# Reculturing Cooper's yeast



## Bradgc (21/7/15)

My next batch of beer I'm trying the Cooper's pale ale kit.
For the yeast I'm going to try reculture some Cooper's ale yeast.
What's the minimum amount of bottles I should use for a 20 litre batch?

Should I also add the kit yeast to help it along?

Do Cooper's kits have the same yeast as their "famous" ale yeast?


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## jyo (21/7/15)

For an average gravity beer (1045) I usually step the dregs of 3-4 stubbies into 500 ml wort. Let that finish completely and then into 500ml and pitch as an active starter. Check out the wiki section.

Cheers.

Edit- And the two yeasts are different strains, mate.


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## Bradgc (22/7/15)

Thanks, I was thinking of just using about 250 ml boiled water and tbsp sugar (then cooled till tepid), throw the dregs in, and once I start getting bubbles and foam, straight into the wort.


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## JDW81 (22/7/15)

Bradgc said:


> Thanks, I was thinking of just using about 250 ml boiled water and tbsp sugar (then cooled till tepid), throw the dregs in, and once I start getting bubbles and foam, straight into the wort.


Not the best idea this one. The yeast will get lazy and prefer the simple sucrose and take ages to get going in the beer. The longer the lag time to a good, rigorous fermentation the more likely another organism will take hold and infect your hard made wort. 

The real trouble with reculturing is you don't know what the yeast viability is, so it can take a variable amount of time to kick off. Best advice is to use the sediment from 3-4 (or more) stubbies and pitch into a 100-200mL starter, let that ferment out then pitch that into 500mLs then build it up to 1L (once the 500mL starter has fermented out). That is the only way to ensure you'll have a good, healthy and active starter prior to pitching into you wort.

FWIW I stopped trying to reculture after a while ago as I found the results too variable and wasn't able to get consistency with my yeast pitches. And, as jyo has mentioned, the yeast in the coopers bottle is a different strain to the yeast they ferment with.

Your best bet would be to try and track down some of this in Australia.

Cheers,

JD


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## TheWiggman (22/7/15)

Plenty of threads about the place with further details on stepping up Coopers' bottle yeast. The most important things are -

Get the freshest (i.e. most recent BB date) bottles you can find out of the fridge section at the bottleshop
First step should be low gravity (1.020) using boiled DME
Let the bottles settle in the fridge upright for a day to maximise the yeast dropout
It's also a good idea to aerate/oxygenate the starter well and use yeast nutrient in each step as well as the brew.
My most recent effort at reculturing went -

One 6 pack of yeast into 250 ml of 1.040. Result was 1.020 for 400 ml (for 4-5 days). Important to do this on a Friday afternoon or brew day.
Step up to 2l at 1.040 (3 days).
Pitched into 24l of 1.040 for a CPA recipe.
I used an O2 kit for each step up as well as a pinch of yeast nutrient. Same with the brew. It took off in 12h and was blowing off in 24h. FG hit by about day 4 to about 1.007 by memory.
Staggeringly close to the real thing. From my keg, it tastes more like a bottled CPA than what I've had out of pub taps before.

I agree with JDW81 though regarding variable results, I've been less finicky in the past and had a different taste and brew experience.
And no, don't add the kit yeast as well to help it along. Coopers yeast is a unique animal that brings a lot to the beer.


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## Ducatiboy stu (22/7/15)

I actually asked Dr Tim about the Kit and bottled yeast.

They indeed are different. He went on to explain that they tried to dry the brewery yeast but it didnt work, so they where forced to use a proprietry dry yeast

He advocates re-culturing the brewery yeast 

I usually make my starters with dry malt to about 1020, this gives a lesser amount of alcohol for the yeast to swim in when its finished, causing less stress

Coopers Mild would be the pick to get dregs from as its only 3.5%. Alc can mutate some yeast


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## Dave70 (22/7/15)

Ducatiboy stu said:


> I actually asked Dr Tim about the Kit and bottled yeast.
> 
> They indeed are different. He went on to explain that they tried to dry the brewery yeast but it didnt work, so they where forced to use a proprietry dry yeast
> 
> ...


Have to agree with this. Could be my own miss handling, but had more success re culturing pale ale yeasties than stout or sparkling ale.
Having said that, I'd rather suffer the hassle of drinking extra pales and harvesting more yeast than drinking less of the more viable mid strength ones.


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## Ducatiboy stu (22/7/15)

Dave70 said:


> Have to agree with this. Could be my own miss handling, but had more success re culturing pale ale yeasties than stout or sparkling ale.
> Having said that, I'd rather suffer the hassle of drinking extra pales and harvesting more yeast than drinking less of the more viable mid strength ones.


Yes. It is quite the dilemma


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## Blind Dog (22/7/15)

I find I have to save the yeast from half a slab to get a decent result. 

S'wot I tell SWMBO anyway


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## Dave70 (23/7/15)

Blind Dog said:


> I find I have to save the yeast from half a slab to get a decent result.
> 
> S'wot I tell SWMBO anyway


Sounds like you're underpitching to me.
Why take the risk?


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## Ducatiboy stu (23/7/15)

Yeah...1/2 a slab would not be enough...


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## GABBA110360 (23/7/15)

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_Registered: 1997-04-20_

_Posts: 4172_




_Here is a cut-and-paste from the article written for Beer & Brewer:_


_Coopers, encourage home brewers to use the yeast from naturally conditioned Coopers ales. There are numerous documented techniques, with varying levels of complexity, for re-activating the yeast in naturally conditioned beer. The method described below may leave some readers, experienced in growing yeast cultures, aghast. \u201cWhat! No stir plate, no malt, no alcohol swabs, no nutrient, no way! However, for Coopers yeast, it works._


_Method_

_1. Buy a six pack of Coopers Original Pale Ale and place upright in the fridge for about a week for the yeast to settle._

_2. Mix about 600ml of boiling water and 4 tablespoons of dextrose/sugar in a pyrex jug, cover with cling-wrap and leave to cool in the fridge for about 30mins._

_4. Open 4 bottles and decant the beer into a jug, leaving behind the yeast sediment - about a couple of centimetres._

_5. Pour the sugared water equally into each bottle, cover with cling-wrap and secure with a rubber band._

_6. Shake the bottles then place them in a dark spot at a temperature in the mid 20\u2019s._

_7. Give the bottles a shake in the morning and at night to keep the yeast in suspension._

_8. After around 2 to 3 days the yeast should become active and begin forming a head._

_9. Pitch the active yeast into a brew immediately or store in the fridge for about a week. Just remember to pull it out of the fridge to warm for couple of hours prior to pitching._


_A few points to keep in mind for successful Coopers yeast reactivation; use beer with the latest \u201cBest After\u201d date, lower alcohol content is better, it\u2019s okay to hold the culture at slightly higher temps to promote a quicker reactivation, make sure the culture smells okay before pitching, buy another 6 pack for each culture and don\u2019t forget to drink the decanted beer._


that is from coopers forum and it works
cheers
ken


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## GABBA110360 (23/7/15)

and then after going through all that wash some yeast from the yeast cake after bottling and if you get enough for the next batch all I do is tip the water off add some of the wort shake the crap of it to mix etc and pitch directly into the wort no starter
that's my bit if its not broke don't need to fix lol


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