Harvested yeast question

[kevinpn]

So I decided to try and harvest yeast from 3 bottles of SN torpedo. Sanitized my Erlenmeyer flask and stir bar, boiled 2 cups of H2O and .5 cup DME. Cooled and poured into flask. Sanitized tops of the beer bottles and the bottle opener, then added that to the flask, sanitized stopper and set that baby to stir. It took over 36 hours to see any activity, then didn't even think about slowing down till 2-3 days after it showed activity. After it stopped I let it settle and decanted it. I sanitized a mason jar and let it settle again. So here is the question what is that just above the yeast cake? Is my yeast ok? No off smell, just smells like yeast.

 

[cswis86]

Old/dead yeast. Yeast turns the color of peanut butter when it dies. You're fine. All of my storage yeast looks like that too.

 

[pshankstar]

OP, did you add three full bottles of SN's Torpedo to the flask to harvest the yeast? I have a 4L flask which I think would be large enough. Was there a lot krausen too? I would like to try to harvest some yeast from commercial bottles.

Thanks for posting this. And yes that other layer is dead cells like the other person stated. My harvested yeast from starters all look like that now.