Yeast starters rock!

[Cajunbrewer87]

So I started my second batch ever yesterday, caribou slobber from northern brewer. I definitely learned from a couple small mistakes in my first batch and nailed my starting gravity at 1.052, exactly what northern brewer says on their website. My first batch I just sprinkled in some nottingham without rehydrating and it took about 36 hours to take off. This time I made a starter with WLP002 and wow!!! I started seeing bubbles after 4 hours, and after about 12 hours it started bubbling like crazy. It feels good to learn from my mistakes and have a very successful start of this batch. So if you're a beginner like me, try rehydrating dry yeast or making a starter with liquid yeast..makes a huge difference! I am now hooked on brewing for life haha. Hope everyone else has a great brewing week too! Cheers

 

[dkeller12]

Let's hope you are controlling your fermentation temps more than I did on my first batch or you're in trouble. I lacked that on my first few batches and my beer suffered from it. Congrats on the new batch and for getting into this obsession. Cheers!

 

[Cajunbrewer87]

Yep I've always heard how important temp controll is so I got a chest freezer with a johnson temp controller and its been working great. I have it set to 68 but it can get as low as 65 after the compressor cuts off. But I am guessing that is from the compressor having to be on longer with the yeast generating heat. I am hoping that 3 degree swing wont hurt anything. I have my probe taped to my bucket with some bubble wrap.

 

[bobeer]

I made a little starter for some washed sa05 that I pitched into an apa yesterday afternoon. This morning the blowoff tube was blown out of the bucket and krasen was everywhere. It was awesome :rockin:

Congrats on your 2nd batch! I'm on batch 40 and I still tinker with my processes to try and make things easier and less time consuming. Brew on!

 

[BigPicture]

Oh,

Now I'm gonna open a kettle of fish.

Liquid yeast is much better than dry yeast. Starters are better than simply opening the pack. 2ml starters with a stir plate for 24-48 hours are the best of the best.

Try it once and you will be amazed. :rockin:

 

[ndinh]

Oh,

Now I'm gonna open a kettle of fish.

Liquid yeast is much better than dry yeast. Starters are better than simply opening the pack. 2ml starters with a stir plate for 24-48 hours are the best of the best.

Try it once and you will be amazed. :rockin:

Once I went liquid, I never went back to dry yeast. I'm assuming you mean 2L starters because 2mL is tiny on a stir plate.

 

[estricklin]

Yep I've always heard how important temp controll is so I got a chest freezer with a johnson temp controller and its been working great. I have it set to 68 but it can get as low as 65 after the compressor cuts off. But I am guessing that is from the compressor having to be on longer with the yeast generating heat. I am hoping that 3 degree swing wont hurt anything. I have my probe taped to my bucket with some bubble wrap.

Try laying the probe on top of the bucket. Taping and wrapping usually ends up with you getting a little too cold, especially at the start. That's because when the bucket is at 70 or 68, the freezer is running like crazy and by the time the temp gets down low enough where the probe is, the air is so much cooler in the chest that it can take several degrees more heat away from the bucket. At least that's my theory after doing some testing with an infrared thermometer and 5 fermenters going at the same time.

 

[kh54s10]

Oh,

Now I'm gonna open a kettle of fish.

Liquid yeast is much better than dry yeast. Starters are better than simply opening the pack. 2ml starters with a stir plate for 24-48 hours are the best of the best.

Try it once and you will be amazed. :rockin:

I would have to agree that you are opening a kettle of fish.

I disagree that liquid yeast is any better than dry. Just different. Liquid yeast primarily offers more varieties. I use both and don't see any difference in the final product. It just depend on what yeast I want and if I have time to make a starter.

A 2 liter may be severely underpitching or overpitching depending on the gravity of the brew. Pitching the proper amount of healthy yeast is the aim.

 

[estricklin]

I would have to agree that you are opening a kettle of fish.

I disagree that liquid yeast is any better than dry. Just different. Liquid yeast primarily offers more varieties. I use both and don't see any difference in the final product. It just depend on what yeast I want and if I have time to make a starter.

A 2 liter may be severely underpitching or overpitching depending on the gravity of the brew. Pitching the proper amount of healthy yeast is the aim.

You nailed that. I switch to dry yeast exclusively during the summer (besides using repitched stuff) because I found the shipping during the heat to be horrible for the yeast. I used to think liquid yeast was the best thing that ever happened to my beer, but after so many years I now know the truth...I became a better brewer and dry is just as good.

 

[BigPicture]

This is great! I've just been in the wrong forums.

Experience is key. I've done the side by side comparison with 10 gallons wort separated into 2 carboys of 5 gallons each with dry & liquid yeast.

I've also done the primary/secondary experiment vs. the 1 bucket for all.

Guess which one won?! Try it. You got nothing to lose. They are NOT the same.

I've even dry hopped in the 1 bucket...........................

Keg vs. bottles.......................... the list goes on & on.

Beer is wonderful, even when you lose........................ you win.

Just thinking about some of the nasties, makes my nose crinkle.

Even when I've brewed a loser, I have to focus on all the effort that went into that swill, I still enjoy it.

P.S. Yup, it's Liters! :cross: Even when I over pitch, I just enjoy the immediate Rhino farts!