Re-using yeast from last ferment

[wide eyed and legless]

If pitching straight onto a yeast cake was without any downsides, how come it is not condoned by those who write articles / books for guidance for the home brewers. As I mentioned earlier its no big deal to wash / rinse yeast for reuse. Gordon Strong does just that, but he is so aware of the downsides that he goes one step further. He makes his starter a few days before and removes the DME he used to make the starter before he will use it in his wort.
As he is the only Grand Master beer judge in the world and 3 times winner of the NHCNA I think it is worth taking into consideration his points of view. Saying I have been dumping my wort onto yeast cakes and never had a problem is no evidence of good practice. Its akin to those who say I have been doing it this way for years and never had a problem.
Off topic.
If you go onto a forum and express a point of view, don't expect to get polite replies. Its a forum of faceless people, if you can't handle those replies grow a thicker skin or don't post.
Responding in an aggressive way achieves nothing except proving your a bigger dick head than the one who you think was insulting.

 

[Luxo_Aussie]

I started pitching onto a yeast cake due to laziness and noted that the fermentation would spiral out of control rising to high temperatures & finish rapidly. Since stopping (now washing a slurry + measuring before pitching) fermentation is more controlled and exactly as it is when using a regular starter. Flavors just seem cleaner in my opinion, but nothing against those who chose to pitch onto the cake to save time.

 

[Grmblz]

Out of interest and possibly a bit of cost cutting for the past few months I've been saving different yeasts, process is everything cleaned and sanitised and fermentasuarus at 2-3psi so no possibility of anything getting in to it, I have several collection bottles so after trub removal I just whack on a sanitised bottle then remove and cap em at the end of fermentation, then put them in the fridge, no rinsing and stored under the beer, typical yield is 250 to 300ml of yeast. Just checked them and 3 of the 7 are infected (white something floating on the top) all the beers tasted fine and my process is always the same so why did 3 get an infection??? No idea but it does reinforce what MHB says about reusing yeast "sooner or later!" and obviously 3 of my beers had some sort of infection even though they tasted fine. Given these results it would appear that pitching onto a yeast cake, especially if it's in an unsanitised fermenter is fraught with danger, just because your beer tastes fine does not mean it is not infected.

 

[wwdjd97387ph]

As stated the issue with pitching straight onto the yeast cake is it is a massive over pitch. Did it once. The beer was lifeless bland, no depth in the flavour profile lacked character so basically disappointing. I suppose if you are making a mega swill clone it would be perfect.

 

[SmittyMcSmitty]

Been harvesting yeast for the last decade.
Generally, I brew again with 1 or 2 days.
Has never been a problem for me.
If you are really worried about it, you can always harvest only a smaller amount (say a test tube) and grow it up on your stirplate (if you have one), so you effectively have fresh yeast.
I guess those commercial brewers who have perpetuated the same yeast for decades (I know they have laboratories etc) must know what they are doing.

At risk of heading off topic; can i harvest and wash yeast through the dump port of a conical just before dry hopping? Or would this just give me more trub than yeast and/or leave my current batch low on active yeast for the final couple of gravity points?