yeast harvesting with autosiphon

[Jboggeye]

Hi Guys, it's interesting to me to see so many yeast questions and Saison yeast threads.
I'm currently brewing a 3711 saison, and will harvest the yeast to add to a 3724 saison after fermentation dies down, (thanks Smizak!).

My question is:

When bottling my first 3711 saison, can I just keep racking with autosiphon, move racking tube from bottling bucket to sanitized/boiled erlenmeyer flask, and suck up the yeast to the flask?
Do you guys see any problem with this?

The flask will have boiled and cooled water to wash the yeast a little. I'll stick it in the fridge, to later decant and place slurry into sanitized mason jar until I make a starter in a week or so.

 

[Bensiff]

You will likely be fine. You might want to wipe the outside of the tube with a sanitizor first if you are really worried about infections. However, I like to give the carboy a good swirl with the last bit of beer to get the yeast in suspension and then draining that directly from the carboy to my sanitized jar which you wouldn't be able to do as easily with the siphon.

 

[Jboggeye]

why would it be difficult with the siphon? too thick?

 

[Jboggeye]

I will definitely leave some beer to swirl it with. I just need a small amount also...

 

[AnOldUR]

Here's a lazyman's sorta yeast washing technique. Cold crash the fermenter. Boil about two quarts of water and let it cool. Siphon off as much wort as possible from your fermenter without disturbing the yeast cake. Pour the water in the fermenter and swirl it to get the yeast in suspension. Let it rest for 15-20 minutes. You'll see a top layer of clear liquid form and a bottom layer of trub. Siphon from the middle hazy layer into sterilized pint size canning jars. Done!

 

[doctorRobert]

Here's a lazyman's sorta yeast washing technique. Cold crash the fermenter. Boil about two quarts of water and let it cool. Siphon off as much wort as possible from your fermenter without disturbing the yeast cake. Pour the water in the fermenter and swirl it to get the yeast in suspension. Let it rest for 15-20 minutes. You'll see a top layer of clear liquid form and a bottom layer of trub. Siphon from the middle hazy layer into sterilized pint size canning jars. Done!

I do something like this. Except, the next day, I'll swirl again, and decant into another jar, leaving behind some more trub that I accently got into my first jar. I also don't use the water method, just a tiny bit of beer left, so I probably get more trub in my first jar.

 

[AnOldUR]

I also don't use the water method, just a tiny bit of beer left, so I probably get more trub in my first jar.

Yeah. If you don't want to mess with it a second time, the key is to have a nice solid cake with almost no beer on top of it when you add the water.

 

[Malticulous]

I have a simple technique. Rack beer. Dump cake in sanitized jar (or better yet scoop appropriate amount into another fermenter full of chilled wort.) Refrigerate. Works ever time.

The best yeast is on top of the cake, the bottom is trub.