Timing your yeast starter

[RobjF]

Guys. Does anyone have a good way of timing your yeast starter so it ready on the brew day. I want to do a brew on Sunday and want a 1 litre starter. When do you think I should start it considering I want it finished Saturday arvo so I can chuck it in the fridge to floc it out.

 

[RobjF]

Should have said its wyeast 1056.

 

[Phoney]

No harm in doing it today. When it finishes, pop it in the fridge and leave it there until Sunday morning.

 

[Maxt]

yep, you can hold yeast when it's done, but pitching before it's ready is far worse.

 

[Mardoo]

No harm in doing it today. When it finishes, pop it in the fridge and leave it there until Sunday morning.

Just be sure to drain off the liquid and let the yeast come to pitching temperature before you pitch. The liquid will not taste so good.

 

[RobjF]

Thanks guys you've answer the question to the point will put it on tonight and then pop it in the fridge when it's finished. Thanks again. Doing my first all grain this weekend so want a good healthy yeast to get thing cranking.
Rob

 

[verysupple]

yep, you can hold yeast when it's done, but pitching before it's ready is far worse.

I guess it depends what you consider "done". It's quite common to pitch a starter at high krausen, which I wouldn't consider done. I'd consider it done when it's fermented out completely, and I assume that's what you meant.

To expound the conversation, if it's only a 1 L starter into a ~23 L batch then it is not essential to decant the beer off as it's a relatively small percentage of the total volume and you won't taste it. It seems like you have plenty of time, so you could either do as planned (chill and decant) or make the starter about 12 - 18 hours before pitching so that it's nice and active when you pitch the whole thing.

Personally I don't bother decanting unless it's over 2 L because I'm too lazy and you can't taste it anyway. Having said that, I do adjust my hopping for the extra little bit of dilution when I add the unhopped starter.

 

[Bizier]

yep, you can hold yeast when it's done, but pitching before it's ready is far worse.

I disagree with this.

If you allow yeast to fully multiply and deplete available nutrients and THEN place it in storage, the cells will be depleting their reserves until you pitch it. I can guarantee you that there will be a drastic viability loss if you leave it for a week or more.

"Pitching before its ready" as you put it, is basically just getting the yeast AT ANY POINT before maximum cell density into the main wort. This to me is purely just ANY level of head start on pitching just the smack pack, so you will be pitching yeast that should have high viability and some degree of cell number increase. Obviously my opinion is based on one pack of healthy yeast, good starter, and regular gravity beer.

I don't mean to start another argument thread.

 

[Maxt]

Both a bit off track, I meant that when your starter is at your desired stage (usually straight after high krausen), it is perfectly Acceptable to chill and store it for a day or two. It's the most important lesson I learned from Richard at the wig and pen..brew when the yeast is ready, if the yeast is not ready don't brew.

 

[Thefatdoghead]

If your wort is around the 1045 mark dont bother with a starter for your first go. As long as your pack is viable (less than a few months old) just smack it and dump it in then whip your wort up with a stainless steel stirrer.
I can tell you your not really going to make manny more cell's in a 1 litter starter. All this is assuming your making 20L

 

[Thefatdoghead]

Both a bit off track, I meant that when your starter is at your desired stage (usually straight after high krausen), it is perfectly Acceptable to chill and store it for a day or two. It's the most important lesson I learned from Richard at the wig and pen..brew when the yeast is ready, if the yeast is not ready don't brew.

Richard doesn't No chill does he?

 

[Maxt]

All the wig beers are no chill biab using coopers yeast

 

[Maxt]

He actually makes his starters in 20l corny kegs.

 

[Phoney]

I guess it depends what you consider "done". It's quite common to pitch a starter at high krausen, which I wouldn't consider done. I'd consider it done when it's fermented out completely, and I assume that's what you meant.

To expound the conversation, if it's only a 1 L starter into a ~23 L batch then it is not essential to decant the beer off as it's a relatively small percentage of the total volume and you won't taste it. .

Its not just the taste of the starter, If you're using a stir plate (like me) you really don't want to be pitching 1L of oxygenated fermented out wort, do you?

 

[verysupple]

Its not just the taste of the starter, If you're using a stir plate (like me) you really don't want to be pitching 1L of oxygenated fermented out wort, do you?

1 L into 20 L, yeah, I'd pitch it all. My starters are well oxygenated too and it hasn't had a negative affect on my beer, taste-wise or other.

 

[RobjF]

Look like I've stirred up the hornets nest.
To make thing clear from my end I'm making a starter from washed yeast from a previous batch that I've got in the fridge. My brewing at the moment has to be booked in a week or two in advance what with Heavey work commitments and a young family. I just want some advice on getting a better way of getting my yeast ready for the day that I need it. All the advice has been absorbed and hopefully I can find a system that works for me as I endeavour to produce a good all grain beer
Thanks rob

 

[Yob]

6 brewers 12 opinions 3 right ways to do it.... all divisible by beer

 

[Truman42]

My process is to take 2 litres of wort just after the boil starts and chill it down to around 22-24C. I pitch my yeast into this and put it on the stir plate.

At EOB I put my fermenter into the ferm chamber and set the temp at 24C.

The next morning my starter is at high krausen and I just pitch the lot direct into the fermenter.

There are some who will say I risk infection but I'm confident in my sanitary practices and I haven't had an infection yet.

 

[RobjF]

Guys I do have one problem/question. In the past when I have made starters I've used a 5 litre Carboy that I have with a bung and air lock and leave it to do its thing until its stopped bubbling and seems to be done. I have recently invested in a 2l flask so that I can boil chill and ferment in the same vessel. After reading wolfy's posts on yeast starters I decided not to use an airlock but to cover the top of the flask with foil. ( also I didn't have a big enough bung for the flask.) As I cant see the air lock bubbling I'm stressing its not fermenting. I give it a shake and it bubbles up and froths but how can I tell its fermenting properly and when it's finished????? :[

 

[Camo6]

I find my starters almost always leave a krausen ring on the glass though sometimes very feint. Also look for fine bubbles rising. To be sure you should really draw some off and measure it with a refractometer. However I'm lazy and if I see the above signs, have it at the right temp and have given it sufficient time I'm content to whack it in the fridge for 12-24 hours then decant and bring up to temp on brewday. I always taste it and try to have a backup dried yeast just in case but haven't had one fail to date.