Yeast Cake or Trub???

[jonnyhammastix]

I tried to wash and harvest yeast for the first time this past weekend and am not sure exactly if what i have is trub or yeast. I have 2 pint mason jars with some forbidden fruit yeast i made a Wit with about a month ago and the two jars are completely different. The first jar has maybe an 1/8 - 1/4 inch of sediment on the bottom. This looks very similar to some of the other posts i have read regarding the topic. The second mason jar has about 3 inches of sediment (light color, clean looking) with the clear water/beer sitting on top of it. I am going to be making a starter on Thursday for a beer i am making on Sunday and need to know exactly what i have here and what i can use, and what i shouldnt use. I attached two pictures showing the mason jars. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

View attachment Full page photo.pdf

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[FortMillBrew]

Both look to be yeast. The one with 3" in it is more than enough for a 5g batch. Use say 1/3 of it to make your starter.
Cheers!

 

[jonnyhammastix]

Is that a normal amount of yeast to harvest from a 5 gallon batch? I did not make a starter due to time contraint a a relatively low OG from my belgian wit that i got the cake from. I just do not want to pitch a ton of trub into a 5 gallon batch.

Have you harvested yeast before FMB? Curious as to what the trub would look like after settling in the fridge for a couple days. Considering the SRM of the beer being 3.2 and putting my hops in a bag, i feel the trub would be pretty light as well.

 

[Natdavis777]

Washed yeast looks nice and white, like what you have. Trub typically looks a bit greyer, and you can definitely see a sediment line. A good rule of thumb to account for you washed yeast is 1.2billion cells per mL.

As for is that a normal amount of yeast to harvest? I just washed a 5 gal carboy of 1056 yesterday and netted 6 pint-sized mason jars of clean yeast, with about 100mL of compacted yeast in each. I wash yeast a lot, and typically get 5-6 jars per gal.View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1433977573.943969.jpg

 

[flars]

This thread will give you more insight on harvesting yeast.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=519995

I estimate 2 billion cells per milliliter in my harvested yeast. Even at that estimate, I think I'm over pitching. I do filter out the hop debris during the pour into the fermentor.

I pour out one quart jar full from the primary for the harvest. Usually there is just a few ounces left in the primary. When the yeast settles I have 350 to 400 ml of yeast in the jar.

 

[jonnyhammastix]

Thanks for all the great feedback. I guess I was not expecting to be so successful my first go at it, just need to work on getting my yeart more evenly distributed.