To Add Yeast, Or Not To Add Yeast - That Is The Question!

[Spiderpig]

Greetings all,

Just about at the end of my lagering of a Morgans Cervaza and have a question to throw out there.. It's been cold lagering at 2 degrees celcius for a month and a half, my choice of yeast was 2 sachets of Fermentis Saflager S-23. I am wanting to bottle this very soon and am not too sure if I should be adding further yeast before priming? Should I add more yeast, or do you thing after this length of time there should be enough yeast still in suspension? I did rack after primary had finished (Approx 3 weeks) and have let is store cold now for around a month and half. If you guys think I should add more yeasties, should I use a lager yeast or would a spare Coopers Ale yeast satchet I have in the fridge do the trick? I plan on conditioning at the current temps we are subject to here in Newcastle, so it'll be fairly cool - hence my intial thought is a lager yeast. It's looking like it'll be one of my finest K&K's judging from some samples I have tasted from Hyrdo readings, and want to get this bad boy absolutely right.

Your assistance/advice is greatly appreciated.

Spiderpig!

 

[Interloper]

2 sachets of S23 is pretty close to over pitching for a 22L brew...

What were the fermentables and what was the batch size? There should still be plenty of viable yeast with that much to start it off.

 

[brendo]

Greetings all,

Just about at the end of my lagering of a Morgans Cervaza and have a question to throw out there.. It's been cold lagering at 2 degrees celcius for a month and a half, my choice of yeast was 2 sachets of Fermentis Saflager S-23. I am wanting to bottle this very soon and am not too sure if I should be adding further yeast before priming? Should I add more yeast, or do you thing after this length of time there should be enough yeast still in suspension? I did rack after primary had finished (Approx 3 weeks) and have let is store cold now for around a month and half. If you guys think I should add more yeasties, should I use a lager yeast or would a spare Coopers Ale yeast satchet I have in the fridge do the trick? I plan on conditioning at the current temps we are subject to here in Newcastle, so it'll be fairly cool - hence my intial thought is a lager yeast. It's looking like it'll be one of my finest K&K's judging from some samples I have tasted from Hyrdo readings, and want to get this bad boy absolutely right.

Your assistance/advice is greatly appreciated.

Spiderpig!

I have done a similar thing (using 34/70) and found that even after 4 weeks of lagering in a secondary, there was plenty of yeast still in suspension to carb up the beers (and this is even after partially freezing the bloody thing accidently - which is another story).

So I would be surprised if you needed more yeast.

Brendo

 

[Spiderpig]

I used a BE#2 equivalent for my sugars from the local HBS and batch size was 23 ltrs. All reading material I have seen previously from AHB for Lagering encouraged a larger pitch than usual due to the long colder lagering process. Infact the fermentis yeast satchets themselves recommend 2 satchets for proper lagering temps - perhaps just to sell more yeast, who knows???

 

[Steve]

or do you thing after this length of time there should be enough yeast still in suspension?

yes there will be enough

 

[Interloper]

perhaps just to sell more yeast, who knows???

exactly

The yeast will just come back to life when the temp comes up and a food source becomes available (IE priming sugars)

 

[goomboogo]

Spiderpig, if you fermented in the 10c - 12c range then you did the right thing pitching 2 packets.

 

[0M39A]

2 sachets of S23 is pretty close to over pitching for a 22L brew...

What were the fermentables and what was the batch size? There should still be plenty of viable yeast with that much to start it off.

close to underpitching more like it.

s23 is a true lager yeast. when dry pitching (or even rehydrating it) you need at least 2x11.5g sachets for a lager.

better yet would have been to make a starter, but pitching 2 full sachets is good enough.

its pretty hard to overpitch any beer in reality.

check out some people making 6L starters for big lagers (ie. dopplebocks)

 

[dingodidit]

Greetings all,

Just about at the end of my lagering of a Morgans Cervaza and have a question to throw out there.. It's been cold lagering at 2 degrees celcius for a month and a half, my choice of yeast was 2 sachets of Fermentis Saflager S-23. I am wanting to bottle this very soon and am not too sure if I should be adding further yeast before priming? Should I add more yeast, or do you thing after this length of time there should be enough yeast still in suspension? I did rack after primary had finished (Approx 3 weeks) and have let is store cold now for around a month and half. If you guys think I should add more yeasties, should I use a lager yeast or would a spare Coopers Ale yeast satchet I have in the fridge do the trick? I plan on conditioning at the current temps we are subject to here in Newcastle, so it'll be fairly cool - hence my intial thought is a lager yeast. It's looking like it'll be one of my finest K&K's judging from some samples I have tasted from Hyrdo readings, and want to get this bad boy absolutely right.

Your assistance/advice is greatly appreciated.

Spiderpig!

I am basicaly at the same stage with a Coopers Lager, same yeast etc. Just wanted to know if you needed to rock the cube around abit prior to bottleing to get any yeast settled on the bottom back up into the beer.

Cheers D

 

[KGB]

I am basicaly at the same stage with a Coopers Lager, same yeast etc. Just wanted to know if you needed to rock the cube around abit prior to bottleing to get any yeast settled on the bottom back up into the beer.

Cheers D

Don't rock the fermenter around, you don't want all that trub in your beer. Bottle away. The worst that will happen is it takes a little longer to carb.

 

[dingodidit]

Don't rock the fermenter around, you don't want all that trub in your beer. Bottle away. The worst that will happen is it takes a little longer to carb.

Cheers and noted.

It's been racked into 2x10 Jerry can/cubes from Bunnings for about 6weeks and has very little trub on the bottom, thanks for the advice I'll keep this baby crystal clear and bottle as per normal this weekend. Took a hydro reading the other day and it tasted fantastic, first Lager for me and I used Saunders liquid malt from Woolies :unsure: Thought I may have frocked it, but all is good and may the lager weather continue.

On another note what temp should the bottles be kept at to carb up? I'm assuming in the fermentation temp range as in 12-15 then cold store again when carbed?

Thanks again for the advice :icon_cheers: