Hydrate or pitch dry?

[browning348]

I’m new to homebrewing, I’ve got 5 small stovetop batches under my belt, two kits and three just experimenting. All have been fairly decent. The last 3 I have hydrated my yeast, US05, and the precious two pitched dry. The yeast seems healthier and begins work sooner in the hydrated but all have turned out well IMO. My question is am I wasting time and risking infection by hydrating? Is it just as efficient to pitch dry? I’ve read both sides of the argument. TIA

 

[MHBT]

I always rehydrate, if you pitch dry it will ferment but you will get some cell death and lose some of your cell count.. If you are gonna work hard to produce wort and go through all the steps needed to make a great beer why cut corners on the most important aspect of making beer, which is yeast.

 

[beerlover77]

For sure rehydrate. Just be sanitary about it

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

This topic has been beaten to death and youll always get the same answers Yes and No.

Do whatever floats your boat, youll be fine either way.

I've never rehydrated once and also never had an issue...so there you go...NO
Opposite of previous answers...expect that for the rest of the thread

 

[browning348]

I always rehydrate, if you pitch dry it will ferment but you will get some cell death and lose some of your cell count.. If you are gonna work hard to produce wort and go through all the steps needed to make a great beer why cut corners on the most important aspect of making beer, which is yeast.

Definitely not trying to cut corners. To me it’s pretty simple and painless, I just don’t want to risk infections if it’s not that big of a deal. I’ll most likely continue to rehydrate because it seems logical. Just wanted to pick the brains of the more experienced

 

[MHBT]

Definitely not trying to cut corners. To me it’s pretty simple and painless, I just don’t want to risk infections if it’s not that big of a deal. I’ll most likely continue to rehydrate because it seems logical. Just wanted to pick the brains of the more experienced

My bad was not trying to sound like you are cutting corners i meant it in a more generalized way like "why cut corners" cheers

 

[flars]

If you are worried about infection this is the technique I use to rehydrate dry yeast to reduce risk. The water is boiled in the microwave and covered immediately with the plastic wrap. The temp probe tracks temperature and becomes the stir bar after the first 15 minute period to stir the hydrated yeast into solution. The probe isn't removed until the yeast is pitched.

 

[browning348]

If you are worried about infection this is the technique I use to rehydrate dry yeast to reduce risk. The water is boiled in the microwave and covered immediately with the plastic wrap. The temp probe tracks temperature and becomes the stir bar after the first 15 minute period to stir the hydrated yeast into solution. The probe isn't removed until the yeast is pitched.
View attachment 557585

What I’ve done is take a cup of boiling wort at 15 min and poured into a sanitized class to cool. When I set my wort in the ice bath I place the wort in the glass into the bath as well. So in 5 min or so it’s around 75 degrees and yeast goes in there for 15 or 20 min until the wort is cooled to pitch temp. I keep a spoon for stiring and thermometer in a bowl of one step while not being used.

 

[beerlover77]

Well all the yeast instructions say to rehydrate as do all the experts. The reason being is apparently when you pitch dry a lot of the yeast cells don't make it. If you dry pitch you could probably add an extra 1/2 pack to account for the yeast cells that die?

 

[PADave]

I've always rehydrated. Simple to do, and why wouldn't you want to keep the yeast happy?

 

[Velnerj]

I have tried both and haven't noticed a difference either way. However, I brew smaller batches so cell count isn't that big of an issue. If I have any doubts about the yeasts viability (i.e. past/near expiration) I'd rehydrate otherwise I think I just pitch it.

 

[flars]

What I’ve done is take a cup of boiling wort at 15 min and poured into a sanitized class to cool. When I set my wort in the ice bath I place the wort in the glass into the bath as well. So in 5 min or so it’s around 75 degrees and yeast goes in there for 15 or 20 min until the wort is cooled to pitch temp. I keep a spoon for stiring and thermometer in a bowl of one step while not being used.

? This is the same as pitching dry if you are subjecting the yeast to a sugary rehydration solution.

 

[browning348]

? This is the same as pitching dry if you are subjecting the yeast to a sugary rehydration solution.

That I do not know. I used that method because I had read about it. My reasoning I guess would be the yeast need water, sugar and O2 to multiply and be happy. With that, I just went with the wort. I’ve seen other methods like boiling water then adding dme and pitching in dry after the mixture cooled.

 

[BrewInspector]

It IS the same as pitching dry if you rehydrate in wort. The purpose of rehydrating is to allow the cells to fill with WATER prior to being subjected to the sugars.

If you rehydrate in a small amount of wort it is the same as rehydrating in a larger amount of wort. This is not rehydrating it is simply pitching dry in a smaller amount ultimately serving no purpose.

I think you may be confusing the creation of a starter from a lesser amount of yeast (usually done with wet yeast or when growing up a volume from bottle dregs) Dry yeast are recommended to be rehydrated in water but many find it unnecessary. Rehydrating dry yeast is not making a starter. I no longer rehydrate yeast or build starters. I pitch dry or more often pitch saved yeast from a previous batch.

 

[browning348]

Ahhh, there’s the reason I posed the question here. That makes sense and is not something I’ve read anywhere else.

 

[helibrewer]

Do a proper rehydration, then temper the hydrated yeast with small amounts of wort until the yeast is within 10F of the wort....then pitch. Hydration allows the yeast to get it's cell membrane in good shape before being subjected to the osmotic stress of wort. Tempering it with wort acclimates it to fermenting temperatures and presents the signals required to start producing all the enzymes it will need to become a fermentation machine.

 

[flars]

If you like videos this is one produced by Lallemand. They are showing the rehydration of a 500 gram brick for larger volumes than the typical home brew volume. The reason to rehydrate though remains the same.

 

[browning348]

If you like videos this is one produced by Lallemand. They are showing the rehydration of a 500 gram brick for larger volumes than the typical home brew volume. The reason to rehydrate though remains the same.

That’s awesome, thanks!

 

[mabrungard]

Rehydration is a good idea, but it may not be needed if you're pitching a sachet into a low gravity batch or smaller than 5 gal batch. If you're more on the edge, you are wise to rehydrate.

Remember, rehydration water needs to have some ionic content. Straight distilled or RO water is not ideal. Adding 1 to 2 grams of Epsom Salt per quart of distilled water is an ideal rehydration medium. Make sure your water isn't too hot since that could kill yeast too. I generally try and let the water come to room temp before pitching.

 

[BucksIPA]

I dont re-hydrate. You could try and dump the packet in as you are cooling at 85, cool slowly to 68 , then transfer normally.

 

[jcubit]

I always check what it says on the yeast package. Most of them have said rehydrate but a few lagers I have done said to pitch direct to wort.

I really dont think it all matters much since I rehydrate in lme mix and that has done exceptionally well. Same process for reclaimed yeast.

 

[h22lude]

I always rehydrated but now I direct pitch two packets. Only $3 more, much easier and I get a ton of yeast even with some dying.

 

[jason613]

Try 2 identical worts and compare your results. One with rehydrated, one with dry pitch. I suspect results would be very similar. I would say the fundamentals would have a greater affect...sanitization, pitch temp, constant ferment temp, oxygenation, yeast nutrient, etc.

 

[jason613]

What I’ve done is take a cup of boiling wort at 15 min and poured into a sanitized class to cool. When I set my wort in the ice bath I place the wort in the glass into the bath as well. So in 5 min or so it’s around 75 degrees and yeast goes in there for 15 or 20 min until the wort is cooled to pitch temp. I keep a spoon for stiring and thermometer in a bowl of one step while not being used.

This would be a good time to also add yeast nutrient...

 

[kristiismean]

I don't always rehydrate. I dont really notice a difference when I do. I double pitch over 1.060.. My thoughts are if you are considerimg hydrating then maybe start looking at starters instead...

 

[hethacker12]

I find that rehydrating with some wort or must between 2-5 hours prior greatly increases my fermentation speed (I can have a beer made grain to keg in about 5 days vs. 7-8 days). I also do not do anything to make sure that it is sterile; I sanitize everything with StarSan, fill a container with 2 ounces wort and 5 ounces filtered water to cool it, add the yeast, and cover with aluminum foil.

I also think that the dehydrated yeast is highly condensed in its dry form; by having the yeast rehydrate with water, instead of a high sugar and nutrient liquid like wort (which will make the liquid more dense), it will allow the yeast to expand easier as well as reduce the chance of shocking the yeasts’ membranes with an immediate concentration of sugar, potentially stressing and scarring the budding process.

The likelihood of an infection occurring in the starter after the yeast is added is very small, the yeast are crowding that container as it is, there isn’t a foothold for other bacteria to colonize inside of it.

I can see the conversation going both ways for time and results, I think that if you have the time to rehydrate, it can be helpful, especially in nutrient poor liquids, like wine musts.

 

[triethylborane]

I always rehydrated but now I direct pitch two packets. Only $3 more, much easier and I get a ton of yeast even with some dying.

$3 a packet . . . paying 2.5 times that here for dry yeast fml

 

[beerlover77]

One thing I might add is when you re-hydrate, you proof the yeast to see if it is good before pitching. You can actually see the yeast bubbling within 15 min and you know its good. A few times I went to re-hydrate and the yeast sank to the bottom and did nothing.

If you Dry pitched those bad packs you probably wouldn't know for a day or two that your yeast was not going to work. Don't think dry yeast can't go bad, if it is handled improperly, shipped in a hot container it may not survive.

Also dry yeast is usually $4.50+ for a pack so for me it's worth saving that cash for the 2 min work to simply pour some yeast in a bit of water 20 minutes before pitch time.

 

[browning348]

One thing I might add is when you re-hydrate you proof the yeast to see if it is good before pitching. You can actually see the yeast bubbling within 15 min and you know its good. A few times I went to rehydrate and the yeast sank to the bottom and did nothing.

If you Dry pitched those bad packs you probably wouldn't know for a day or two that your yeast was not going to work. Don't think dry yeast can't go bad, if it is handled improperly, shipped in a hot container it may not survive.

That’s a great point. Never thought about that way.

 

[ncbrewer]

One thing I might add is when you re-hydrate, you proof the yeast to see if it is good before pitching. You can actually see the yeast bubbling within 15 min and you know its good.

I don't normally see bubbling when I rehydrate - according to Danstar, foaming or lack of foaming isn't an indication of the activity of the yeast. You might be throwing away good yeast.

 

[biochemedic]

Two words:

Add it to the rehydration water...

Check the data sheet for the particular yeast you're using...not every yeast calls for the same temp of rehydration water. I also like to attemper to within 10*F of the wort temp. The 20-30 min or so that I spend rehydrating the yeast is worth it if I get a full, healthy pitch. Proper pitch rates are the first step to good fermentation management...

I've posted this before, I consider it to be the pretty much definitive word on yeast rehydration, from Lalemand scientist Dr. Clayton Cone (replying to an e-mail question from a LHBS owner):

Dan,
I appreciate your dilemma It is a universal problem for those that market
Active Dry Yeast.

Let me give you some facts regarding rehydration and you can decide for
yourself where you want to compromise.
Every strain of yeast has its own optimum rehydration temperature. All of
them range between 95 F to 105F. Most of them closer to 105F. The dried
yeast cell wall is fragile and it is the first few minutes (possibly
seconds) of rehydration that the warm temperature is critical while it is
reconstituting its cell wall structure.

As you drop the initial temperature of the water from 95 to 85 or 75 or 65F
the yeast leached out more and more of its insides damaging the each cell.
The yeast viability also drops proportionally. At 95 – 105 F, there is
100% recovery of the viable dry yeast. At 60F, there can be as much as 60%
dead cells.

The water should be tap water with the normal amount of hardness present.
The hardness is essential for good recovery. 250 -500 ppm hardness is
ideal. This means that deionized or distilled water should not be used.
Ideally, the warm rehydration water should contain about 0.5 – 1.0% yeast
extract

For the initial few minutes (perhaps seconds) of rehydration, the yeast
cell wall cannot differentiate what passes through the wall. Toxic
materials like sprays, hops, SO2 and sugars in high levels, that the yeast
normally can selectively keep from passing through its cell wall rush right
in and seriously damage the cells. The moment that the cell wall is
properly reconstituted, the yeast can then regulate what goes in and out of
the cell. That is why we hesitate to recommend rehydration in wort or
must. Very dilute wort seems to be OK.

We recommend that the rehydrated yeast be added to the wort within 30
minutes. We have built into each cell a large amount of glycogen and
trehalose that give the yeast a burst of energy to kick off the growth
cycle when it is in the wort. It is quickly used up if the yeast is
rehydrated for more than 30 minutes. There is no damage done here if it is
not immediatly add to the wort. You just do not get the added benefit of
that sudden burst of energy. We also recommend that you attemperate the
rehydrated yeast to with in 15F of the wort before adding to the wort.
Warm yeast into a cold wort will cause many of the yeast to produce petite
mutants that will never grow or ferment properly and will cause them to
produce H2S. The attemperation can take place over a very brief period by
adding, in encrements, a small amount of the cooler wort to the rehydrated
yeast.

Many times we find that warm water is added to a very cold container that
drops the rehydrating water below the desired temperature.

Sometimes refrigerated, very cold, dry yeast is added directly to the warm
water with out giving it time to come to room temperature. The initial
water intering the cell is then cool.

How do many beer and wine makers have successful fermentations when they
ignore all the above? I believe that it is just a numbers game. Each gram
of Active Dry Yeast contains about 20 billion live yeast cells. If you
slightly damage the cells, they have a remarkable ability to recover in the
rich wort. If you kill 60% of the cell you still have 8 billion cells per
gram that can go on to do the job at a slower rate.

The manufacturer of Active Dry Beer Yeast would be remiss if they offered
rehydration instructions that were less than the very best that their data
indicated.

One very important factor that the distributor and beer maker should keep
in mind is that Active Dry Yeast is dormant or inactive and not inert, so
keep refrigerated at all times. Do not store in a tin roofed warehouse
that becomes an oven or on a window sill that gets equally hot.

Active Dry Yeast looses about 20% of its activity in a year when it is
stored at 75 F and only 4% when refrigerated.

The above overview of rehydration should tell you that there is a very best
way to rehydrate. It should also tell you where you are safe in adapting
the rehydration procedure to fit your clients.

Clayton Cone.

 

[jalc6927]

Rehydrated once in 80+ batches and had the worst yeast performance yet, probably because I don’t rehydrate.

I get great fermentation quickly when I pitch directly into cooled wort.

As stated before it’s a personal issue. Which ever way you decide to go stick with it

Consistency is far greater concern for new brewers then worrying about advanced techniques

I like easy to duplicate processes, but that’s me

 

[ancientmariner52]

Biochemedic, thank you for posting that info from Lallemand. A lot to ponder there.

 

[GHBWNY]

I get the rehydration (which should technically be "pre-hydration") school of thought, and I rehydrate. But what I could never figure out is why putting yeast in clear water before putting it into --- wort water --- makes any difference to the behavior of the yeast for the time it takes them to 'bloom'. The theory is that rehydrating "preps" the cell walls to make the transition to the wort easier. But since wort is water, and since the yeast don't start actively metabolizing for hours, what difference is a few redundant minutes in clear water beforehand going to make? Just sayin'.

 

[biochemedic]

I get the rehydration (which should technically be "pre-hydration") school of thought, and I rehydrate. But what I could never figure out is why putting yeast in clear water before putting it into --- wort water --- makes any difference to the behavior of the yeast for the time it takes them to 'bloom'. The theory is that rehydrating "preps" the cell walls to make the transition to the wort easier. But since wort is water, and since the yeast don't start actively metabolizing for hours, what difference is a few redundant minutes in clear water beforehand going to make? Just sayin'.

It's not "pre-hydration," it is literally re-hydration of dessicated yeast cells. The benefit has nothing to do with when the yeast start actively metabolising, it has to do with what's IN the "water." I would encourage you to read the information I posted above in more detail. If you put a dehydrated yeast cell directly in wort, there are a lot of things that can willy nilly get into and out of the cell without the yeast being able to control it, and that is damaging to the cell. Likewise if you put the yeast cell into distilled water (which by definition is without any dissolved solute), the reverse osmotic shock is also bad for cellular health.

On the one hand is a case of "too much," and on the other, "not enough." By getting the Goldilocks "just enough" with "normal amount of hardness" as Dr. Cone mentions (or as, I would contend, with the addition of GoFerm to regular water), you can optimize the environment such that you get the best number of viable yeast cells per gram of yeast. Better pitch rate = better beer (all other things being equal...)

 

[ancientmariner52]

Ok, you sold me. I suspect the reason I could never see a difference was because I wasn't rehydrating properly.

So, for myself, and anyone else who isn't at home with lab math: Let's say I have an 11gram pack of, for example, US-05. I'll boil my pretty good tap water, to sanitize and remove chlorine. Now, how much water, and how much Go-Ferm? That's where it all goes pear-shaped for me. I think I've been abusing my yeast for years.

 

[GHBWNY]

It's not "pre-hydration," it is literally re-hydration of dessicated yeast cells. The benefit has nothing to do with when the yeast start actively metabolising, it has to do with what's IN the "water." I would encourage you to read the information I posted above in more detail. If you put a dehydrated yeast cell directly in wort, there are a lot of things that can willy nilly get into and out of the cell without the yeast being able to control it, and that is damaging to the cell. Likewise if you put the yeast cell into distilled water (which by definition is without any dissolved solute), the reverse osmotic shock is also bad for cellular health.

On the one hand is a case of "too much," and on the other, "not enough." By getting the Goldilocks "just enough" with "normal amount of hardness" as Dr. Cone mentions (or as, I would contend, with the addition of GoFerm to regular water), you can optimize the environment such that you get the best number of viable yeast cells per gram of yeast. Better pitch rate = better beer (all other things being equal...)

I am living proof that you don't have to know a thing about brewing beer to brew beer.

 

[beermanpete]

Ok, you sold me. I suspect the reason I could never see a difference was because I wasn't rehydrating properly.

So, for myself, and anyone else who isn't at home with lab math: Let's say I have an 11gram pack of, for example, US-05. I'll boil my pretty good tap water, to sanitize and remove chlorine. Now, how much water, and how much Go-Ferm? That's where it all goes pear-shaped for me. I think I've been abusing my yeast for years.

Use 10 times as much water as you have yeast. I.e., 10ml/g.

 

[ancientmariner52]

Use 10 times as much water as you have yeast. I.e., 10ml/g.

Thank you! So 110ml water, and 1.1 g Go-Ferm to achieve 1%?

 

[beerlover77]

I don't normally see bubbling when I rehydrate - according to Danstar, foaming or lack of foaming isn't an indication of the activity of the yeast. You might be throwing away good yeast.

AT the start or perhaps before you mix you may see no signs of activity... When I stir after 15 min there are almost always bubbles and signs of life in my pyrex container especially with Danstar Nottingham, US-05 and 34/70. If your yeasties sink to the bottom and the liquid is clear it may mean they aren't working properly and there is no way I'm taking that chance. The mixture should be creamy and not grainy looking like when you first pour the yeast in.

I took the chance one time when there were no signs of activity and the beer didn't start fermenting so I re pitched. Coincidence maybe....