Reusing yeast???

[skulltat280]

I'm bottling my 1st brew on Saturday and hoping to begin my 2nd brew same day

Instead of buying yeast for every brew (it's not the cheapest) does anyone use the sediment from the FV in the new brew with good results or is this stupid?

I will need to look into making starters soon

 

[AXW123]

I have used it with good result - I used about a pint in the new brew. I just pitched without creating a starter. Went like a train and fermented out really quickly. I was worried that it might not be so sterile but was actually tasted really good. However I understand with dried yeast you cannot re use indefinitely.

 

[skulltat280]

Nice one thanks. Liquid yeast I used, so at around 7 or 8 quid for yeast for a 23ltr brew is a little bit off the point of all grain being very cheap per brew

Maybe I'm just cheap aunsure....

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
You may want to look into overbuilding your starter - making more than you need and storing the excess in the fridge to be used as the basis of another starter.

 

[phildo79]

I have only ever used dried yeast. Was starting to get a bit fed up having to buy 11g packets every time I brewed up so I bought a 500g packet. Was probably a little lucky to find one for £30 but I've been using it for years and have only used about half so far. It isn't going to last forever though so I will have to do some research into reusing trub etc.

 

[Brew Dad]

Hi!
You may want to look into overbuilding your starter - making more than you need and storing the excess in the fridge to be used as the basis of another starter.

Have started doing this myself. Works great, saves money, and now have a few strains on hand at all times.

 

[BarnBrian]

Is overbuilding a starter just for when using liquid yeast or can it be done (is there any advantage) in doing it with dry yeast?

 

[Slid]

Is overbuilding a starter just for when using liquid yeast or can it be done (is there any advantage) in doing it with dry yeast?

Few would do a starter for dry yeast and of those, fewer still would overbuild a starter for a dry yeast. There are enough cells for a 23L brew in a 10g packet, unless the yeast is old or the beer particularly high gravity, in which case a starter would be a good plan.

 

[Drunkula]

I've been storing overbuilt yeast in a 50% glycol solution in the freezer in those tiny jam jars you get in hotels and then making up a starter with just a tiny scoop with the back of a spoon. I've been amazed by how much yeast you can grow in 1 or 2 days from that tiny scoop.

You can do it with dry yeast. A lot of time it's not worth if if the cost of the malt extract is almost as much as a new packet of yeast, but I've got so much extract it costs me 7.5p a litre.

 

[skulltat280]

I've been storing overbuilt yeast in a 50% glycol solution in the freezer in those tiny jam jars you get in hotels and then making up a starter with just a tiny scoop with the back of a spoon. I've been amazed by how much yeast you can grow in 1 or 2 days from that tiny scoop.

You can do it with dry yeast. A lot of time it's not worth if if the cost of the malt extract is almost as much as a new packet of yeast, but I've got so much extract it costs me 7.5p a litre.

I haven't properly looked into starters yet but reading your post I assume you need malt extract to create starters?

 

[Brew Dad]

I haven't properly looked into starters yet but reading your post I assume you need malt extract to create starters?

Yes, that is the usual method.

 

[Drunkula]

I assume you need malt extract to create starters?

Yeah, liquid or dry to try and get about a 1.040 wort. Before I knew better I tried to use sugar instead thinking it's just growing yeast - noooooo. It stunk of eggs because there's no nutrients in the sugar, plus giving yeast just sugar means they'll just grow to love simple sugar and won't want to eat the more complex malt sugars. It's like bringing up your kids a diet of Haribo then waiting for their teeth to rot away and saying - buy hey, this is the real food now - sprouts, sprouts, sprouts!!

 

[chthon]

Nice one thanks. Liquid yeast I used, so at around 7 or 8 quid for yeast for a 23ltr brew is a little bit off the point of all grain being very cheap per brew

Maybe I'm just cheap aunsure....

Or you could just be thrifty.

 

[chthon]

I've been storing overbuilt yeast in a 50% glycol solution in the freezer in those tiny jam jars you get in hotels and then making up a starter with just a tiny scoop with the back of a spoon. I've been amazed by how much yeast you can grow in 1 or 2 days from that tiny scoop.

You can do it with dry yeast. A lot of time it's not worth if if the cost of the malt extract is almost as much as a new packet of yeast, but I've got so much extract it costs me 7.5p a litre.

You probably use a stir plate?

I do it currently the hard way. I have material to build a stir plate, but I found out setting it up, that the only erlenmeyer I have, doesn't have a completely flat bottom. Oh, well, I start with a test tube, and scale up not too fast. I have currently fermented 1 l of wort, which I boiled with some hops, fermented normally, cold crashed and bottled (0,75 cl), and I am now ready to do another small beer (around 4 l) to grow my current yeast again, and have four bottles from that.

Oh, well, it is a hobby after all, and I derive as much satisfaction growing a nice yeast (currently St.-Bernardus) this way, as brewing more complex beers. I'll probably find time this year to pass by my LHBS in person and by a couple of erlenmeyers.

 

[Drunkula]

You probably use a stir plate?

Yeah. I haven't got a flask, though. I normally use a 1 litre cafetiere with foil on. I have resorted to using a demijohn to make a 3 litre starter. It was back when I was having massive problems with a few packets of s-04 I had that always stuck at 1.020 but haven't needed to do it since. You really can do yeasty business on the cheap if you're a wily one.

 

[skulltat280]

Yeah. I haven't got a flask, though. I normally use a 1 litre cafetiere with foil on. I have resorted to using a demijohn to make a 3 litre starter. It was back when I was having massive problems with a few packets of s-04 I had that always stuck at 1.020 but haven't needed to do it since. You really can do yeasty business on the cheap if you're a wily one.

I need to hear more about this lol

Care to share your ''how to''?

 

[matt76]

Hi @skulltat280 ,

I've just started growing yeast too and have a collection of samples in the fridge plus some Wyeast 1056 that, all being well, I'll pitch tomorrow.

It's well worth having a browse through this section of the forum - you'll find loads of useful info, some just from the last month or so.

Also check out the "how to" section, including how to build a stir plate for less than a tenner

 

[skulltat280]

Hi @skulltat280 ,

I've just started growing yeast too and have a collection of samples in the fridge plus some Wyeast 1056 that, all being well, I'll pitch tomorrow.

It's well worth having a browse through this section of the forum - you'll find loads of useful info, some just from the last month or so.

Also check out the "how to" section, including how to build a stir plate for less than a tenner

I will do thanks