How Do I Reuse Yeast?

[troy.wood]

Hi all, New to AHB and HBing. I have tried to find the info but getting very cross eyed and a wee confused. I have a reusable yeast - brew cellar european lager yeast. I have at least a few days before I need to bottle it. I believe to re use it you fill your bottles then take what's left and put it in the fridge. There is a thin solid layer (not hard solid, just not liquid) right at the bottom of the fermenter. Is this the yeast? do I need to mix this with a little of the liquid that will be left after bottling by swirling and put in the fridge or am I supposed to just get some of the liquid without any of this bottom layer?

Thanks
:huh:

 

[Gavo]

Here is one way. If you are reusing it in a week or two you could save some in a sanitised bottle as you have mentioned.

Gavo.

 

[Renegade]

There's plenty of info on this forum. Some of it gets quite technical, and perhaps for good reason once people start to go for targets in number of cells, quality etc. But for a basic start-off in doing this process, and what has worked for me, is simply this:

• Transfer you beer out of the primary fermenter (ie either to another fermenter or straight to the bottles)
• Add 500ml boiled (but then cooled) water to the residual yeast & beer that's left.
• Give it a really good swirl around to mix it all in
• Tap that liquid off into a sanitised stubbie, filling to halfway
• Cap it like you would a normal bottle, then pop it in the fridge.

When it comes time to use it for your next brew, take it out of the fridge on the morning of your brew day, take the cap off, cover the top with glad wrap and a rubber band. When its at room temperature, give the bottle a good swirl, then pour it into your wort.

Now this is the dead-basic way, and others have more detailed ways of doing it, like pouring off liquid, making starters etc, but with the method above I personaly have had success, and my next brew always starts bubbling away within 24 hours.


Oh, and as far as I know, all yeast is 're-usable' :icon_cheers:

 

[brando]

There's plenty of info on this forum. Some of it gets quite technical, and perhaps for good reason once people start to go for targets in number of cells, quality etc. But for a basic start-off in doing this process, and what has worked for me, is simply this:

• Transfer you beer out of the primary fermenter (ie either to another fermenter or straight to the bottles)
• Add 500ml boiled (but then cooled) water to the residual yeast & beer that's left.
• Give it a really good swirl around to mix it all in
• Tap that liquid off into a sanitised stubbie, filling to halfway
• Cap it like you would a normal bottle, then pop it in the fridge.

When it comes time to use it for your next brew, take it out of the fridge on the morning of your brew day, take the cap off, cover the top with glad wrap and a rubber band. When its at room temperature, give the bottle a good swirl, then pour it into your wort.

Now this is the dead-basic way, and others have more detailed ways of doing it, like pouring off liquid, making starters etc, but with the method above I personaly have had success, and my next brew always starts bubbling away within 24 hours.


Oh, and as far as I know, all yeast is 're-usable' :icon_cheers:

Renegade, why the glad wrap and rubber band?

 

[QldKev]

Hi all, New to AHB and HBing. I have tried to find the info but getting very cross eyed and a wee confused. I have a reusable yeast - brew cellar european lager yeast. I have at least a few days before I need to bottle it. I believe to re use it you fill your bottles then take what's left and put it in the fridge. There is a thin solid layer (not hard solid, just not liquid) right at the bottom of the fermenter. Is this the yeast? do I need to mix this with a little of the liquid that will be left after bottling by swirling and put in the fridge or am I supposed to just get some of the liquid without any of this bottom layer?

Thanks
:huh:

lol, sorry dude, but that was funny!

QldKev

 

[Renegade]

Renegade, why the glad wrap and rubber band?

I find that when the yeast/beer solution get warmer it wants to jump out of the bottle, so my unenlightened theory is that if the solution is taken out of it's dormant state, and left to heat up to room temperature there may be too much pressure build up and blow the bottle. This theory follows on from a couple where I left the cap on till it warmed, and upon taking the cap off they gushed wildly. So for peace of mind, and no real extra trouble (or infection risk) I pull out the trusty cling film !

 

[Thirsty Boy]

I was going to mention about that - When you shove a whole lot of yeast in with a little bit of left over beer -- it will sometimes kick of a round of fermenting again, with the high portion of yeast tearing through a few more points of gravity, even in the fridge -- result is (or was in my case) a horrible mess when you open up your stubby of yeast, wasted yeast and potential contamination. And maybe a nasty kaboom experience if you get unlucky.

The last couple of times I used this method - I put the yeast and beer/water into the stubbie, scrunched tinfoil over the top and left it a few days before capping. This seemed to fix the worst of it.

Uncapping while cold and covering it while it warms up seems like a damn fine idea too.

 

[manticle]

I find that when the yeast/beer solution get warmer it wants to jump out of the bottle, so my unenlightened theory is that if the solution is taken out of it's dormant state, and left to heat up to room temperature there may be too much pressure build up and blow the bottle. This theory follows on from a couple where I left the cap on till it warmed, and upon taking the cap off they gushed wildly. So for peace of mind, and no real extra trouble (or infection risk) I pull out the trusty cling film !

I can vouch for this. I had some top cropped 3787 yeast which is vigorous at the best of times. I had the slants in the fridge (hope 'slants' is the right word) and I bumped the plug. Fridge went off, so did the yeast, blew up inside the fridge.

The bottles that didn't blow I later allowed to warm to room temp so I could make a starter. When trying to uncap it was like Mr Moet winning the Chandon super car race and celebrating with a shaken version of himself.

 

[c0z]

renegade .

so add 500mls water to yeast cake but only pour off half a stubbie (188ml) ? do you disgard the rest ?

 

[WarmBeer]

renegade .

so add 500mls water to yeast cake but only pour off half a stubbie (188ml) ? do you disgard the rest ?

Add 564mls of water so you can get 3 x 188ml stubbies!

Sorry, couldn't resist being a smart-ar$e, but in all seriousness, you could easily bottle enough out of a single yeast slurry for your next 5 or more brews. Beer is nothing more than the ultimate reproduction orgy to those yeasties.

I don't think you'd need to get much more than 2 or 3 out of it, or you're going to have troubles using before the yeast in the bottle is getting a bit old.

 

[Nick JD]

When I'm finished bottling I slop about 100ml of the crud on the bottom of the fermenter into a sterile glass jug, add some cooled boiled water and a half-teaspoon of sugar, and cover in gladwrap.

Then I just pour this in to my new wort (my bottling day is also my brewing day - I find it easier to do it in one go).

Works fine ... but make damn sure you have tasted the beer your yeast came out of and that it isn't funky. It's been years since I have had a funky brew though.

I usually get four brews off one yeast packet (nearly always S-04) then I run out of storage and bottles and start again from a new yeast packet. I haven't ever stored it this way and haven't needed to.

 

[manticle]

Make sure you label and date the bottle or you will not only have no idea what yeast is contained within but you may mistake it for a beer in one of your less intelligent moments.

No this has not happened to me.

 

[.DJ.]

No this has not happened to me.

but I bet it has happened to "a mate of yours"

 

[buttersd70]

I was going to mention about that - When you shove a whole lot of yeast in with a little bit of left over beer -- it will sometimes kick of a round of fermenting again, with the high portion of yeast tearing through a few more points of gravity, even in the fridge -- result is (or was in my case) a horrible mess when you open up your stubby of yeast, wasted yeast and potential contamination. And maybe a nasty kaboom experience if you get unlucky.

Been there, done that. :lol:

This is particularly an issue with true top-croppers, cos the yeast is (often) being skimmed off the top prior to fg of the batch being achieved, anyway......and as some beer/wort makes it into the bottle as well.....cap it tight, put it in the fridge, and end up with gushers. :lol:

I bottle it in pet, cap it - very loosely, and don't tighten the cap untill it's settled, I've poured the excess off, and replaced it with cooled boiled water.

the colour scheme in the laundry (which is where my brew fridge was) at my old house was......1275. :lol:

 

[troy.wood]

Thanks heaps guys, I'll prob. be ready to trasfer to a second fermenter in about a couple days. That simple way Renegade is perfect for my first time. Perhaps after a few more brews under my belt I can try "farming"

cheers

 

[manticle]

If you farm you need to buy a yeast tractor.

About 16.95 from Grain and Grape. I think Craftbrewer have them for a dollar less but the freight makes it about the same.

 

[buttersd70]

If you farm you need to buy a yeast tractor.

About 16.95 from Grain and Grape. I think Craftbrewer have them for a dollar less but the freight makes it about the same.

oooh, you are awful.....but I likes ya! :lol:

 

[chappo1970]

If you farm you need to buy a yeast tractor

Here's mine! See a beaut huh?

 

[buttersd70]

trox
all joking aside...the link that Govo put up has the full wax on the issue, including results/feedback on the methodology. The post that renegade put up is a 'nutshell' version, and would certainly be the easiest way to go, as a starting point. The only coda I would put to it is the point that TB made about continued fermentation, even when cool......
so the short, easy version is as renegade said, but keep the caps loose.

It's not rocket science...once you've done it, you'll realise how easy it is. Combine it with slanting, and you have an indefinate supply of yeast.....I can't remember the last time I bought yeast....

edit: DrSmurtos Belgian gold + But ters = bad spellinks.

 

[muckey]

.....I can't remember the last time I bought yeast....

about the same time you stopped showering


shame on me!!!! h34r: