Negative effects of pitching a starter without decanting
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NathPowe
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I think the reason people decant their starters is to avoid having the potentially gross starter beer mixed in with the beer they'll be drinking. Could bring some strange/off/bad flavors into the mix - especially if it's a really big starter.
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Dustbowl
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A large starter can also dilute your beer and increase your volume in the fermenter. I would personally rather have more wort than the starter volume.
I generally make a 1 quart starter for regular beers (i.e. not RISs or IIPAs) and just pitch the entire starter at high krausen. If I make a much larger starter, 2 quarts or so, I cold crash and decant. I have not noticed any negative/off flavors using a 1 quart starter. Pitching a starter at high krausen results in a much quicker start to fermentation, in my experience.
I generally make a 1 quart starter for regular beers (i.e. not RISs or IIPAs) and just pitch the entire starter at high krausen. If I make a much larger starter, 2 quarts or so, I cold crash and decant. I have not noticed any negative/off flavors using a 1 quart starter. Pitching a starter at high krausen results in a much quicker start to fermentation, in my experience.
SpeedYellow
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It just depends on the size of the starter, no? I've taken sips of starters, and they can taste NASTY. If that nasty starter were 5% of the total batch, you may never taste it. But if it were 20% ... well that's obviously a bad idea. And even if the starter tasted pretty decent, you still wouldn't want your beer to be 10%-20% starter beer if the style doesn't match.
johngaltsmotor
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The only reason I've ever heard is that your starter is a relatively low OG so you're diluting your wort with the equivalent of Bud Light. And there's no real benefit as the yeast have already chewed through the sugars in that starter wort.
A good starter will be oxidized and have little alcohol. Don't add it to your beer.
If you want to add a starter you'll need to reduce o2 exposure. This means you'll need a bigger (or stepped) starter because the yeast won't reproduce as much without constant o2 (i.e. stir plate vs no shaking). It's easier to decant and the yeast well be healthier.
If you want to add a starter you'll need to reduce o2 exposure. This means you'll need a bigger (or stepped) starter because the yeast won't reproduce as much without constant o2 (i.e. stir plate vs no shaking). It's easier to decant and the yeast well be healthier.
Great thank all of you for the help, i was just concerned since for my first two starters ive dumpped the entire contents of the flask in, both 5 gallon batches. One was a 1L starter and the other one was a 2L starter.
I decant my starters all the time now, I think decanting is even more necessary when pitching the larger starter volumes required by lager yeast, but I also decant my ale yeast starters too.
vNmd
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Thanks for the info in this thread. I used to do small starters and didn't really think about it. After research, and a bigger flask, I am doing proper size starters and now decant before pitching. I also wondered why. Glad I ran across this thread.
Darwin18
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Not to dissent with everyone above but......
I routinely do a 1 - 2 L starters on a stir plate and I don't bother decanting. I do this for pretty much every beer (5-gallon batches) from lite lagers to RIS. My beers routinely score high (mid 30's to 40's) and I don't have any perceptible off-flavors that I or judges are picking up on. A cream ale that I brewed last spring without decanting the starter scored a 47 - just saying that I don't think it's the boogey-man that people are making it out to be.
The reason that I don't decant is because I want all my yeast from the starter and don't want to lose any in suspension.
Just my thoughts and my process - brew whichever works best for you.
I routinely do a 1 - 2 L starters on a stir plate and I don't bother decanting. I do this for pretty much every beer (5-gallon batches) from lite lagers to RIS. My beers routinely score high (mid 30's to 40's) and I don't have any perceptible off-flavors that I or judges are picking up on. A cream ale that I brewed last spring without decanting the starter scored a 47 - just saying that I don't think it's the boogey-man that people are making it out to be.
The reason that I don't decant is because I want all my yeast from the starter and don't want to lose any in suspension.
Just my thoughts and my process - brew whichever works best for you.
BreezyBrew
IPA is my spirit animal
I do believe there's some validity to this; the yeast that stays in suspension long enough is going to be the yeast that is the most adept to completing the fermentation. When you decant, you may be dumping those yeasts.
man am i glad that i came back to revisit this thread and read your response. ill be dumping a stepped of starter sitting at 1.8 l now into what will hopefully be 5.5 gallons of delicious arrogant bastard wort
I only decant my starters after a long cold crash, in order to give those less flocculant more attenuating cells time to drop out too. I've never tried pitching a four liter starter into a five gallon batch of high gravity beer without first decanting it. While I think some styles of beer may benefit from a wort containing 20% starter wort I've not knowingly had them yet.
BreezyBrew
IPA is my spirit animal
I recently realized that I read this from White & Zainesheff's Yeast book. I appologize for no citation. Happy Brewining!
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