Wyeast

[zarth]

Hi All
I have been lurking and absorbing as much as possible for a while now, and i must say that there is a wealth of info in hear. And for the most part so very helpful to a very green brewer as myself. I follow threads that I have questions about , sometimes they answer in terms I understand other times they degrade to slinging matches or get so tech they lose me. Or go of on a tangent so as I forget why I was There in the first place. Seems now i,m babbling . So Wyeast I,ve read about splitting and culturing and I think I get it, so as far as I can see you can just use the yeast as is? I have only used dry yeast before. So if I want to try once say use it all and see how it goes? is that a prob? things that seem easy seem to get complicated here.

Thanks for all the great stuff really liked Nicks first step to all grain pics were great and real simple ideas. someone came along and had to go all tech and confuse a newbie but real good stuff...all in all ..

Regards Greg....

 

[Kieren]

Hi All
I have been lurking and absorbing as much as possible for a while now, and i must say that there is a wealth of info in hear. And for the most part so very helpful to a very green brewer as myself. I follow threads that I have questions about , sometimes they answer in terms I understand other times they degrade to slinging matches or get so tech they lose me. Or go of on a tangent so as I forget why I was There in the first place. Seems now i,m babbling . So Wyeast I,ve read about splitting and culturing and I think I get it, so as far as I can see you can just use the yeast as is? I have only used dry yeast before. So if I want to try once say use it all and see how it goes? is that a prob? things that seem easy seem to get complicated here.

Thanks for all the great stuff really liked Nicks first step to all grain pics were great and real simple ideas. someone came along and had to go all tech and confuse a newbie but real good stuff...all in all ..

Regards Greg....

If I understand the question correctly, yes it is very easy to use once without culturing it up. You just need to 'smack' the pack with the palm of your hand which will burst the inside satchel which contains the yeast food and nutrients. Shake the sh*t out of it every so often. Give it time to swell, 3-12 hours, depending on the freshness of the pack. Cut open with some sanitised scissors and even sanitise the outside of the pack itself and dump into your aerated wort. Simple as.

 

[DKS]

Hi All
I have been lurking and absorbing as much as possible for a while now, and i must say that there is a wealth of info in hear. And for the most part so very helpful to a very green brewer as myself. I follow threads that I have questions about , sometimes they answer in terms I understand other times they degrade to slinging matches or get so tech they lose me. Or go of on a tangent so as I forget why I was There in the first place. Seems now i,m babbling . So Wyeast I,ve read about splitting and culturing and I think I get it, so as far as I can see you can just use the yeast as is? I have only used dry yeast before. So if I want to try once say use it all and see how it goes? is that a prob? things that seem easy seem to get complicated here.

Thanks for all the great stuff really liked Nicks first step to all grain pics were great and real simple ideas. someone came along and had to go all tech and confuse a newbie but real good stuff...all in all ..

Regards Greg....

Not a problem at all zarth
My suggestion would be: Pick up a smack pack of Wyeast 1056, very versatile for a wide range of beers. Follow instructions then bottle several samples from the trub into small bottles ,say, 250ml each, I use little juice bottles, and refrigerate.Each one of these you can use for anther batch. Expanding this idea you can multiply many times over.This is a simple overview. I suggest you have a read of Articles( at top of page) and threads to get a handle on it. Plenty of info here.Good luck.
Daz

 

[Pennywise]

A Wyeast pack can be pitched straight into wort up to an SG of 1060, higher than that it's desirable to either make a starter, or pitch more packs. I would also make sure the "smack pack" has been smacked and swelled up to make sure it's viable, but you can just pitch it withough smacking it if you wanted to

 

[MeLoveBeer]

Using a liquid yeast for the first time is a big enough step without adding the complexity of splitting the pack imho.

Until you're comfortable with the process, follow the instructions on the pack to the letter, then sit back, wait and marvel at just how much it improves your beer.

 

[Wolfy]

So Wyeast I,ve read about splitting and culturing and I think I get it, so as far as I can see you can just use the yeast as is? I have only used dry yeast before. So if I want to try once say use it all and see how it goes? is that a prob? things that seem easy seem to get complicated here.

It can be as easy or complicated as you want to make it - but yes, often things get over-analyzed around here.

The easy way:
A new/fresh Wyeast pack should contain about 100Billion yeast cells and pitching the pack (after you have smacked it and let it swell) directly into your beer, is quick and easy, and should should produce great results.

The middle ground:
However, the 'industry standard' 'recommended pitching rate' (for 22L of 1.048 wort) is about 200Billion cells, so some would suggest to get the 'best' fermentation results you should pitch two Wyeast packs - or make a starter.
If you were to make a 2L starter and tip your pack into it a day or two before you brew, you should roughly have doubled the number of yeast cells you'll pitch into your beer.
A starter is also useful if your yeast is has been on the shelf or in the shop for a while, since the yeast's viability can drop very quickly.

The Complicated way:
Since - to some people - liquid yeasts can be fairly expensive, it's often nice to make your money go further, one easy way to do this is to split the freshly opened Wyeast pack into a number of small vials/test tubes, this means that you can use the same pack of yeast for 2-6 different brews.
However this usually requires additional equipment and making starters in steps to build up the required volume of yeast to pitch.

If it's your first time using liquid yeast, there is no reason you can't pitch the pack directly, however, (depending on on the volume/OG) taking the extra step to make a starter might well be worth the effort.

 

[Shed101]

Useful stuff as I have my first Wyeast in the fridge (1214) waiting for wort.

I'm planning on brewing a 12 litre Dubbel (1065-ish I guess).

Would I be better to use half the pack and store the other half until the next brew a la 'The Complicated way' above... or should I use the lot and harvest from the krausen (done that successfully with dry yeasts).

Sorry to OP if i've started to complicate your thread.

 

[Wolfy]

Would I be better to use half the pack and store the other half until the next brew a la 'The Complicated way' above... or should I use the lot and harvest from the krausen (done that successfully with dry yeasts).

By splitting the pack as soon as you open it you are essentially saving the 'virgin' yeast, there is very little risk of infection or other foreign contamination and also no risk of the yeast adapting or mutating as it may when you ferment with it and/or top-crop.

 

[Screwtop]

By splitting the pack as soon as you open it you are essentially saving the 'virgin' yeast, there is very little risk of infection or other foreign contamination and also no risk of the yeast adapting or mutating as it may when you ferment with it and/or top-crop.

Quite a deal of bullshit above! Successful splitting depends greatly upon sanitary conditions and having the process down pat.

Screwy

 

[zarth]

It can be as easy or complicated as you want to make it - but yes, often things get over-analyzed around here.

The easy way:
A new/fresh Wyeast pack should contain about 100Billion yeast cells and pitching the pack (after you have smacked it and let it swell) directly into your beer, is quick and easy, and should should produce great results.

The middle ground:
However, the 'industry standard' 'recommended pitching rate' (for 22L of 1.048 wort) is about 200Billion cells, so some would suggest to get the 'best' fermentation results you should pitch two Wyeast packs - or make a starter.
If you were to make a 2L starter and tip your pack into it a day or two before you brew, you should roughly have doubled the number of yeast cells you'll pitch into your beer.
A starter is also useful if your yeast is has been on the shelf or in the shop for a while, since the yeast's viability can drop very quickly.

The Complicated way:
Since - to some people - liquid yeasts can be fairly expensive, it's often nice to make your money go further, one easy way to do this is to split the freshly opened Wyeast pack into a number of small vials/test tubes, this means that you can use the same pack of yeast for 2-6 different brews.
However this usually requires additional equipment and making starters in steps to build up the required volume of yeast to pitch.

If it's your first time using liquid yeast, there is no reason you can't pitch the pack directly, however, (depending on on the volume/OG) taking the extra step to make a starter might well be worth the effort.

Thanks again for the tips So if I take Middle ground and make starter do I smack the pack let it swell then add to starter mix?
Sorry if its a dumb question

 

[Kieren]

Thanks again for the tips So if I take Middle ground and make starter do I smack the pack let it swell then add to starter mix?
Sorry if its a dumb question

Exactly. Smack, let it swell and pitch it into a starter of 1.040ish. I use 100g of DME per litre when I make a starter. Thus for a 2L starter, boil up 200g of DME in 2L of water for 10-15min, cool to 25 deg celcius and pitch your swelled Wyeast pack. Aerate lots. Leave to ferment away, best to pitch your starter at high krausen I believe, 12-24hrs.

 

[goomboogo]

Thanks again for the tips So if I take Middle ground and make starter do I smack the pack let it swell then add to starter mix?
Sorry if its a dumb question

If you choose to make a starter follow the method given by Kieren. As others have said, the reason for a starter is to help achieve a nice active start to the ferment. This is not to be confused with building yeast cell count so as to ensure adequate pitching rate relevant to wort volume and gravity. You can definitely pitch a smack pack directly to your beer if the pitching rate is adequate. This is the process you will find on the back of the packaging. The primary reason for getting more than one run from a pack (of which there are many ways) is economy. Liquid yeasts are expensive if used for one beer but are quite economical when you get multiple runs from the one pack.

If you don't mind the cost then single use is fine. As you become more comfortable with concept and process, you will choose the yeast method that suits you.

 

[Wolfy]

Quite a deal of bullshit above! Successful splitting depends greatly upon sanitary conditions and having the process down pat.

What bullshit? Any time you are dealing with yeast samples - of course - the results depend upon sanitary conditions and correct procedures, that was not the question.
The question was comparing harvesting yeast from the krausen to splitting and saving it directly from a freshly opened smack pack, and it was being asked by someone who has done it before, and so (most likely) has sanitation and procedures adequately under control.

A Wyeast pack is a sterile mix of nutrients and essentially 'virgin' yeast.
Fermenting beer not sterile and harvesting from the fermenter introduces a range of various different contaminants and contamination points that are not an issue when compared to opening a new pack of yeast.
In addition the yeast will create appropriate enzymes and adapt themselves to the wort which introduces the possibility of the yeast mutating, which again again is not an issue when compared to the yeast directly out of the pack.

Either method depends greatly upon sanitation and process, however splitting the yeast directly from the pack should give better results if the process and procedures are the same.

 

[felten]

http://www.wyeastlab.com/hb_smackpack.cfm great video there on what to do, even if it does take forever to load. Lots of other good info on the wyeast site as well as the Mr. Malty site.

 

[beerdrinkingbob]

Quite a deal of bullshit above! Successful splitting depends greatly upon sanitary conditions and having the process down pat.

Screwy

Don't know much about brewing yet, but i do know how to spot when someone woke up on the the wrong side of the bed!! :blink:

 

[eddy401]

Shed101 - when you say harvest from the krausen what do you mean? i think i will try and harvest some yeast soon to cut costs, but was thinking of just swirling the last bit of the beer around to mix up the yeast cake and then bottling and refridgerating that....why/how harvest from the krausen? (the krausen is the foam at the top right?)

thanks

Useful stuff as I have my first Wyeast in the fridge (1214) waiting for wort.

I'm planning on brewing a 12 litre Dubbel (1065-ish I guess).

Would I be better to use half the pack and store the other half until the next brew a la 'The Complicated way' above... or should I use the lot and harvest from the krausen (done that successfully with dry yeasts).

Sorry to OP if i've started to complicate your thread.

 

[manticle]

In my experience: harvesting from krausen gives you access to healthy, active yeast with no hop trub or the like. Harvesting from cake/slurry may contain dead cells, proteins, hop debris etc which can be washed away - see acid washing yeast).

The yeast I've top cropped is super healthy and this method is used by various commercial breweries.

While you do need to be sanitary, the fact that the yeast is active means it is possibly more resistant to other microbes than settled yeast cake.

To harvest from krausen/top crop - I take a sanitised stainless ladle, scoop the clean looking foam (avoid darker flecks) into a sanitised funnel and gently pour boiled, cooled water over it. Under the funnel is my clean, sanitised yeast vessel (often a longneck) which is then sealed and refrigerated. I have also successfully used the yeast to innoculate a new batch of beer immediately scoop from one fermenter to the other. The main potential problem with this is calculating pitching amounts but that can be done.

 

[Shed101]

yes, i do something similar ... albeit with a sanitised spoon and whack it straight into a jar without using a funnel.

 

[manticle]

Never used a blowoff tube myself but if you blew off (sorry for the image) into a clean sanitary vessel that was sealed from the atmosphere, I guess you could harvest krausen that way too. Presumably someone, somehere does this?

 

[felten]

I think that is the way they do it in carboys