Using harvested Nottingham

[GreenSpyder]

Just racked a batch of EdWort's Haus PA and harvested & washed the yeast (my first time). I got back 2 1/2 quart jars. I'd like to pitch this into my next batch (IPA?), do I use all of it? Do I warm it up first from the fridge? What's a good IPA recipe for this yeast???
Thanks!

 

[beowulf]

I've reused Notty for a number of IPAs, so any American-style IPA recipe should be fine. Probably would work fine with English IPAs as well, but I've not tried it. Lots of attenuation, but you probably know that already.

As for volume to use in your next batch, I would suggest consulting www.mrmalty.com, which has a calculator (http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html) you can use to determine how much of the harvested yeast to use. It will differ slightly for each recipe. I sometimes use about 1/2 cup and call it good if I don't feel like being too technical, depending on the recipe. No, you definitely don't need to use all 2.5 qts unless you're making a huge barleywine or something like that. You might let it warm a little at room temp prior to pitching...maybe an hour or so, but make sure it's not sealed tight. I did that once and it started buckling the lid on my mason jar...then overflowed once I opened it.

Also, if you haven't used it in awhile (maybe a few months), you may want to make a new starter to wake it up. I don't think it's always necessary, and I rarely take this step, but it may get fermentation started a bit quicker. I know lots of people here on HBT recommend a new starter with reused slurry.

These are just my personal opinions and observations...I'm sure others who are more astute will provide different recommendations.

 

[GreenSpyder]

Thanks, Beowulf.

Another concern I just thought of...
There was no trub layer, and the harvest has a green hue, probably hops from the last batch. Will this have an adverse effect on my next batch? I'm also thinking about trying a Blue Moon type wheat recipe? Will this work for that also?
Thanks, again!

 

[beowulf]

If it's from the hops of the previous batch, you might detect some residuals, but I don't think I'd worry too much unless it's a thick, gunky layer of hops which I suspect is not the case.

Blue Moon is a wheat beer, and as such you'll want to use yeast specific to that style. Not saying the beer would be bad, but it probably won't taste like Blue Moon. I've not tried using Notty for a wheat beer recipe, so honestly I don't know how it will turn out.

Here's a recipe you may want to look at, which has Wit-specific yeast:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f71/blue-balls-belgian-wit-blue-moon-clone-24978/