Re-using yeast from primary ?

[Hayseed]

I was reading somewhere where when you rack from primary to secondary you could use part of the yeast cake in bottem of fermenter to start another batch of similar beer . The catch was it had to be done within a week if refrigerated .

Is this good or bad advice ?

I just racked to secondary and that chocolate pudding smelled so good still bubbling in bottem of primary Id hate to waste it if its of some good use Other than feeding septic tank .

Checked gravity while I was at it and was at 1.023 from my 1.068 SG.
Test jar tasted rich and chocolatly to !!!!!!!!

 

[pgrebus]

You should wash the yeast first.

 

[Hayseed]

Ok . Well I already sterilized a 28oz jar and scooped it full to the neck . Its in the extra fridge.

I just saw and read the wash thread .

Can I still take it out , put in a gallon jar and do the wash process ?

 

[djt17]

No need to wash, I do it this way all the time. Works great. Check Mr Malty for how much slurry you should pitch.

 

[Yooper]

No need to wash, I do it this way all the time. Works great. Check Mr Malty for how much slurry you should pitch.

Me too!

I kegged a beer yesterday, and put 221 mls into one sanitized jar for today (that's how much I need for a 10 gallon batch) and the rest in a quart jar.

I won't brew again for a couple of weeks, but I"ll use that saved yeast. I use the yeast from one package for at least 3-4 batches before discarding it.

 

[Poobah58]

You should wash the yeast first.

Why???

 

[Rhumbline]

I usually salvage yeast from my batches. I've kept it in the fridge for several weeks and it was still viable, I always do a starter with it though.

I've used it to restart a stalled fermentation but I mostly use it for baking. I'm doing a batch of dough right now for pretzels and pizza.

 

[Hayseed]

Cool ! Thanks , Ill leave in fridge till next batch of dark .

 

[pgrebus]

The reason to wash the yeast is to get rid of trub, which will cause off flavors, and get rid of dead yeast cells. Pitching onto these can cause off flavors. Best to have the new beer ready to go and to pitch the yeast immediately.

 

[stpug]

I'll wash (rinse actually) yeast when I'm planning on freezing with glycerin, but anything that I store in a fridge is mostly the sludge from the bottom of a fermenter.

 

[eastoak]

The reason to wash the yeast is to get rid of trub, which will cause off flavors, and get rid of dead yeast cells. Pitching onto these can cause off flavors. Best to have the new beer ready to go and to pitch the yeast immediately.

this is not true. it seems to make sense, get the old dirty stuff out, but in reality wastes yeast since you wash out dead and live yeast and gives contaminants a chance to slip into your beer. if the trub in a 1/4-1/2 cup of yeast cake causes off flavors it has not been noticed by all of the homebrewers and breweries who reuse yeast.

 

[pgrebus]

this is not true. it seems to make sense, get the old dirty stuff out, but in reality wastes yeast since you wash out dead and live yeast and gives contaminants a chance to slip into your beer. if the trub in a 1/4-1/2 cup of yeast cake causes off flavors it has not been noticed by all of the homebrewers and breweries who reuse yeast.

BYO magazine's last issue doesn't agree. Got any facts?

 

[hoppus]

BYO magazine's last issue doesn't agree. Got any facts?

A member here, I believe it was Woodlandbrew, did a comparison and found washed yeast to actually have a higher % of bacteria than unwashed. It's in a blog post of his. Should show up on a Google search. Sorry I'm on mobile so I can't link.

 

[eastoak]

there are lots of articles about yeast washing but none that claim it's something that has to be done to avoid a problem. i stopped washing yeast not because i read about not doing it but i figured that if my sanitation was good then the beer would probably be contaminant free therefore the yeast cake should also be good to go. i tried this a number of times before i ran into this blog written by a fellow HBTer: http://woodlandbrew.blogspot.com/2012/12/yeast-washing-exposed.html once i started visiting local breweries and meeting local craft brewer i realized that none of them were washing yeast either. none of my beer was showing any ill effects so i've continued not washing yeast. so, no, i don't have any scientific proof but i know i'm not the only one doing this.

 

[pgrebus]

Interesting stuff - thanks for the info. I had no idea there was a yeast-washing conspiracy. I wonder where this advice originated. I'll have to consult a Yeast Lord