Help With Lager Yeast

[fonzy]

I think this is my first post here so hello to all. This is probably a question that has been answered a million times but I need some advice regarding saflager yeast.

Basically I created a starter for this yeast to get it going knowing that I would be brewing at a cool temp so wanted to give it its best chance of a fast start however as the fermenter sits in its beautiful temperature of 15oc nothing has happened in 24 hours.

My quesiton is, are you supposed to pitch the yeast and leave the fermenter at room temperature until it gets going and then get the temp down or have I indeed done the right hing and does this just take a lot longer to get going?

Cheers

 

[brendo]

I think this is my first post here so hello to all. This is probably a question that has been answered a million times but I need some advice regarding saflager yeast.

Basically I created a starter for this yeast to get it going knowing that I would be brewing at a cool temp so wanted to give it its best chance of a fast start however as the fermenter sits in its beautiful temperature of 15oc nothing has happened in 24 hours.

My quesiton is, are you supposed to pitch the yeast and leave the fermenter at room temperature until it gets going and then get the temp down or have I indeed done the right hing and does this just take a lot longer to get going?

Cheers

Firstly - welcome...

Secondly - don't worry too much about not seeing any activity yet - it can take a little while for physical signs to kick off. You should see soemthing in the next 24 hours. When you pitch at lower temps it tends to take a bit longer to kick off anyway.

For a lager yeast - 15 is a tad high, you ideally want it somewhere between 9-12, so try and get it down a bit more.

if you are paranoid, you can always take a hydro sample and see if you have dropped any SG points.

As you will soon learn - don't rely on airlocks for signs of activity - they generally lie (due to difficulty of getting a good seal on a fermentor). Dropping gravity and krausen (foam on top of your wort) are far better signs.

You should be right - just relax and give it a bit more time.

brendo

 

[fonzy]

yeah cheers mate, I dont rely on the airlock but yeah nothing seemed to be happening with the brew itself. I will try also to get that temp down!

PS I was paranoid enough to take a hydro reading too, the SG reading didnt seem to have budged

 

[Jye]

As brendo said wait another 24 hrs before worrying to much and try to get your temp below 12C if possible.

With saflager (and all saf yeast) a starter is not required but you can rehydrate the yeast. If you want a larger pitch its easiest just to pitch another packed or brew a smaller gravity beer and then reuse the yeast cake.

With lagers there are 2 arguments, pitch warm or pitch cold and you will find brewers who will defend both sides. When pitching warm (18C) you dont need to pitch as much yeast and one packet (12g) is ok. However if pitching cold you need to pitch more yeast. Im all for pitching at fermentation temps as I feel it makes me sense and will minimise diacetyl and other unwanted by products.

 

[fonzy]

yeah rehydrating was what I did sorry to confuse, I just added it to water with a little sugar as was advised as an alternative to double pitching. I agree that it makes more sense to pitch at the fermenting temp although mine wasnt as low as I'd like but yeah I just wanted to see what the school of thoughts were on this. I guess what I worry about is whether having a fast start to the fermenting will reduce infection risk and if it takes 24 - 48 hours to get going does this increase the risk?

 

[Jye]

yeah rehydrating was what I did sorry to confuse, I just added it to water with a little sugar as was advised as an alternative to double pitching.

Im sorry but this isnt good advice and will not increase your pitching rate. When you hydrate yeast it should be done with just water, this allows the cell wall to hydrate and then decide what can pass through them. Adding dried yeast to sugar or malt solution may damage yeast since they can not protect themselves from what passes through their walls.

I guess what I worry about is whether having a fast start to the fermenting will reduce infection risk and if it takes 24 - 48 hours to get going does this increase the risk?

And this is the other side of the argument. I guess it comes down to how good is your sanitation process.

 

[fonzy]

ok good to know....I wont be doing that again! Thanks heaps for the advice.

I like to think my sanitation procedures are meticulous and i havent suffered any infections just yet, but this is the first real lager beer with low temps I've been doing so just wanted to be sure

 

[seemax]

I agree with pitching at fermentaton temps, the yeast will be less stressed.

My last lager , an american pils, pitched at 9C with S-189 took 3 days before any activity. I always pay special attention to sanitation in these situations... otherwise bacteria will win the fight !

So advice is don't worry yet... look for condensation on the lid and yeast build up on the bottom.

 

[fonzy]

ok mate thanks for the adnice...i'll just grab myself a beer and stress less