Title says it all. I want to make a lager, and have adequate lagering equipment. I have 4 wyeast packets available, and all are dated recently, so viability should be good. Is there an advantage to simply making a starter from one or two of the packs versus just swelling and pitching all 4 packs into my wort? I have a stir plate and starter equipment, just wondering if I will get the same flavor/finish results by the easier method of swelling and pitching the packs...
Starter versus multiple wyeast packs
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phidelt1499
Well-Known Member
Cost savings would be a factor. By making a starter you could use those four packs for four batches instead of blowing all of them on one.
You bought a stir plate yet you're considering using 4 packs of yeast in a beer? Your salary must be double mine, at least.
Seriously, though, starters are super easy. Save the other yeast packs for future beers. It's a good activity to master on your quest for better beer. The only reason I'd consider not making a starter is if I knew my sanitation was bad. Even so, I'd only pitch multiple packs until I got my sanitation practice worked out.
marnel
Well-Known Member
No worries, just send me your 4 packs of yeast and i'll return you one properly sized starter ;-)
I've made starters before, not averse to doing one. I'm just doing a lager that I want to cold pitch around 48F, and want it to be as clean (flavor wise) as possible. By my calculations, I would need to make a gallon size starter, and I'm not too thrilled about dumping a gallon of starter beer into my fermenter. That's why I got the extra packets, and not sure if I will have a use for them in the near future. Also not sure how long I can keep them before losing their viability. After I got them is when I started wondering what the effect of just cold-pitching multiple packs of unprimed yeast would be on the final brew. If it will produce an inferior beer, then I don't mind making the starter and decanting as much of the wort as I can, but if there's no foreseeable I'll effects on the beer and I already have the packets I was just thinking that this might give me a cleaner product.
marnel
Well-Known Member
Nope it will be the same as making an appropriate sized starter, but will tack on 25 dollars in cost in yeast to your brew unless you got a really good price. This of course has no affect on taste.
sorry 19 dollars since you will need atleast one packet.
sorry 19 dollars since you will need atleast one packet.
remilard
Well-Known Member
Actually I think there is a material difference between multiple packs and a starter in that with the starter many of the yeast cells are younger and will perform better.
The older your smack packs, the larger this difference will be.
If I only need one smack pack for a small ale I would consider the best course of action to be making a starter and discarding part of it. I may not always do this as I can usually get smack packs manufactured a few days prior which I might consider fresh enough.
If you think I am overreacting on the importance of a low number of days since propagation, ask yourself why commercial brewers who are very cost conscious pay for overnight shipping from Wyeast and White Labs when they purchase a new pitch.
The older your smack packs, the larger this difference will be.
If I only need one smack pack for a small ale I would consider the best course of action to be making a starter and discarding part of it. I may not always do this as I can usually get smack packs manufactured a few days prior which I might consider fresh enough.
If you think I am overreacting on the importance of a low number of days since propagation, ask yourself why commercial brewers who are very cost conscious pay for overnight shipping from Wyeast and White Labs when they purchase a new pitch.
Make your gallon starter and let it ferment out, toss it in the fridge to let the yeast to floc out, decant the starter wort and pitch the slurry. I do it all the time with my starters...both lager and ale.
Yup, out of a gallon starter, you'll end up pitching a cup or two. I do the same, for the same reasons. I don't care to pitch a gallon of oxidized, hopless, fermented extract into my beers. Granted, I've never done it to see what real difference it would make, but I'm guessing it wouldn't be good.
I would make the starter instead of pitching multiple packs. One time I did something similar and pitched 3 vials of white labs yeast instead of making a starter and the fermentation got stuck at 1.037 from 1.080. After that, I started making starters for every batch that used liquid yeast. By using a starter, you begin acclimating the yeast to the environment they are about to enter. The yeast start producing the enzyme for maltose, the primary sugar in wort. If you want to reduce the size of your starter, just use 2 packs instead of 1 with a stir plate. Let the starter finish then cold crash and decant before pitching. Just my two cents...
