Starter for a few hours worth it?

[GenIke]

I'm making a smaller red ale (1.045ish) this afternoon using a Wyeast smack pack. Would it be worth it to whip up a starter and let it sit on the stir plate for a few hours?

I usually make them a day or two early, but plans changed and I can brew this afternoon.

 

[jfk69]

For a 1.045 beer I wouldn't bother.

 

[Cyclman]

I would think not.

 

[gregkeller]

You are not going to get much growth in a starter in a few hours, especially in the size range you would be willing to dump into your beer. If it's a fresh pack of yeast, i'd just go with that. I might make a small <1L starter to let the yeast get going so they are rip roaring when you throw the entire starter into your wort. I always hate dumping that nasty oxidized "beer" from a starter into my batch, so i like to make a starter 5 days ahead of time so i can get 36-48 hours of growth, then crash and decant so i'm pitching a minimal amount of the starter beer. If i was really short on time I think a 500-750 mL starter would be the way i'd go.

 

[mikeoholic]

It might be worth it to get your yeast active before you pitch.


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[bobeer]

I wouldn't bother either just expect up to 3 days of lag time before things get going.