# Re-culturing yeasts!



## checkers (18/6/15)

Hey guys,

So I've just started re-culturing coopers pale ale yeast from the bottle for the first time. Made a 750ml starter in a 1L mason jar.
All is going well and is fermenting along nicely.
I read most people start with a 1.5L starter in a big coke bottle so what I want to know is once this is finished fermenting, can I boil up another 75g/750ml wort, drain most of the spent beer off the top of my little yeast family, add fresh wort and give them another 5 day chew on the fresh wort to make a larger crew for pitching?
Also I'm making a few of these so when there done how do I keep them in the fridge?
Drain off wort? On chilled boiled sanitary water??
Like I said I'm new to this. I'm sure trial and error would have me figure it out but really want to get this coopers yeast in beer asap!


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## goatchop41 (18/6/15)

If you're going to decant off the spent wort between each step of the starter, then you'll want to cold crash for 12-24 hours prior to decanting, so that you aren't pouring some of your lovely new yeast cells down the drain! :blink:

Re: storing samples - despite what you'll read from some homebrewers, keeping the yeast under the spent wort is absolutely fine. They'll be happy there for months, you'll just have to build them back up with a 1L starter before pitching if you want to use them more than a month or two down the track


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## Bradgc (19/8/15)

I'm currently doing my first starter with some saved wyeast 1214.

How long would it take to see signs of activity?

Would I be able to smell if it's infected, before adding it to the brew?


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## Rocker1986 (19/8/15)

I've not used 1214, but I normally see activity in my starters in about 8-10 hours depending on the strain and the temperature - having said that, I've only been using 2001 for the past few months so my memory isn't great on how long ale strains have taken, but they probably were a little less.

In my experience, yes you will be able to smell it. I mistakenly pitched an infected starter once (it was also my first starter) because I didn't realise the smell was actually an infection, but from doing subsequent ones with no infection, looking back it was a very different smell. They should smell very yeasty/bread like. My infected one smelt quite sour from memory. I just thought it was the spent beer smelling funky from the high fermentation temp with lager yeast, but apparently not.


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## Danscraftbeer (19/8/15)

checkers said:


> Hey guys,
> 
> So I've just started re-culturing coopers pale ale yeast from the bottle for the first time. Made a 750ml starter in a 1L mason jar.
> All is going well and is fermenting along nicely.
> ...


Have you done a brew yet? I have one basically finished in the fermenter and it smells awesome all the way from just a slight sniff off the airlock.
I used the sediment of 6 X stubbies of Coopers Celebration Ale. Then stepped that up in a 1.5lt X 1.040 stir plated wort until the krausen depleted (4 days in winter, around 18c) Cold crashed. Tipped off top water then added new 1lt wort stir plated for 8 hours then pitched into a 24lt brew.
I am really looking forward to the brew and the recycled yeast cake as well. :beerbang:


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## Vini2ton (20/8/15)

I too have recently done my first Coopers bottle yeast re-culture. 6 sparkling ale stubbies dregs into 500 ml of 1.040 wort with the slightest pinch of yeast-nutrient. I thought it was a dud but after 36 hours it fired up a ripper. Stepped it up to 1 ltr, then 1.5 ltr and then pitched into a 1.050 wort with fingers crossed. It dropped down to 1.007 in 4 days at 18c. Stabled at 1.005 ( 2 weeks I left it ) so quite a success. It didn't floc as well as the starters so I fined it with gelatin and after a couple days the bottles are coming clear as as crystal. Sample beer tasted bloody nice. I just poured off spent wort in the starters ( tasted some to check it ) and topped up with new stuff. It's only the floccing issue that was a concern, but otherwise I reckon the finished product will be a cracker. Goodluck.


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