I.P.A. starter or no starter?

[chainsmoke]

Hey guys,
So yesterday I picked up an IPA kit at my LHBS. This kit came with Safale s-04 yeast. The guy who was helping me told me he brewed this kit a few weeks ago and recommended that I do a starter. He said with the starter he had an awesomely active fermentation. I thought ok no problem.

Having not done a starter before I didn't realize they take 24 hours.

I wanted to brew today since tomorrow is the Superbowl.

So the question...
Will starting the yeast benefit the beer and be worth cramming in my brew before the game tomorrow? The directions that came with the beer just said to dump the yeast in to the wort. Should I just go ahead and do that?

Thanks for any help!

Go Pats!

 

[mikelikesit2000]

Make the starter now. It will help get the yeast going. I have done starters 8 hours before I brewed. It will at least help with the lag time when you pitch it.

 

[fishkid]

Hey guys,
So yesterday I picked up an IPA kit at my LHBS. This kit came with Safale s-04 yeast. The guy who was helping me told me he brewed this kit a few weeks ago and recommended that I do a starter. He said with the starter he had an awesomely active fermentation. I thought ok no problem.

Having not done a starter before I didn't realize they take 24 hours.

I wanted to brew today since tomorrow is the Superbowl.

So the question...
Will starting the yeast benefit the beer and be worth cramming in my brew before the game tomorrow? The directions that came with the beer just said to dump the yeast in to the wort. Should I just go ahead and do that?

Thanks for any help!

Go Pats!

I would just rehydrate that packet of yeast in a half cup of sterile water 30 minutes before you need to pitch and call it ready. It'll work itself into a nice creamy liquid, pitch all of it.

 

[Balto]

Safale s-04 yeast, this is a dry yeast, you can just rehydrate it 15 to 30 minutes before brewing and then pitch it.


EDIT: GO PATS!!!!

 

[bighorn_brew]

You can do what previous poster mikelikesit states or just pitch into properly aerated wort. Another option is grabbing another yeast pack, timewise and depending on how high your gravity ends up, this might be your best option in terms of peace of mind. But you should be fine with just one....Have Fun!

 

[Yooper]

You don't need a starter with S04, but you might need two packages if your recipe is above about 1.080.

 

[mux]

I agree properly rehydrate and pitch.

 

[petey_c]

Kickoff isn't until 6:30 Eastern. Plenty of time to brew before hand. Re-hydrate at the least. From my first experiment, having a starter gave me ACTIVE fermentation. I started to see airlock activity within four hours. I still have about five weeks to go before I taste the results.
I hope you have plenty of beer to drown your sorrows. Go Giants...

 

[kingmatt]

I have never done a starter with dry yeast, just re-hydrate it (sometimes I don't even bother with that). If you have a high gravity beer you may need two packets...

 

[chainsmoke]

Guys, thanks for the inputs. Sanitizing my equipment now.

I will rehydrate the yeast. Maybe I'll do a starter for my next batch.

Cheers