Yeast Cake & Conical

[LooyvilleLarry]

This is my first brew with my MiniBrew conical, and it has finished fermenting and ready to keg.

I will be following up with another batch of the same beer immediately.

Here's what I *think* I need to do, assuming that everything happens the same day:

Keg the beer in the ferm.
Dump the yeast cake into a sanitized jar.
Clean the fermentor.
Pitch yeast cake.

Do I need to do any yeast washing? I've read the guide, and have done washing before, but never had a case where I was going to do the same batch right after.

Two other factors: 1) This was a dry hopped IPA and 2)the yeast was harvested from some yummy bottles of Bell's Two Hearted.

 

[Aleforge]

You don't really need to wash the yeast if your pitching so quickly. Yeast washing as I recently learned is only to help prolong its storage tolerance.

 

[llazy_llama]

If you're using a conical, and you're brewing the same style of beer again, I wouldn't bother dumping the yeast at all. Just let it ferment for 4-6 weeks on the cake to clear it out, then rack the beer off and dump your next batch right on that bad boy. As Aleforge pointed out, yeast washing is really only necessary if you're trying to hold on to that yeast for a while. If you're brewing the same recipe, I wouldn't sweat it.

Hold on a sec... I'm detecting a slight disturbance in the force... Within the next hour or so, someone will chime in here saying that pitching onto a yeast cake is overpitching, because it doesn't match up perfectly with Mr Malty's calculator. Don't sweat that. Between the Basic Brewing and TBN podcasts, and my own personal experience, I find it's almost impossible for the average homebrewer to overpitch to the point of off flavors. Rack that brew, then toss a new batch onto the cake. Easy, simple, and it works like a champ IMHO.

 

[LooyvilleLarry]

Thanks llama, it's been in the conical for a month now, so I am planning on doing just that.

 

[llazy_llama]

Sounds perfect. I'm sure both batches will be delicious, and you'll have saved ~$6 on yeast. Win-win in my book.

 

[tdiowa]

My Conical Washing Yeast

1. Boil and cool (1) 2-quart mason jar full of water. You can kill two birds with one stone by boiling the jars in the water. You may not use all this water but better to have too much than too little.

2. Boil and cool (3) 4 ounce mason jars. Leaving 2 ounces of water in each

3. Sanitize the rim of your conical.

4. Dump the 2 quarts/liters of boiled water and swirl the conical to rouse all the yeast you can from the bottom.

5. Swish and swirl! To rouse everything. Seal the conical back up and let sit for 30 minutes or so to let things settle out.

6. Dump the sediment out through the lower port back into the 2-quart mason jars.

7. Put the lid on securely and gently shake the jar and you should notice material separation yeast should go into suspension, and the stuff you do not want should start to settle out.

8. Once you get separation and the sediment has settled out on the bottom of the jar, pour as much of the liquid on the top as you can into the sink, leaving as much of the sediment behind as possible. I try to leave a 1 inch layer of liquid on top of the sediment and then shake the jar vigorously to got the sediment in suspension.

9. I then pour the contents of the jar into the three 4 ounce mason jars. Filling them to the brim. Top up the 2nd jar with your boiled and cooled water. Marking each jars contents with a dry eraser.

10. Put the lid on, and store in fridge for up to a couple months Sanitation is the key. I am anal about keeping everything sanitized and sealed.