What Kind of Yeast Pitcher Are You?

[BigJoeBrew]

May have been asked before. Just wondering how everyone does their yeast? And what has worked best for everyone. Sorry if I missed an option in the poll. If you do multiple, choose all that you do/have done.

 

[deadwolfbones]

I usually pitch dry yeast dry (exceptions: kettle sours and lagers, where I rehydrate) and make starters with liquid yeast from a new package (I haven't reused yeast so far, though I may start soon).

 

[brownni5]

I've done each at least once. Depends on my mood, what I've got and what I'm making.

Currently on my stir plate is some frozen wit yeast that I harvested from a batch last year after building up dregs harvested from a Sierra Nevada Ovila White.

 

[day_trippr]

Not seeing "pitch a starter made from stored over-built starter yeast" in the choices...

Cheers!

 

[RPh_Guy]

Also don't see starter from yeast ranch.

 

[hottpeper13]

Vitality starter from over built, saved starter. No decanting and pitched at high K.

 

[Qhrumphf]

I extensively repitch clean harvested yeast. No washing needed. No starter needer.

When starting a fresh pitch I'll sometimes either prop it up or just pitch enough directly.

Haven't used dry yeast in years.

I also don't ever store yeast more than a couple days. Harvest and use the same day is the goal.

 

[catdaddy66]

Another one that overbuilds starters and harvests for future use prior to pitching. I do have dry yeasts but those are rarely used, mostly if the starter fails or if I get antsy to brew right away.

Just checked... I have 25 yeast strains in my collection!

 

[brewbama]

I make a medium with 100 g DME and 100 ml water. Boil it, cool it, and pitch the yeast. Shake the bageezies out of it until it’s mostly foam, pitch it at high krausen wort and all.

 

[hopjuice_71]

I make a medium with 100 g DME and 100 ml water. Boil it, cool it, and pitch the yeast. Shake the bageezies out of it until it’s mostly foam, pitch it at high krausen wort and all.

Did you mean 10 g of DME, or maybe a 1000 ml of water?

 

[brewbama]

Did you mean 10 g of DME, or maybe a 1000 ml of water?

LOL good catch: 1000 ml (1L) water

 

[jrgtr42]

I've done most of them at least once.
Generally I either make a starter from fresh, or I save some from another batch and make a starter from there. I do keep a couple packs of dry on hand just in case.
I usually won't pitch straight fresh liquid.
I have racked straight onto another cake ( a huge Impy Stout, I made a porter before that to build the cake)

 

[Blazinlow86]

I use liquid yeast exclusively and always overbuild a starter keeping a small amount for the next time. I usually have 5-6 different yeasts on hand. I have harvested and cleaned but found it easier to just overbuild. Cheers

 

[CascadesBrewer]

I am trying to think how many yeasts I have purchased in the last 4 months. A pack of S-04 that I have harvested and used in 3 or 4 batches. A pack of WLP001 (that I direct pitched into a 5 gal batch due to a surprise brew day) that I have used in 3 or 4 batches and several hop sampler batches, and a pack of WLP013 that I have used in 3 batches. I snagged some Wyeast Irish Ale Yeast from my GFs batch that I used once. I do want to play around with more yeasts, but I have about a dozen jars of harvested yeast that are tempting to use!

 

[rhys333]

Starters are for woosies.

Pitching directly from dry or liquid pack (no starter), and same for harvested slurry.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

Starters are for woosies.

Pitching directly from dry or liquid pack (no starter), and same for harvested slurry.

Packs are for woosies. I direct pitch from my slants.

 

[Qhrumphf]

Packs are for woosies. I direct pitch from my slants.

Slants? Pshaw.

One scratch of a plate with an inoculation loop, and stir into 20 gallons of wort.

Only the strongest yeast for me.

 

[cnash]

Typically use dry yeast and rehydrate it.

 

[catdaddy66]

Slants? Pshaw.

One scratch of a plate with an inoculation loop, and stir into 20 gallons of wort.

Only the strongest yeast for me.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

So why did I cast a vote for "Pitch Slurry of Yeast from Previous Batch (No Starter)"?

Sunday I brewed a 5 gal batch of IPA (1.065 OG) and pitched this WLP001 slurry that was harvested from a 1 gal hop sampler batch about a week earlier. That is an 8 oz canning jar...so maybe 5 oz of slurry. I dumped out about 3/4 of the beer on top. It was around 6 PM when I pitched the yeast.

I left the beer in my fermentation chamber set to 64F, and returned last night to this active fermentation (about 27 hours after pitch). This batch is in full chun mode with a thick krausen. This process is so easy and has given me great results! (Note, the pic is one of the 3 gal fermeters that I split the batch into, as my 6.5 gal carboy does not fit into my recently acquired freezer/chamber. The other fermenter looks just like this one.)

 

[ncbrewer]

I usually pitch rehydrated dry yeast, but it isn't one of the choices. Closest is dry yeast with a starter.

 

[rhys333]

So why did I cast a vote for "Pitch Slurry of Yeast from Previous Batch (No Starter)"?

Sunday I brewed a 5 gal batch of IPA (1.065 OG) and pitched this WLP001 slurry that was harvested from a 1 gal hop sampler batch about a week earlier. That is an 8 oz canning jar...so maybe 5 oz of slurry. I dumped out about 3/4 of the beer on top. It was around 6 PM when I pitched the yeast.
View attachment 621217


I left the beer in my fermentation chamber set to 64F, and returned last night to this active fermentation (about 27 hours after pitch). This batch is in full chun mode with a thick krausen. This process is so easy and has given me great results! (Note, the pic is one of the 3 gal fermeters that I split the batch into, as my 6.5 gal carboy does not fit into my recently acquired freezer/chamber. The other fermenter looks just like this one.)

View attachment 621218

You managed this without a stepped-up three-stage mega starter? Nay! Surely this is witchcraft?

 

[mls1970]

May have been asked before. Just wondering how everyone does their yeast? And what has worked best for everyone. Sorry if I missed an option in the poll. If you do multiple, choose all that you do/have done.

Lately it's been dry yeast, but I use liquid with starters as well. I have had good results with both types. Future brews I'm going to use Dry yeast when I can and only liquid when I want a specific strain or when I'm making a big beer and want to make a large starter. Cheers!

 

[Soulshine2]

May have been asked before. Just wondering how everyone does their yeast? And what has worked best for everyone. Sorry if I missed an option in the poll. If you do multiple, choose all that you do/have done.

new, dry packet and
slurry from previous as long as it is for or within the same basic style outline or yeast requirement.
for example, I just bottled an Oktoberfest/Maerzen , I used K97 (dry) for that and had a healthy 2 qts of slurry after the beer was finished. I have an extract Kolsch on deck I will use the same slurry to ferment.

 

[Soulshine2]

 

[mattdee1]

So why did I cast a vote for "Pitch Slurry of Yeast from Previous Batch (No Starter)"?

Sunday I brewed a 5 gal batch of IPA (1.065 OG) and pitched this WLP001 slurry that was harvested from a 1 gal hop sampler batch about a week earlier. That is an 8 oz canning jar...so maybe 5 oz of slurry. I dumped out about 3/4 of the beer on top. It was around 6 PM when I pitched the yeast.

I left the beer in my fermentation chamber set to 64F, and returned last night to this active fermentation (about 27 hours after pitch). This batch is in full chun mode with a thick krausen. This process is so easy and has given me great results! (Note, the pic is one of the 3 gal fermeters that I split the batch into, as my 6.5 gal carboy does not fit into my recently acquired freezer/chamber. The other fermenter looks just like this one.)

I have done this multiple times myself, and it usually works just fine. You have to be careful to not under-pitch, though. There have been 2 times that I have done this with S-05 yeast in simple blonde ales where the beer ended up with a very noticeable clove-like phenolic component to it that I didn't plan for or want. The beers were still pretty decent and highly drinkable, but they tasted more like some kind of Belgian blonde than the simple, clean ale that I was shooting for.

Interestingly, the last time this happened, I had harvested 2 jars of S-05 from the same fermentor for use in the two halves of an upcoming 10gal batch I had planned. I remember thinking that one of the jars might have been a little bit light on the quantity of slurry I collected, but this process had worked just fine so many times that I just lazily went with it. Sure enough, one half of that beer was absolutely perfect (relative to what I was shooting for) and the other had the clove-like character. Everything was exactly the same on these beers except for the quantity of yeast pitched. I guess I don't know with 100% certainty, as we rarely do in this hobby, but my bet is that under-pitching the one half of the batch caused the difference.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

You managed this without a stepped-up three-stage mega starter? Nay! Surely this is witchcraft?

Back when I started brewing, direct pitching a Wyeast smack pack was (as far as I knew) sound brewing practice. At some point I felt "advanced" because I picked up a yeast starter kit. I felt like I was cutting edge making starters in my 1L flask...but now I see so many 2L and 4L flasks out there!!

 

[jcav]

I always make a starter with two new liquid yeast packs in my four liter flask. Depending on the gravity of the brew I am going to make, determines whether I make a 2 liter or 2.5 liter starter for my 11 gallon batches. I will make a four liter starter when I brew lagers.

John

 

[MaxStout]

I pitch a starter made from a new liquid package. I never make starters with dry yeast. For dry yeast I rehydrate, but there was no vote selection for that.

 

[Localhopper]

Spray and pray method.


Just dump it from the package and hope for the best. Been working so far.