These are quart size jars and of course, the yeast is very settled in them by now. It's probably a half an inch or so deep in each but, you must consider that the bottom of the jars kind of pops in. Also, since it's been in the fridge so long, I thought there might be a benefit to making a starter because then I could taste the starter and see if anything's gone bad. I do get some lactobacillus around here.
I had never heard of the SNS method until you just mentioned it. I just now looked it up on Google and I don't really understand it. It sounds like going backwards for me. It sounds like what I used to do, before I had a stir plate. Just shake it up and every once in a while when I walked past it, I would give it a stir by hand. I also read something that said, it doesn't create more cell count. It just wakes it up so you're pitching when it's most vigorous. I'm not sure what to do. I don't know if I need more cell count or if I just need to wake it up. I've never really known how to measure yeast at home and I have overpitched and underpitched my whole life. Can you enlighten me?
Thank you for the articles. From what I gleaned from them, I am just going back to my old way of doing things if I do that. The only thing that he is doing is using a bigger jug to create more foam and therefore more surface area. I used to have to do that anyway before I had a flask. One thing that I have thought here lately is, my yeast doesn't taste very good. It makes good beer but, when you drink it on its own, it doesn't taste very good. Almost a peroxide taste to it. I'm going to try this method tonight and see what I think of the taste of it in the morning. If it tastes better, I'm sticking with it. I may just do it anyway because, I like to simplify things and I don't think that beer should be a big time science thing. I think it should just be something that any common person can do and I've always made good results without having any science or at least very little science, to my brewing process.
I'm sorry but, which question are you referring to that I asked? I read the thing but, if I comprehended it correctly, he was pitching right from a beer that was just done. I'm talking about having the yeast slurry sitting in the fridge for 6 weeks. Unless, of course, I'm confused. Let me know. Thank you.
You're going to pitch both slurries, after decanting, right?
The only thing that you're thinking and what I have differentiates in is that, I stored it under distilled water. Not beer. Thoughts?
Oh!
There is a lot of sentiment toward distilled water or RO water, here of late. I, myself, have been using it for the past year or so. The idea is that with absolutely no nutrients in the water, or medium I guess, that there will be no reproduction or really, anything except for dormancy. Well, I don't know about RO water, but distilled water is almost absolutely without extra oxygen. Of course it has its own 2 molecules but, not much beside that. All I can tell you is, since I started using distilled water as the medium, I have not had any lactobacillus infection. Tonight's example is the same. Nice yeast to have.Oh!
I thought storing under (low alcohol or starter) beer was preferred (probably from the Yeast book or various websites).
Dunno much about using water instead, except it preferably should be low or free of oxygen.
Either would be inert to yeast, so yup, why not?
I don't know. I was just saying what I've read about it (low O2 and nutrients) and that it works for me. I use it in jars in the fridge.
What size batch is that for and did you use a gallon jug at all like, the SNS method states or did you just do it in the quart jar, only half full?
You are right. I was looking through all the exBEERiments and lost sight of your original question.
Not that I have evidence, Brulosophy may get fresh yeast directly from WhiteLabs, not the typical sleeves (or packs) we buy at our LHBS, locally or online. An average age of 2-4 month after manufacturing/packaging date is typical when buying yeast from your LHBS and you never know how it's been treated during that time.
True. In the exBEERiment, the beer with the yeast starter starts sooner, ferments more vigorously and quickly then the one without. In spite of Ray acknowledging that it wasn’t statistically significant, I personally think the 8 of 11 participants who pick the odd beer out and preferred the starter beer over the non-starter pitch is meaningful.
I couldn't find a gallon jug here so, I just did a 1 l starter in my 2 l flask. I did put the stir bar in it but, I just shook it up at first and then, I turned on the stir bar every now and again when I walked by it and turned it back off. I just turned it on long enough for it to get everything back in suspension. I am going to try the SNS method at some point. Like I said, I just couldn't find any of my glass jugs. I think I have two here somewhere.
What beer are you brewing, ale or lager, what's the OG, and what is the cell count in the starter vs required? It matters.
