Mistakes With Starters

[Osangar]

Decided to try the WYeast 1275 liquid. Have read that its best to make about a 2L starter, with a gravity between 1030 1040. 220g DME and 2L water.

Then the problems started,
I bought a 2L Erlenmeyer Flask and 10mins into a nice gentle rolling boil, I gave it a bit of a stir with the handle of my trusty brew spoon. It simply did not like this, and emptied about 500ml out the top like a volcano all over the stove in about a second.

No problems, cooled it down in water, pitched the yeast at 24c after it had swelled in the pouch.

Its very cold here, so I thought Id put it on the heat pad for my fermentor. Its a bit worm directly sitting on top, so I put a plate upside down on the top of the pad, then the flask on the plate. Unfortunately it heated it over a few hours to 33c. So I cooled it and it now sits on my kitchen sink at 18c.

I guess I have screwed it beyond repair, should I just get some dry yeast for tomorrow brew session or is yeast resilient to stupidity of this magnitude ?

 

[mika]

It'll be fine. They propogate yeast at up to 30degs. You'll have introduced some no so nice flavours to your starter wort though, so chill and decant prior to pitching and away ya go.

 

[braufrau]

+1 People think 'cause we don't like yeast to be at 30C, yeast doesn't like to be at 30C themselves but actually they loooooovvvvveee it!
(am I anthropomorphising on a micro scale here?)

 

[Osangar]

Decanting.

I have had a quick read, and if I am getting it right - I pop the flask into the fridge and let the yeast settle to the bottom, and then siphon off the cleared liquid.

Ok, no worries. Ill give it a shot. Thanks for the guidance. Much appreciated.

I hope 6 or 7 hours in the fridge is long enough.

 

[mika]

I've never tried it before, so can't comment on whether 6-7hrs will be enough. The idea is to try and get the yeast to drop out of solution so that you don't decant a whole bunch of live yeast cells. So you should be able to tell by the clarity of your starter whether it's worked or not. I would suggest the freezer, but I seem to recall that there's a maximum rate for chilling yeast. Also, because you're yeast are seeing the 'big freeze' they're going to go into hibernation and you may see a slightly longer lag to fermentation than if the yeast were alive and going hard when you pitch them.

 

[Osangar]

Brew day has taken longer than expected, so the yeast starter will get a good 10 hours in the fridge, at 1c. I have had to bottle 50 L of beer from previous brews.

I will decant only clear(er) wort and hopefully leave most of the viable yeast in the slurry.

Will report back on progress.

 

[gap]

Brew day has taken longer than expected, so the yeast starter will get a good 10 hours in the fridge, at 1c. I have had to bottle 50 L of beer from previous brews.

I will decant only clear(er) wort and hopefully leave most of the viable yeast in the slurry.

Will report back on progress.

Make sure you take the yeast out of the fridge with plenty of time for it to warm to pitching temperature.

Regards

Graeme

 

[mika]

Why ?
Cold pitching is endorsed by the Pope

 

[Rudy]

I almost always cold pitch when using liquid, lag is not excessive and attenuation has been fine. I make a starter early in the week, put it in the fridge when it has fermented out and leave it until brew day, 1 - 3 days later, decant and pitch the slurry.

 

[Osangar]

The yeast seems to have taken off ok. I pitched at 10 last night, after letting it warm to room temp 16c, siphoned off about of the liquid from the top, shake and pitch.

This morning there is a good yeast activity.

Love those little guys, so forgiving