What is going on here?

[NYShooterGuy]

Started a yeast starter last night. Had a Bell jar since 5/17 of London ESB that I wanted to see if it was still viable.

After making the 2L starter, I added the ESB.

The color changed from brown to greenish grey.

After 12 hours, the color of the mixture is still greenish grey, shows signs of fermentation (bubbles rising from solution), and when I drop the spin bar, the heavy foculant yeast is collecting as the greenish-grey causing material.

Never seen this before, and the bell jar smelled fresh and "yeast-y" prior to pitching into the starter.

I haven't tasted or smelled the starter yet, I'm waiting a few more hours but...

...am I worrying, or should I just dump and start anew?

 

[Gnomebrewer]

That picture looks normal - I can't see any greenish grey. If you're worried, dump it and start again or brew a mini batch to try it out. It's not worth ruining a whole batch.

 

[SanPancho]

you sure the greenish grey isnt just hop dust from when you collected/saved the yeast? thats the only time the color green has any reason to be in beer.

 

[NYShooterGuy]

This morning the starter has shown more signs of life, more CO2 rising, and now a krausen ring has formed.

The color looked much better today as well, it appears as the familiar light brown I am used to seeing when making a starter.

 

[mongoose33]

I don't harvest yeast, but I can tell if the starter is "working" if the color changes. Usually from a sort of tan/brown to something more like the color of a creamsicle.

If I did harvest yeast and saw greenish stuff, I'd presume it's either break or hop residue.

 

[NYShooterGuy]

I try to always get a very "clean" sample from finished batches by avoiding as much trub as possible.

This particular batch was a multi-step-up from the original smack pack. The yeast in this starter has only seen boiled, then coolled dme and H2O. At no point in its lifetime has it been exposed to grain or hope which made me concerned about the colour.

The smell is of healthy yeast, so it was a bit of a conundrum.

Tonight when I get home I plan to remove the stopper, and smell and taste the starter.

If it doesn't meet my expectations, than down the drain it goes. If all went well, than I have a new and healthy population of Wyeast London ESB to inoculate my next wort batch.

 

[NYShooterGuy]

The colour is perfect!