Starter without DME?

[jimdeasy]

I ain’t got no DME, but I got a huge bag of corn sugar here. How about I mix up a batch of sugar water with a little yeast nutrient throw it on the stir plate and make my starter from there. What could go wrong?

 

[BigJay13]

You will train your yeast to only eat simple sugars. When you add it to your beer it will leave behind a lot of long chain sugars and you will have a poor ferment. Probably better off just pitching the vial in as is, or pulling a small amount of wort off, use that as a short starter to get the yeast awake, and pitch 8-12 hours after you get the yeast started in the starter.

 

[Jag75]

I use propper starter. They have a great shelf life . Keep a can or two for back up.

 

[JustSomeChef]

You will train your yeast to only eat simple sugars. When you add it to your beer it will leave behind a lot of long chain sugars and you will have a poor ferment. Probably better off just pitching the vial in as is, or pulling a small amount of wort off, use that as a short starter to get the yeast awake, and pitch 8-12 hours after you get the yeast started in the starter.

Hi guys! I have an altbier extract kit I’m brewing tomorrow (5th overall batch). Bought some wyeast1007 but have no extra DME around. This is only the second thread I’ve seen suggesting using cooled wort as your yeast medium. The other thread suggested using preboil (only the steeping liquid), but that doesn’t seem like it would have enough sugars to kick off the yeast. I don’t have a stir plate either but sounds like the shaken method may be just as effective if not better. Think I should try this wort starter method, or just pitch the activated liquid yeast directly in? I also have a dry k97 ale yeast as backup.

 

[chibee]

Hi guys! I have an altbier extract kit I’m brewing tomorrow (5th overall batch). Bought some wyeast1007 but have no extra DME around. This is only the second thread I’ve seen suggesting using cooled wort as your yeast medium. The other thread suggested using preboil (only the steeping liquid), but that doesn’t seem like it would have enough sugars to kick off the yeast. I don’t have a stir plate either but sounds like the shaken method may be just as effective if not better. Think I should try this wort starter method, or just pitch the activated liquid yeast directly in? I also have a dry k97 ale yeast as backup.

I think anyone suggesting doing a starter from preboil would be doing so only for all grain (or maybe a grain-heavy partial mash).

 

[chibee]

How old is your yeast? and what's your target OG? I'd say just pitch the yeast unless your yeast is a couple months old and the OG is above 1.060.

If you need to make a starter you can make one with LME (I assume that's what you have in your extract kit). Since youre short on time I think a OG of 1.030 would be fine, as you wouldn't want to use too much of the kit's extract. I calculate 3.5 oz of LME getting you an OG of 1.030, though you'll need to subtract that from your recipe when calculating your target OG. Might be more complicated than you want for your 5th batch.

 

[JustSomeChef]

How old is your yeast? and what's your target OG? I'd say just pitch the yeast unless your yeast is a couple months old and the OG is above 1.060.

If you need to make a starter you can make one with LME (I assume that's what you have in your extract kit). Since youre short on time I think a OG of 1.030 would be fine, as you wouldn't want to use too much of the kit's extract. I calculate 3.5 oz of LME getting you an OG of 1.030, though you'll need to subtract that from your recipe when calculating your target OG. Might be more complicated than you want for your 5th batch.

I just got the kit in the mail yesterday. The yeast pack hadn’t expanded or anything yet. Smacked the pack and is sitting on my kitchen counter right now. Target OG is 1.052. I don’t think I necessarily need to make a starter, but just want the best circumstances for the yeast and beer. Thanks for the reply!

 

[JustSomeChef]

I think anyone suggesting doing a starter from preboil would be doing so only for all grain (or maybe a grain-heavy partial mash).

Ok interesting. I will keep this in mind when I eventually move to all grain. If I did make a starter from the finished wort, would that essential be making my own fast pitch? Or slow pitch in this case

 

[Barbarossa]

Hi guys! I have an altbier extract kit I’m brewing tomorrow (5th overall batch). Bought some wyeast1007 but have no extra DME around. This is only the second thread I’ve seen suggesting using cooled wort as your yeast medium. The other thread suggested using preboil (only the steeping liquid), but that doesn’t seem like it would have enough sugars to kick off the yeast. I don’t have a stir plate either but sounds like the shaken method may be just as effective if not better. Think I should try this wort starter method, or just pitch the activated liquid yeast directly in? I also have a dry k97 ale yeast as backup.

1007 does not need a starter for a 6 gallon batch.

 

[JustSomeChef]

1007 does not need a starter for a 6 gallon batch.

Thanks! I appreciate the clarity of this answer.