pitch white labs yeast

[cpatel479]

I've been using Wyeast for a while without any issues but I recently decided to try white labs stuff. I can't seem to open the vial without it fizzing up and foam pouring out over the top. I haven't had any issues with infection as far as pitching it but it just concerns me. The directions say to let it warm up at room temp for a few hours and to shake it before pitching.

 

[Hammy71]

Shake, then let sit for a couple of minutes. The pressure will usually subside, and you'll be fine. NOTE: Not always the case, but usually....

 

[latium]

I've experienced that with White Labs, too. When I use it, I crack the vial open a bit and release some pressure, close it again before it sprays, wait for the fizzing in it to subside, then repeat. It's kind of like opening a soda bottle that's been shaken up, which, come to think of it, is appropriate since the slurry is carbonated and those vials are actually 2-liter soda bottle blanks.

 

[cheezydemon3]

lol.

I like these kinds of threads sometimes. Not a big problem to solve, everyone plays nice......

 

[whoaru99]

The advice I received on exactly the same question was to crack open the vial while still cold and occasionally as it warms up to release any pressure that's building. Not wait until the end then try to throttle it...that's what I did and it didn't work very well.

The other suggestion was to open the vial over a funnel or over the bucket so you catch most of the spew and get it where it needs to be.

 

[cheezydemon3]

I always sanitized my fermenter, dumped in the yeast, sealed it up, pitched the chilled wort on that. I did this at the beginning of brewing, so the yeast had plenty of time to warm up.

If I was doing a starter, I did the same thing 24-48 hours before brewing, making the starter directly in my primary. Less to clean, less chance of infection.

Simpler is usually better.

 

[masskrug]

I had a vial sitting at room temp for a couple of hours while I did an extract. I went to pitch and the damn thing went off like a shaken coke bottle. Luckily I was over the fermentation bucket and most of it landed in there. No wonder those vials are so thick. I guess the yeast were active and ready to go. We'll see how things turn out...

 

[whoaru99]

No wonder those vials are so thick.

FWIW, the vials are actually 2L soda bottle pre forms/blanks that haven't been blown out to size/shape.

 

[masskrug]

FWIW, the vials are actually 2L soda bottle pre forms/blanks that haven't been blown out to size/shape.

Interesting.

 

[ntculenuf]

I let my vial sit in sanitizer for a bit. When I am ready to pitch I sanitize my hands several times, shake the vial, dip vial and hands in sanitizer again, open vial just above wort, after I dump yeast I get a little wort in the vial swirl it around to get any left in the vial and dump that. I have had no issues with infections or off taste.

I also do the crack and close method, works for me.

 

[midfielder5]

It was not asked but since this is the yeast forum:

Liquid yeast, both WL and WY, should be opened carefully and pitched to a starter. They don't have enough cells to begin with, presuming 5 gal of normal OG.
check out mrmalty.com for yeast pitch rate calculators
cheers!