessel I'm going to ferment in to save time. Swirl it around to mix it up, and leave it until your wort is ready to pitch. What someone said above, that little bit of hop debris (and they are spent, won't add any flavor to your new beer) won't hurt it. I've done this a few times now and the yeast take off much faster than with rehydrated fresh dry yeast. You WILL know by the smell if your slurry is good or not; "bad" yeast have a distinctive aroma that will make your nose hairs curl.

Hey! Sounds good. I think I’ll do that next. Awesome suggestion. And, hiya neighbor!

 

[Sdiddy84]

Unlike an entire yeast cake, we're only looking at ~100 ml of slurry here, and that little bit of hop debris is unlikely to be noticed in a batch of beer. Thus I'd be inclined to skip the washing and the loss of cell count that entails and get to the building part

Cheers!

[edit/ps] I totally missed the "brew on Thursday" thing. Given the age of the yeast it would be a real challenge to step that jar up to a five gallon pitch in time.

I can always put the brew day off for a day or two. Thanks again.

 

[seatazzz]

Hey! Sounds good. I think I’ll do that next. Awesome suggestion. And, hiya neighbor!

Hiya! Didn't see that at first. Where do you buy your supplies? I'm in Covington (between Maple Valley & Kent) and I'm stuck between Mt Si in Snoqualmie or Jon's in Puyallup. I used to shop at Sound back in the day when I was doing kits, and Larry's of course before they closed. Somebody needs to open another LHBS in the South Sound quick!

 

[PeteSeattle]

Hiya! Didn't see that at first. Where do you buy your supplies? I'm in Covington (between Maple Valley & Kent) and I'm stuck between Mt Si in Snoqualmie or Jon's in Puyallup. I used to shop at Sound back in the day when I was doing kits, and Larry's of course before they closed. Somebody needs to open another LHBS in the South Sound quick!

Hey, hey! I’m in Leschi near Seattle’s international district. My regular LHBS is Sound Homebrew near Georgetown brewery. The club I’m part of meets there as well. Great shop and people. Folks in the area seem to really like the shop. I thought the shop might be a ways from you but it looks like the other shops are almost equidistant. Sound Homebrew also ships.

I used to shop in Everett at Homebrew Heaven when I lived in Bothell but sadly it shut down years ago. These shops are endangered!