AHB Wiki: Using Coopers Bottle Yeast

[geoffi]

Any of the 'ale' styles will really shine with this yeast.

Being new to this process,

does anybody know which coopers kits (excluding pale ale!) does the harvisted pale ale yeast suit?

Cheers
Andrew

 

[geoffi]

I'm onto my second CPA clone brewed from the same double batch with the cultured yeast. It is a ripper. Once again, got down to about 1.005. Not a dead-ringer for CPA, but it is a beaut. In spite of the 18% sugar and low FG, it is still malty (JW Trad Ale at work there, I'd say).

Anybody thinking about trying this, don't walk, RUN to the bottle shop, get a few CPAs and get culturing.

 

[white.grant]

Any of the 'ale' styles will really shine with this yeast.

I just bottled a Coopers Irish Stout kit that I fermented with a cultured CSA yeast. From the taste of the hydro tube its going to be great.

Grant

 

[KHB]

I have tried to do a yeast with CPA twice now and in my haste i didnt quite let the dregs get to room tempretaure. I used a 500ml starter and 6 stubbies would it have shocked the yeast to much?? As it hasnt worked both times. Yes i sanatised everything properly and i have managed to get one working before using a longneck.


Cheers Ben

 

[geoffi]

I have tried to do a yeast with CPA twice now and in my haste i didnt quite let the dregs get to room tempretaure. I used a 500ml starter and 6 stubbies would it have shocked the yeast to much?? As it hasnt worked both times. Yes i sanatised everything properly and i have managed to get one working before using a longneck.


Cheers Ben

The yeast folks always recommend that the temps of yeast starter and wort are not too wildly different, so maybe pitching cold dregs onto warm wort would be similarly detrimental to the yeasties.

So don't give up! If at thirst you don't succeed, try, try again. :chug:

 

[KHB]

Yeah will have to try it again and not be so inpatient!!

 

[geoffi]

The recent starter I got going with great success I used a six-pack. I made the starter wort in advance, and had a friend over for drinks. We knocked 'em back over an hour or so. Every time I cracked a stubbie I carefully poured off all but about 1/4 inch (sometimes metric doesn't cut it) and pushed the cap back on. By the time he went home the dregs were nicely warmed to room temp, so I pitched. Took two or three days to really fire up.

 

[chris.taylor.98]

KHB, couple of things that might help:

i) Try using a lot smaller volume for the first step. Even with the dregs from 6 bottles you don't know how much viable yeast is in there so you have to assume there is not very much.

When I did my last CSA yeast culture I started with 2 bottles of dregs in only 60ml of wort.

Wait till you some some noticeable signs of yeast activity before you step up ( x10 to 600ml ) from there you should not have any problems, and can step up successively larger amounts ( can go to 2 liters from the 600 ml stage )

It took over 2 days for my first step last time, and that was with a stir plate as well.

If you try to do too big a step at once you run a lot greater risk of bacteria infection ( as there is a lot more wort with not much yeast ) and it will take longer for the fermentation cycle to start.


ii) The starter is all about making yeast, not beer. You want the ideal conditions for yeast propagation which is generally around 24-26C (even for lager yeasts) and 1.030-1.040 wort. You want it make as easy as possible for the yeast to propagate prior to pitching, and they will survive the temperature changes without too many problems if they are propagated properly.

I generally cold crash my starters (down to about 4C) a day or two before pitching so that I can pour off the resulting starter wort/beer (which is usually pretty revolting by this stage) and only pitch the yeast.

iii) try agitating your starter as much as possible. Just give it a bit of swirl around every time you go past it. It helps with the propagation process (hence the use of stir plates if you have access to them).

 

[paul_h]

I'm trying this tonight.
For someone without the ability to accurately measure 80g LDME, hot much would it be in standard tbspn or cup measurement?

 

[pokolbinguy]

I'm trying this tonight.
For someone without the ability to accurately measure 80g LDME, hot much would it be in standard tbspn or cup measurement?

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_grams_are_in_a_cup

 

[white.grant]

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_grams_are_in_a_cup

That's a useful link. Thanks

grant

 

[paul_h]

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_grams_are_in_a_cup

I know it's relative to whats in the cup, I understand mass and density. I just thought that someone who weighed dme may have measured it out, or could have an educated guess at what the volume 80g of dme was. Like maybe they used a spoon to scoop it out of the bag/jar onto the scales.
At a guess from your link it's closest to flour?

 

[dingodidit]

Having my first attempt at this and just seeking some advice on what the finished product should look like before it's pitched. I added about 80mls of wort to a long neck dregs then stepped it up to 600ml in a 2lt coke bottle then up to 1.5lt. It seems to sit pretty dormant until swirled where it fizz's up. There is a small amount of off white yeast in the bottom corners of the coke bottle but I thought there should be more - though I haven't really let it settle swirling it about ten times a day. Been kept at around 20 degrees for a week and smells fine. Have a CSA kit ready to go just need to know if this is worth using or not. :unsure:

Been trawling the site for a few months and have been amazed at the quality of info on here, great work. :icon_cheers:

 

[BoilerBoy]

Having my first attempt at this and just seeking some advice on what the finished product should look like before it's pitched. I added about 80mls of wort to a long neck dregs then stepped it up to 600ml in a 2lt coke bottle then up to 1.5lt. It seems to sit pretty dormant until swirled where it fizz's up. There is a small amount of off white yeast in the bottom corners of the coke bottle but I thought there should be more - though I haven't really let it settle swirling it about ten times a day. Been kept at around 20 degrees for a week and smells fine. Have a CSA kit ready to go just need to know if this is worth using or not. :unsure:

Been trawling the site for a few months and have been amazed at the quality of info on here, great work. :icon_cheers:

Was there evidence of activity before you pitched the 80ml into the 600ml?

BB

 

[dingodidit]

Yes, but only noticable when it was swirled around with a layer of froth on top, pretty hard to see through the long neck bottles.

 

[DKS]

I'm trying this tonight.
For someone without the ability to accurately measure 80g LDME, hot much would it be in standard tbspn or cup measurement?

Hi paul_h
Ive been cultivating yeast recently from Coopers Sparling Ale tallies starting to build up volume now but its taken nearly a week. I mix two heaped Tablespoons ( Proper tablespoon not a std table type spoon ) of LDME with 500ml water and measured with hydrometer came out close to 1.040. Just use the amount of water you want add the LDME and measure You can always boil it again after adjustment and if you make up to much so what at least next time youll be right onto it.
I think my efforts have been a little under par because of poor temp control but its getting there.This could prove to be of more importance than SG but the closer you can get to best practice specs the better. Best of luck. :icon_cheers:

Daz

 

[Mantis]

Started a CSA from a longneck 3 days ago and it is bubbling away like a beuty in the 600ml first wort. got another 900ml of wort cooling in the fridge now to up it to 1.5lt.

Thanks for all the info :icon_chickcheers:

 

[Mantis]

Ok, today is brew day and this morning the yeast had stopped. Guessing it had already used all the malt as it bubbled away like crazy all yesterday after building it up to 1.5lt, and would still be ok, I pitched it into a CSA kit brew. The temp of the brew was only 16 when I pitched it so the heat mat is on under the fermenter. The airlock has posotive pressure but no bubbling yet and very little foaming.

Q. Does the coopers yeast take longer to get going than say US-05 ??

I wont panic till tommorow. If no action then, a packet of US-05 is going in.

 

[BoilerBoy]

Ok, today is brew day and this morning the yeast had stopped. Guessing it had already used all the malt as it bubbled away like crazy all yesterday after building it up to 1.5lt, and would still be ok, I pitched it into a CSA kit brew. The temp of the brew was only 16 when I pitched it so the heat mat is on under the fermenter. The airlock has posotive pressure but no bubbling yet and very little foaming.

Q. Does the coopers yeast take longer to get going than say US-05 ??

I wont panic till tommorow. If no action then, a packet of US-05 is going in.

Be patient, if the yeast had subsided a little it may take a little longer to take off, I don't use airlocks and visibly it usually can take anywhere from 12-24 hours before it really gets going.

Don't let the temp get too high! even 16C for this yeast is what I would normally aim at when using it, but I recommend you don't let it go over 18C.

Just wait and be patient.
Cheers,
BB

 

[benny_bjc]

Just out of interest, what is the advantages of using a cultured yeast from coopers bottles compared to the dry yeast sachets supplied with the kits?

thanks