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Yeast - Are You A Stirrer Or A Sprinkler?
- Thread starter wbosher
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Yob
Hop to it
For Dry Yeast?
Always Rehydrate as per Manuf. Specs. (The Pro Versions)
I always Liked Danstars advice and this forms the method I use with all dry Yeast (Temps as per Manuf. Instruction for the specific Yeast)
mckenry
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Best approach is to rehydrate (plenty of info here) and when you stir, give it a good thrashing to help it get off to a good start.
wbosher
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Yeah, I've heard that's a good way of going it. Don't you have to be really careful with temperature control?
lukiferj
Self Made Alehouse
I have only started rehydrating dry yeast on my last few brews and the results have been amazing. Seems to kick off fermetnation quickly and finish much sooner than just dumping the dry yeast in. Plenty of info on the forums about this. Once you start rehydrating it's not too much of a step to start reusing your yeast and saving money :icon_cheers:
mckenry
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If you mean during rehydration - you do, but the limits are pretty generous.
See this discussion I started ages ago
Yeast rehydration
wbosher
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I've read a little bit about rehydration and it just doesn't seem worth it. Possible introduction of infection and shock, it just seems safer to pitch it dry. Or am I being a little over cautious?
Anyway, when pitching dry are there any benefits to be gained by stirring, or just best to sprinkle on top?
Anyway, when pitching dry are there any benefits to be gained by stirring, or just best to sprinkle on top?
Yob
Hop to it
Lord Raja Goomba I
Prisoner of Sobriety
I've started rehydrating dry yeast for some beers - noticeably anything that requires US-05. I find it tends to flocc out quicker.
However, for some beers (such as English style Pales and Milds), I've been pitching straight in to cause enough yeast stress (not much, but enough) to give me the esters I prefer in those styles.
Pretty much a horses for courses thing, but rehydrated yeast takes off way better. I have another guy at work, who I've introduced to brewing BIAB, and he just hydates straight out every time, and then emails me saying "I've got like 4 inches of that foam on top", to which I say "good, you've got healthy, active yeast".
Goomba
However, for some beers (such as English style Pales and Milds), I've been pitching straight in to cause enough yeast stress (not much, but enough) to give me the esters I prefer in those styles.
Pretty much a horses for courses thing, but rehydrated yeast takes off way better. I have another guy at work, who I've introduced to brewing BIAB, and he just hydates straight out every time, and then emails me saying "I've got like 4 inches of that foam on top", to which I say "good, you've got healthy, active yeast".
Goomba
mckenry
Brummagem
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Rehydration is always debated. I think the majority are in favour. Its easy once youve done it.
Youd have to do more reading to get this exactly right (so no-one quote me) but you'll lose something like 50% of your soldiers pitching dry. 50 may be over estimated, but I remember being shocked by what I read, and then always rehydrated.
As for stirring or sprinkling, again, more debate wrt dry yeast and does it need aeration, which comes from stirring.
I always rehydrated and stirred vigourously when I used dry yeast. It got my FG's down from 1.018 to the 1.012/13 mark, over pitching dry and 'dainty' stir.
You would benefit from reading up the differences in oxygenation and oxidation. Adding O2 at the start is good for yeast, adding O2 later, is bad for beer.
wbosher
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Ok, the more I read about rehydration the more it seems like a good idea. Got this from howtobrew.com
Re-hydrating Dry Yeast
1. Put 1 cup of warm (95-105F, 35-40C) boiled water into a sanitized jar and stir in the yeast. Cover with Saran Wrap and wait 15 minutes.
2. "Proof" the yeast by adding one teaspoon of extract or sugar that has been boiled in a small amount of water. Allow the sugar solution to cool before adding it to the jar.
3. Cover and place in a warm area out of direct sunlight.
4. After 30 minutes or so the yeast should be visibly churning and/or foaming, and is ready to pitch.
Note: Lallemand/Danstar does not recommend proofing after rehydration of their yeast because they have optimized their yeast's nutrional reserves for quick starting in the main wort. Proofing expends some of those reserves.
Sounds simple enough
Re-hydrating Dry Yeast
1. Put 1 cup of warm (95-105F, 35-40C) boiled water into a sanitized jar and stir in the yeast. Cover with Saran Wrap and wait 15 minutes.
2. "Proof" the yeast by adding one teaspoon of extract or sugar that has been boiled in a small amount of water. Allow the sugar solution to cool before adding it to the jar.
3. Cover and place in a warm area out of direct sunlight.
4. After 30 minutes or so the yeast should be visibly churning and/or foaming, and is ready to pitch.
Note: Lallemand/Danstar does not recommend proofing after rehydration of their yeast because they have optimized their yeast's nutrional reserves for quick starting in the main wort. Proofing expends some of those reserves.
Sounds simple enough
wbosher
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Wouldn't you already have a sanitised spoon from stirring in the wort/water anyway?
But yes, I'm starting to be swayed from the dry side to option c
Petite Mutants!!!! :huh:
Yob
Hop to it
they suffer respiratory issues and cannot function effectively.
GalBrew
Well-Known Member
Ok, the more I read about rehydration the more it seems like a good idea. Got this from howtobrew.com
Re-hydrating Dry Yeast
1. Put 1 cup of warm (95-105F, 35-40C) boiled water into a sanitized jar and stir in the yeast. Cover with Saran Wrap and wait 15 minutes.
2. "Proof" the yeast by adding one teaspoon of extract or sugar that has been boiled in a small amount of water. Allow the sugar solution to cool before adding it to the jar.
3. Cover and place in a warm area out of direct sunlight.
4. After 30 minutes or so the yeast should be visibly churning and/or foaming, and is ready to pitch.
Note: Lallemand/Danstar does not recommend proofing after rehydration of their yeast because they have optimized their yeast's nutrional reserves for quick starting in the main wort. Proofing expends some of those reserves.
Sounds simple enough
The online edition of how to brew is quite out of date compared to the hard copy. Palmer himself has said proofing is no longer necessary and is detrimental to yeast performance. Dehydrated yeast are at full capacity in terms of their energy reserves and if you proof them you are just using that energy up for no reason. Just rehydrate......and buy a copy of How to Brew (my copy is the 3rd ed).
GalBrew
Well-Known Member
That is good advice right there.
Markbeer
Well-Known Member
If you can't be bothered rehydrating, sprinkling is better than stirring as it is gentler on the yeast.
They rehydrate themselves in the wort more slowly then if forced in by stirring.
Personal experimentation of dozens of brews has shown this for me.
But best to rehydrate.
They rehydrate themselves in the wort more slowly then if forced in by stirring.
Personal experimentation of dozens of brews has shown this for me.
But best to rehydrate.
Bada Bing Brewery
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Yeah, but which leg do you hold in the air?, that's surely the most important thing. Left leg in the air encourages more esters, and the right leg in the air while pitching encourages a drier, cleaner beer. I read it on wiki
URL below is PDF report on an experiment run by BYO magazine & the internet based "Basic Brewing Radio".
"...In the Basic Brewing podcast of April 14th 2011 a request was made to participate in a brewing experiment. The
experiment aimed to determine the effect of hydration of dry yeast and the way of adding yeast to wort on lag-
time before fermentation starts, krausening, apparent degree of fermentation, the final taste of the beer and other
characteristics..."
"...Discussion / conclusion
For quite some years there is a debate amongst home brewers whether or not dry yeast should be hydrated before
pitching. Some even state that sprinkling dry yeast on wort would lead to a decrease in cell viability by 60 to
70%.
Based on the historic data desktop research and the experiments that were performed using different yeasts I
conclude that hydration of yeast is not needed to make a good beer. It does not lead to higher degrees of
fermentation. On the contrary, the historic data research showed that the average brewer obtained lower degrees
of fermentation upon hydration of dry yeast. The historic data research showed that for 9 out of 12 yeast
hydration lead to significant lower degrees of fermentation..."
http://ec.libsyn.com/p/1/a/e/1aeeb08f8db63...mp;c_id=3529671
"...In the Basic Brewing podcast of April 14th 2011 a request was made to participate in a brewing experiment. The
experiment aimed to determine the effect of hydration of dry yeast and the way of adding yeast to wort on lag-
time before fermentation starts, krausening, apparent degree of fermentation, the final taste of the beer and other
characteristics..."
"...Discussion / conclusion
For quite some years there is a debate amongst home brewers whether or not dry yeast should be hydrated before
pitching. Some even state that sprinkling dry yeast on wort would lead to a decrease in cell viability by 60 to
70%.
Based on the historic data desktop research and the experiments that were performed using different yeasts I
conclude that hydration of yeast is not needed to make a good beer. It does not lead to higher degrees of
fermentation. On the contrary, the historic data research showed that the average brewer obtained lower degrees
of fermentation upon hydration of dry yeast. The historic data research showed that for 9 out of 12 yeast
hydration lead to significant lower degrees of fermentation..."
http://ec.libsyn.com/p/1/a/e/1aeeb08f8db63...mp;c_id=3529671
Bada Bing Brewery
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Yeah, but which leg do you hold in the air?, that's surely the most important thing. Left leg in the air encourages more esters, and the right leg in the air while pitching encourages a drier, cleaner beer. I read it on wiki
And so many brewers miss these sorts of important factors. Leg height and orientation, speed of sachet pouring etc etc. It is the little things that make award winning beer.
What do one legged brewers do ??? they use wyeast.......
cheers
BBB
SJW
As you must brew, so you must drink
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:icon_offtopic: That's just un-Australian on two levels. 1 - you actually read the instuctions. 2 - you actually follow them. I suppose you do that with flat pack furniture as well ....
BBB
bignath
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Just to throw another cat amongst the pigeons, i'm a splasher.
Probably more specifically geared toward the no chill brewer though, but it works bloody well.
I take the gladwrap off of a sanitised fermenter just before i pour in the no chilled cube. I sprinkle the yeast on the bottom of the empty fermenter, and then dump the cube onto the dry yeast.
I've experimented with different pouring in rates, as it effects the amount of foam i get when it's all in there after pouring, which makes me assume that its due to different levels of aeration.
I get best results from pouring in quite slowly but steadily (seems to be an important factor in this technique), from as high up as i can hold the cube on any given day.
Very rare for a fermentation not to have started within 12hrs doing this for me. Often, i can see yeast activity within 6-8hrs.
However, if you're not a no chiller, then this method won't really apply (unless you want to transfer the wort to another vessel, just so that you can pour it into the vessel you'll be fermenting in, and that raises more risks than it is probably worth).
Probably more specifically geared toward the no chill brewer though, but it works bloody well.
I take the gladwrap off of a sanitised fermenter just before i pour in the no chilled cube. I sprinkle the yeast on the bottom of the empty fermenter, and then dump the cube onto the dry yeast.
I've experimented with different pouring in rates, as it effects the amount of foam i get when it's all in there after pouring, which makes me assume that its due to different levels of aeration.
I get best results from pouring in quite slowly but steadily (seems to be an important factor in this technique), from as high up as i can hold the cube on any given day.
Very rare for a fermentation not to have started within 12hrs doing this for me. Often, i can see yeast activity within 6-8hrs.
However, if you're not a no chiller, then this method won't really apply (unless you want to transfer the wort to another vessel, just so that you can pour it into the vessel you'll be fermenting in, and that raises more risks than it is probably worth).
Yob
Hop to it
back into the fray... sigh..
Dry Yeast have no ability to control what passes through their cell wall within the first few minutes of rehydration, this is why water is recommended..
The Osmotic pressures of wort is not the most ideal solution to be rehydrating and it's these pressures that are attributed with the negative effects(on Yeast) with that process.
Can you make beer without rehydrating correctly? Sure you can
Will it be as good as it 'could' have been with the correct Yeast Care?
Jury is out on this side.
Personally, I do all I can, within Reason to ensure good yeast health and Vitality.
YMMV
Dry Yeast have no ability to control what passes through their cell wall within the first few minutes of rehydration, this is why water is recommended..
The Osmotic pressures of wort is not the most ideal solution to be rehydrating and it's these pressures that are attributed with the negative effects(on Yeast) with that process.
Can you make beer without rehydrating correctly? Sure you can
Will it be as good as it 'could' have been with the correct Yeast Care?
Jury is out on this side.
Personally, I do all I can, within Reason to ensure good yeast health and Vitality.
YMMV
manticle
Standing up for the Aussie Bottler
wbosher
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I'm coming to this realisation.
I might just do that. There is a lot of really good stuff in the online version, I can only imagine how good the hard copy is. Although there is a lot of information in there that I can never really see myself caring too much about...all the chemistry stuff etc...
I just want to be able to make a pretty good beer, don't need to be a pro. My sense of smell is pretty much buggered, so unless other people are drinking my beer I don't need to be too fussy. :lol:
