Pitch rate for High gravity beers.

[Queequeg]

I plan on brewing an Imperial stout this weekend with a target SG of 1.116.

I need to prepare my start of WLP007 this week but am unsure as to the exact pitch rate to aim for.

My understanding is for a fresh culture of ale yeast you want to pitch somewhere between 0.5 -1 billion cells/Plato/ Litre of wort depending on the style of beer and yeast strain.

However my question is does this rule hold true for very high gravity beers above 1.100 SG? Or do you need to adjust the pitching rate to account for the increased stress on the cells?

Can I just stick with 0.75 billion cells/ plato/Litre for this beer or do I need to up the pitching rate to say 1 billion/Plato/litre or even more?

I want the character of the yeast to be balanced and therefore don't want to deliberately under or over pitch?

 

[Darwin18]

http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html

Even with a stir plate, you'd likely need two packs or vials of yeast.

 

[flars]

I like this calculator for doing a stepped starter.
http://www.brewersfriend.com/yeast-pitch-rate-and-starter-calculator/

 

[Queequeg]

I was planning on doing a step stater from a single via.

I am familiar with both calculators and personally I prefer brewers thread because you can set the pitch rate.

However this hasn't really answered my question as to what rate you should calculate for high gravity brews given the increased osmotic pressure and demands on longevity and vitality of the yeast.

 

[hottpeper13]

I don't know what the pitch rate is,but when I am going to make a RIS I first make a 5 gal batch of brown or mild to grow enough yeast and then pitch the entire slurry.

 

[g-star]

I was planning on doing a step stater from a single via.

I am familiar with both calculators and personally I prefer brewers thread because you can set the pitch rate.

However this hasn't really answered my question as to what rate you should calculate for high gravity brews given the increased osmotic pressure and demands on longevity and vitality of the yeast.

For an ale of that strength, you should pitch at least 1M cells/ml/*Plato. Something in the 1.25-1.50 range would be optimal.

 

[Mer-man]

From Yeast, page 84: 1.4m/ml/deg Plato is optimal for a 1.106 wort.

 

[Queequeg]

Brilliant, thanks just what I was after.

 

[Mer-man]

Yesterday before dinner I pitched per the mrmalty suggestion into a barley wine and it roared into Krausen overnightView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1435043943.494667.jpg.

So I pitched 180ml fresh slurry from the fridge (5deg) into the wort (17deg).

 

[Queequeg]

By the looks of your PIC Mr malty is factoring in a higher pitch rate for the gravity. By comparison my 12L batch of 116 ris is estimated to need 450 bill based on 1.4 bill/L.°Plato

I will check with Mr malty later and report back

 

[Mer-man]

Yeah I just used the lager value because it is 1.5

 

[Queequeg]

Cool stuff

 

[Queequeg]

I have had to but 5L conical for my plate stirrer now. Still can do lagers and impys in a single step now. woot!

 

[Mer-man]

That's good, as you are generally limited by the volume of starter wort. Of course, it plateaus when you reach a normal beer innoculation rate/volume.