A little while back I posted that I'd try to stir up some dregs from an Oberon 6 pack to try to build up enough yeast so I can do an Ameican Wheat. I added about a cup of 1.030 wort to the dregs of the entire 6 pack. I gave it three days and the OG didn't budge. I used intermittent stirring. I've heard other people post that they've had success using dregs and I'm wondering if you have any tips for how to do this. Who else has tried and it just didn't work?
My first attempt at harvesting failed. I'm pretty sure whoever tried to clone the Mesopotamians also failed initially. I tried on an 8.5% brew (which is tricky at best) from The Bruery (I live on the east coast). Just like you, I got nothing. You might consider making your first wort addition in the 1.020 range and I add the smallest pinch of yeast nutrient. Shaking is good, but a squirt of O2 is better. Even three days might not be enough. My last high gravity harvest (8.4% Belgian) that worked took at least that long. I actually was ready to give up but couldn't bring myself to toss it. The next morning it was active. So keep it an extra day or two . . . just in case.
I've had good results using dregs. I use 1.5 cup of DME in 1.5 liters of water (in a 2 liter erlenmeyer flask) for a OG of roughly 1.040. Bring water to a boil, add the DME, and boil for 15 minutes, adding some yeast nutrient in the process. Cool the wort down to pitching temperature in an ice bath. I pour the dregs from the bottles into a sanitized shot glass that is covered with some sanitized tin foil, and when the wort is at pitching temp I pour the dregs from the shot glass into the erlenmeyer flask. Frequent stirring for a couple of days, and I've always had a very healthy yeast culture this way.
I had excellent results pouring dregs from a crooked stave sour into a starter on a stir plate let it go overnight and pitched after brewing . All it took was dregs from one 375ml of bottle of dexter occulus. Brewed a saison that started souring after 3 weeks CS has some very aggressive cultures in the bottle.
