First Yeast Starter: Looking a bit weird...

Yes, this is true, but think of it this way (or not), adequate temp control can be had with a simple swamp cooler arrangement with the brewer adjusting the temp upwards a few days into fermentation (for most styles). I think what I'm saying is: the auto temp control does not have to be perfect...in fact controlling Chico to 71*F to me is not ideal initially and it sounds like you were compromising because you were conditioniong/carbing another batch in the same chamber. Just say'in...mostly because I'm retired and have time to micromanage my fermentations manually and need the space in my temp controlled chamber for other things. Cheers

 

CO-Bloom, part of what is going on here is that these threads last forever, and new brewers may find them in the future and model their practices on what they see people describing. That's why people sometimes weigh in with information that may not seem directly relevant to the OP's situation, but that may help provide context for future readers. In other words, the bell doesn't only toll for thee.

That said, I'm pretty much 100% on board with the way you're doing it, and I would give the same advice to people who don't live on a mountain in Colorado.

 

Yes, warmer temperatures (e.g.,> 70 degrees F) will promote yeast growth. From a yeast propagation perspective these warmer temperatures are a plus.

If your intention is to pitch the whole yeast starter there is a possibility that 'flavors' from a warm(er) yeast starter may be an issue. For example, maybe the yeast starter might have esters (e.g., fruity or solvent-like flavors) that might be undesirable for the beer style you are making. Since I pitch my entire starter I tend to propagate at a temperature consistent with the specific batch I am making.

For this particular instance I do not think your starter of 1056 will be an issue since it has been my personal experience that the Chico yeast strain (WY1056/WLP001/US-05) is a fairly neutral yeast strain even in the warm(er) temperature range. For example I have fermented batches with US-05 at temperatures like 72 degrees F and I did not notice much in the way of esters in those batches.

Cheers!

 

That's quite a sweeping statement. The proper starter size depends on how many cells you think you're starting with, how may you want to end up with, and the type of starters you make (Simple or Shaken or Stirplate).

I make plenty of starters smaller than a liter. It depends on the circumstances. For example, if I have about 100B cells and I want about 200B cells, a 0.8 Liter starter on a stir plate is about right.

Of course, the same numbers without a stir plate would require a larger starter volume.

 

My question is who uses volume for dme instead of weight?
10ml water to 1g dme. Done.

 

Palmer? Me? Anyone with a measuring cup?
Doesn't need to be that exact obviously, the OP's Northern Brewer thumbrule was using a ratio that was off from Palmer's by 50%

 

Damn. I figured we all have scales, we all have flasks, sometimes it's fun to play breaking bad.

 

I have 2 scales (for hops and grain), but no flasks...I use growlers for my starters (no stir plate or decant either) ...and now use dry yeast for all my lagers.

 

Sounds like someone likes making things easy on themselves. That's cheating.

 

Well then, I am a 'cheater' too.

My starter vessel is a old 3 liter wine bottle. I too do not stir plate and the entire yeast starter gets pitched at high krausen (about 18 hours of yeast starter time).

'Cheating' works for me!

Cheers!