#of cells

[DNKDUKE]

Am brewing a SMaSH with 16# of Belgian pilsner and nugget hops. OG looks like it's going to come in right around 1.080. I want to try the Danstar Abbaye dry yeast but am unsure if I should use 1pack - 2pack - or make a starter. The best info comes from this forum as the product info is negligible.
TY

 

[DNKDUKE]

Oh, by the way...
It looks like an 11gram pack has 55,000,000,000 cells (55 billion)

 

[FirstAidBrewing]

Going off the cuff wothout a calculator, I would go with multiple rehydrated packets. Starters are not needed for dry yeast. For a 1.080 OG, I would use at least two and maybe even two and a half packets.

 

[DNKDUKE]

Not needed but can it be done?
And what's the reasoning behind not making a starter from dry?

 

[DNKDUKE]

Home brew dad's yeast Calc says I need 274B cells

 

[DNKDUKE]

I just found the answer to why not make a starter.

 

[kh54s10]

There are already enough cells in a dry pack to do an average 5 gallon batch. The process makes the yeast healthy when just rehydrated so you don't need to increase the cell count or feed make them reproduce to get the proper amount of healthy cells. Dry yeast last longer so your viability should not be a concern, where it is with liquid yeast. It is also cheaper so it usually saves money to pitch 2 or 3 packs as opposed to using expensive DME to make a starter.

It is also said that making a starter with dry yeast strips the cells of nutrients etc that are included in the manufacturing process making the cells less healthy than if you just rehydrated.

 

[FirstAidBrewing]

Not to start an argument, but aren't dry packets geared towards an OG of 1.060 or less, ie average? The OP is making a pretty big beer for a single pack.

 

[DNKDUKE]

Yah, some time you get the answers to your questions just by talking them out.
One pack is a little under on the cell count. I'd way rather be over than even a little under.
Two packs it is.

 

[DNKDUKE]

Thanks everyone.

 

[specharka]

There are already enough cells in a dry pack to do an average 5 gallon batch. The process makes the yeast healthy when just rehydrated so you don't need to increase the cell count or feed make them reproduce to get the proper amount of healthy cells. Dry yeast last longer so your viability should not be a concern, where it is with liquid yeast. It is also cheaper so it usually saves money to pitch 2 or 3 packs as opposed to using expensive DME to make a starter.

It is also said that making a starter with dry yeast strips the cells of nutrients etc that are included in the manufacturing process making the cells less healthy than if you just rehydrated.

Not to belabor the point, but yeast starters are extremely cheap compared to buying extra yeast. I pay about $4/lb for DME and use less than 0.25 lb per 2L starter. For larger starters I use terminal runnings from my mash tun -- might not be the best quality wort but I usually decant it anyway.

However, I am certain the argument of "don't make a yeast starter with dry yeast" is utter nonsense promulgated by the yeast manufacturer to encourage brewers to buy more. Sorry, that just doesn't pass the sanity check.

 

[DNKDUKE]

😈