Mixing yeast strains IPA

[mgrosso]

Ok so I was planning on using this pack of seasonal Burton IPA yeast WY1203 that I recently aquired but being made in january I was worried about its viability. I am going to make a yeast starter but I also have a package of safale US-05. I was considering two options: make a starter of 1L then step up to 2L and just use the wyeast or also add in the hydrated package of safale. The beer is a large pale double IPA that includes rye as 10% of the grain bill. Est OG looks like its going to be 1.100. Any suggestions?

 

[IslandLizard]

At 1.100 (yowsers!) you probably need to step it up 3x (3 liters minimal). Do you have an O2 injector?

I was looking at that yeast, but since it is a limited edition, and thus requires special order at my LHBS, I forgot and missed the window. Looks very interesting!

 

[mgrosso]

yeah its the largest OG I have dealt with but I was kind of excited about this strain as well. So I can step up to 3 litres. What rate would you recommend increasing the size of the starter? Should I not include the safale pkg? I am using a homeade aerator similar to a wine aerator. no direct O2 injection.

 

[IslandLizard]

To make the 1203 shine, I would not use the US-05 unless you run into problems. The US-05 may even crap out before it's done.

WY1203:
Alc. Tolerance 10% ABV
Flocculation med-high
Attenuation 71-74%
Temp. Range 64-74°F (18-23°C)

Go here for your yeast calculation. I find that one the best for multi step-ups. I hope you have a stir plate. And decent temp control for the fermentation. You don't want it to stall at 1.042.

Bubbling air will help somewhat but at that gravity it may not be enough. Maybe bubble an hour a couple times a day for the first 2 days. Grow as much yeast as you can, even erring towards overpitching to make sure there's enough, and pitch the decanted slurry as soon as it's done.

There are some other options.

 

[mgrosso]

yeah I used the online yeast pitch rate calculator and it seems I might need to step up to maybe even a larger starter3-4 liters in 3 steps. Would this be ideal or would it be better to go to 2-3 liters and then use the dry yeast or maybe even the 4 liter starter and the safale pkg?

 

[mgrosso]

just saw your post and yeah ill hold off and not use the safale. Thanks for the advice!

 

[IslandLizard]

just saw your post and yeah ill hold off and not use the safale. Thanks for the advice!

You can increase the starter gravity to 1.050 for the last step to get the extra yeast. You have a 5 liter flask? Put a drop of Fermcap-S in your starter wort to prevent excessive foaming and losing half your yeast from heavy blow-off. Been there a few times.

The other options include starting a smaller batch of the beer (say 2-3 gallons) and feeding it more wort later when it's at high krausen. You got to mash and brew twice though...

 

[nbswanson]

Another thing you can do to make your yeast happy is take a 1-2 gallons of your cooled and fridge/freeze it and stagger those additions to your other 3-4 gallons of fermenting wort. Just make sure you keep the 1-2 gallons cold enough so that it doesnt unintentionally grow anything. When you do add it, add it with over the course of a couple days in half gallon chunks. Also make sure that it is yeast has already taken off already before you have the additions. Each addition could use some aeration and yeast nutrient too. Just another option for ya

 

[TheCanisDirus]

Est OG looks like its going to be 1.100. Any suggestions?

Um... switch to distilling lol! But seriously... good advice given up above. Only thing i have to add is an 02 stone is almost mandatory for that gravity for proper attenuation. You can pick one of those up pretty cheap from northern brewer or others online. Best of luck, and let us know how it turns out!

 

[IslandLizard]

I got .5μ SS aeration stones off Amazon for around $7 shipped. Now if you pump air, .5μ gives too much restriction, so you need 2μ.

I don't have one (yet), but I really like the O2 wand from William's Brewing, either with the disposable O2 min-tank valve or with the commercial O2 tank flow regulator (which also requires an O2 tank). They are great solutions. How's that for making a $100 strong beer?