Splitting Liquid Yeast

[MVZOOM]

Troops,

Got my first vial of Whitelabs Pilsner yeast yesterday, very excited! Quick question - why can't I split into multiple batches by:

- Shaking well
- Open the lid
- Power 1/6 of the vial into a starter (ie.. 1l water, w/ 100g of DME dissolved)
- Spray top of vial and lid with a strong Iodopher solution
- Recap and place in fridge

Then repeat when I need more? I intend to throw multiple batches (2 max) onto the yeast cake of the finished batch - this way I should get 12 or so batches out of that vial.

Anyone tried this? I can only assume that the vial won't be open for long - surely it's a safe way to go?

Cheers - Mike

 

[Stuster]

I haven't tried this but I think something along those lines would be ok. I have pitched almost all the yeast just saving the last little bit and when I used that later it was absolutely fine.

One important change. Definitely loosen the cap before doing any shaking unless you want to coat yourself in yeast. They can definitely get a bit frothy when shaken.

You might want to top up the vial with some pre-boiled, pre-chilled water, but otherwise sounds fine. Make sure you don't get any iodophor into the vial. Don't want to harm the wee beasties. :huh:

 

[MVZOOM]

I haven't tried this but I think something along those lines would be ok. I have pitched almost all the yeast just saving the last little bit and when I used that later it was absolutely fine.

One important change. Definitely loosen the cap before doing any shaking unless you want to coat yourself in yeast. They can definitely get a bit frothy when shaken.

You might want to top up the vial with some pre-boiled, pre-chilled water, but otherwise sounds fine. Make sure you don't get any iodophor into the vial. Don't want to harm the wee beasties. :huh:

Great - I'll give it a go. I'd like to do a more traditional split, but I just don't have enough room for 6 x longnecks to be refridgerated until I get 'round to using them.

I've stepped up a coopers yeast from bottle dregs so am pretty sure that given time and a decent environment I should be able to do these.

This way I'd have room for a dozen vials, giving huge yeast potential. Oh happy day!

 

[pint of lager]

A couple of suggestions.

If this is your very first liquid yeast, lower the bar a little and aim for just 3-6 brews from it. This will allow you to build up the skills needed to deal with smaller amounts of yeast.

Depending on the age of the vial, a one litre starter from 1/6 of the regular volume, will be fine at the start, but may be a bit large as the tube reaches the last sample or two.

As the amount of yeast being handled decreases, the care taken with sanitation must increase.

Before you handle any yeast container, wash your hands thoroughly, even an iodine rinse would help. Wipe the outside of the container with sanitiser before opening anything. After opening, wipe the mouth of the container carefully with bleach or iodine before and after doing the transfer. Your notes only suggest post transfer. Threads of test tubes are great spots for infections to hide. As you pour, a drop or two is likely to end up in the thread area. This must be cleaned up.

Have a read of some of the longer threads that cover yeast handling in depth, there are some great suggestions.

Pitching onto a complete yeast cake is problematic. There is so much active yeast that temperature control can be very hard, leading to excess fermentation temperatures and byproducts. An easier way is to save the slurry in a sanitised jar and use a few desertspoonfuls in the next brew. Yeast does die off quickly, the longer you have the slurry in the fridge, the more slurry you need to add.

 

[Stuster]

Whoops, missed the bit about the yeast cake. I totally agree with PoL re pitching only part of the cake. This page should help you calculate how much slurry you need.

Great advice re sanitation. Must try to follow this more carefully myself.

 

[MVZOOM]

Great suggestions, thanks! I've read the big threads but wanted so see whether I could do it my way - worked for Frank S, so thought I'd give it a shot.

I'll wack the first one down tonight (ie.... prime the starter!).

Cheers -Mie