This yeast pack still viable for my next brew?

[RedlegEd]

One of the dry yeast manufacturers is now recommending that you do not hydrate. They say to pitch dry.

This may apply only to their dry yeast though.

Cool. Which one? Not that there are a whole bunch to choose from. Ed

 

[Turfgrass]

Hi. Have a look at this video. Really pretty simple. As others have said, and I've done it myself, these yeasties are tough little buggers and will last a whole lot longer than folks give them credit for...especially if you kept them nice and cold. Good luck to you. Ed

ETA. BTW, you can start with a 1L flask and move to a 2L. The important thing is to use a gravity of about 1.030 - 1.035 to get them started, then move to 1.040 to build them.

Good video. I see how it work by slowly building a population, however, I didn’t know how to build a specific gravity. I followed the wyeast guideline for starters and that was 1.040 in one liter. The boil evap brought the mixture down to 800 ml....I’ve had it on a stir plate plate since yesterday morning, so it will be 48 hours tomorrow morning. The color went from a brown to a light brown and there is sediment (yeast) layer that formed at the bottom. What do you think?

 

[RedlegEd]

I think you're doing great. You starter should be the color of coffee with cream (see @day_trippr 's picture in post 11 above) and have a nice, bready, yeasty smell. Some folks like to put it in the fridge overnight before brew day to let it settle out, then decant the spent beer and just pitch the yeast slurry. A lot of times, I don't have the time or patience, so I'll just pitch the whole starter. Either way, I think this yeast will do a good job for you. Ed

BTW, please let us know how it came out.

 

[Turfgrass]

I think you're doing great. You starter should be the color of coffee with cream (see @day_trippr 's picture in post 11 above) and have a nice, bready, yeasty smell. Some folks like to put it in the fridge overnight before brew day to let it settle out, then decant the spent beer and just pitch the yeast slurry. A lot of times, I don't have the time or patience, so I'll just pitch the whole starter. Either way, I think this yeast will do a good job for you. Ed

BTW, please let us know how it came out.

Okay, I’ll keep it on the stir plate until it goes into the fridge tomorrow night. Hope to brew with it Monday afternoon.

 

[RedlegEd]

So

Okay, I’ll keep it on the stir plate until it goes into the fridge tomorrow night. Hope to brew with it Monday afternoon.

Sounds good. Don’t forget to use a magnet to hold your stir bar or you’ll wind up pitching it into your fermenter (ask me how I know ) Ed

 

[Turfgrass]

The Wyeast London Ale III pack spent around 60 hours spinning in a starter until I put it in the fridge last night. Here’s what it looks like. May have had a power outage while on stir plate at some point, but kept at 70 degrees for the most part.

 

[Turfgrass]

I think you're doing great. You starter should be the color of coffee with cream (see @day_trippr 's picture in post 11 above) and have a nice, bready, yeasty smell. Some folks like to put it in the fridge overnight before brew day to let it settle out, then decant the spent beer and just pitch the yeast slurry. A lot of times, I don't have the time or patience, so I'll just pitch the whole starter. Either way, I think this yeast will do a good job for you. Ed

BTW, please let us know how it came out.

[QUOTE="RedlegEd, post: 8439691, member: 213296

BTW, please let us know how

 

[RedlegEd]

Looking great! The real test will be lag time (how long to start active fermentation) and how well it ferments your beer. Ed

 

[Turfgrass]

Looking great! The real test will be lag time (how long to start active fermentation) and how well it ferments your beer. Ed

How long would it be good for in the refrigerator?

I nervous bc all of the work that goes into a brew day.

I can always step up to a bigger starter if you think that’s a good idea.

Thx

 

[RedlegEd]

How long would it be good for in the refrigerator?

I nervous bc all of the work that goes into a brew day.

I can always step up to a bigger starter if you think that’s a good idea.

Thx

It should be good for several days, if not more. Make sure you keep the mouth of the flask covered with sanitized foil. No need to go with a bigger starter at this point. I think it will be just fine. Don’t worry if it doesn’t kick of off in the first 12-18 hours, it might just have a little longer lag time. RDWHAHB! Ed

 

[Turfgrass]

It should be good for several days, if not more. Make sure you keep the mouth of the flask covered with sanitized foil. No need to go with a bigger starter at this point. I think it will be just fine. Don’t worry if it doesn’t kick of off in the first 12-18 hours, it might just have a little longer lag time. RDWHAHB! Ed

I pitched it yesterday around 5pm and overnight it got to work. Pictures are from this morning less than 12 hours later.

Bad news there was an error when putting together my brew sheet on Beersmith. The water volume never updated for some reason and I’m about 3/4 of a gallon below my batch size. Acting like a baby, I didn’t really try very hard after I noticed what was happening. For example, I oxygenated the wort by swirling the carboy instead of my normal o2 can and I could have been more careful with the sanitation. Figures I had to wake up to a strong krausen. Lol

 

[RedlegEd]

Looks great! I’m sure it’ll turn out wonderful. Ed

 

[Turfgrass]

Looks great! I’m sure it’ll turn out wonderful. Ed

Probably over did the starter. The krausen pushed off the airlock and made a mess. All cleaned up, but not something you want to see after work.

 

[RedlegEd]

Blow off tubes are a wonderful thing!

 

[Turfgrass]

Blow off tubes are a wonderful thing!

I have a two piece air lock that I slide a tube over and terminate in a bucket of starsan. Certainly the input portion of the airlock was to small. Not sure how else to do it on a carboy.

 

[RedlegEd]

I use a 3/8” nylon elbow fitting. It fits in the bung perfectly, and because it’s already bent at 90 degrees, you don’t get a kink in your blow off tube. Ed

 

[day_trippr]

I have a two piece air lock that I slide a tube over and terminate in a bucket of starsan. Certainly the input portion of the airlock was to small. Not sure how else to do it on a carboy.

1" ID/1-14" OD vinyl jammed into the neck works great, especially on chunky fermentations

Cheers!

 

[Turfgrass]

1" ID/1-14" OD vinyl jammed into the neck works great, especially on chunky fermentations

View attachment 597851

Cheers!

Good idea. Awesome fermentation chambers! Are those heat belts I see wrapped around your carboys?

 

[day_trippr]

No, they're just velcro straps to hold temperature probes in place.
I use light bulb heaters...

Cheers!

 

[DrinksWellWithOthers]

I recently had a package of yeast with similar viability without realizing it. I made a starter using a stir plate and it wasn't taking off in time for brew day so I used something else. It eventually took off and I cold crashed it. My plan is to step it up before using it for another beer.

 

[Turfgrass]

No, they're just velcro straps to hold temperature probes in place.
I use light bulb heaters...

Cheers!

Ok. I was wondering how you did it with the large diameter blow tube.