Quick Yeast Starter Question

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by AlCaponeJunior, Apr 29, 2013.

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  1. AlCaponeJunior

    AlCaponeJunior Grand Pooh-Bah (3,452) May 21, 2010 Texas
    Society Pooh-Bah

    I made a starter about four days ago. All the usual things, it was going fine. Then I left and forgot about it for four days. When I got back, it was still on the counter at room temperature. It had been properly shaken and aerated for the first 24 hours. Is it worth bothering with, or should I just make another? The cost of the lost yeast is irrelevant, and I suspect I already know the answer, but just humor me before I toss it.
     
  2. OddNotion

    OddNotion Pooh-Bah (1,915) Nov 1, 2009 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah

    Its fine. Use it as your normally would. Yeast will ferment the sugars, all a starter is is a mini batch of beer minus the hops.
     
  3. OddNotion

    OddNotion Pooh-Bah (1,915) Nov 1, 2009 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah

    Depending on your pitch rate and cell count you may need to step it up a little bit but that all depends on the beer its going into.
     
  4. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    With 4 days at room temp you'll lose some viable cells. But maybe no worse than, say, 4 days in shipment from an online HBS.
     
  5. mattbk

    mattbk Savant (1,111) Dec 12, 2011 New York

    Just one unrelated comment: I'm always surprised when I see someone write "I forgot about it for a few days/weeks/months." Whenever I have something brewing I feel like I can think of nothing else. In fact, I think I forget about lots of other little things instead of the beer. Kinda funny - and also, a bit scary...
     
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  6. MrOH

    MrOH Grand Pooh-Bah (3,995) Jul 5, 2010 Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    I'm on board with you. I seldom forget about it, it's more of a "Fuck it, it'll be alright for a little bit longer until I can get to it."
     
  7. WickedSluggy

    WickedSluggy Savant (1,129) Nov 21, 2008 Texas

    yeast doesn't mind room temperature. Warmer temperatures will speed things up, so you have to worry about them running out the stuff they need to survive, but I wouldn't worry too much about a substantial big loss of viable cells in four days at room temperature. What I would do, personally, is give them some additional wort and some O2, but I probably wouldn't feel the need do another complete stage.
     
  8. AlCaponeJunior

    AlCaponeJunior Grand Pooh-Bah (3,452) May 21, 2010 Texas
    Society Pooh-Bah

    Well I had stuck it in the fridge yesterday, and after reading the first few responses of this thread, I decided to "keep it." :grinning:

    Today I decanted the liquid, and made another starter. Once it was cooled and sanitized, we pitched the yeast for another round of starter. It's on a stir plate right now, we are hoping to brew on wednesday.

    It's WLP029 East Midlands Ale Yeast, if anyone's interested. Haven't tried this yeast yet.
     
  9. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    ^^^This^^^
    ...describes precisely much of my process (per Palmer).

    You can...
    ...pitch at Hi-K...or...
    ...let the starter 'finish'...and "by allowing the yeast starter fermentation to go to completion, the...reserves (of)glycogen and trehalose are built up, and upon pitching, the yeast starts out with a ready fuel supply and a clean slate to better adapt it to the new wort"...cold crash...then pitch.

    More...
    *When is My Starter Ready to Pitch*
    http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter6-6.html
     
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  10. inchrisin

    inchrisin Pooh-Bah (2,013) Sep 25, 2008 Indiana
    Pooh-Bah

    I think when it comes to that "oh crap" moment it's a good idea post on here and get feedback. What's more important is that you smell and maybe even taste the beer in your starter to make sure we aren't wrong. It won't taste good, but it shouldn't taste infected either. We have to generalize that you did everything right and that you'll be fine. At least 4 out of 5 times you will be. Make sure you don't fall through the cracks here. As you said it's 7 bucks to get more good yeast. It's 4+ hours, $20+ for a batch of beer, and countless tears when you drain pour your baby.
     
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  11. jncastillo87

    jncastillo87 Initiate (0) Jan 27, 2013 Texas

    I have read and watched about starters several times. What exactly is it going to do for me when I always hit my FG and usually go lower.. Im not seeing the huge benefit. My last beer was an imperial pale that started at 1080 and ended up at 1010 with the white labs 001 just right out of the tube.
     
  12. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    It's not just about getting full attenuation. It's not even mostly about getting full attenuation. Here are some of the possible consequences of underpitching...

    - high esters
    - high fusel alcohols
    - under-attenuation
    - high diacetyl
    - high sulfur compounds (particularly in lagers)
    - high acetaldehyde
     
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  13. jncastillo87

    jncastillo87 Initiate (0) Jan 27, 2013 Texas

    Ok .. cool. By making a starter you are not actually increasing the amount of live cells but just kick starting them correct ?
     
  14. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,635) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah

    The final gravity is also reached faster.
     
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  15. HopNuggets

    HopNuggets Initiate (0) Oct 8, 2009 Connecticut

    Making starters improved my beer more than any other change in brewing or equipment, after going full boil - probably a toss up between the 2. By pitching the proper amount of yeast they are less stressed and in a happier environment. It does increase the amount of cells and gets them started in an environment similar to where they are soon to be.
     
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  16. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    No. The main purpose of a starter is to increase viable cell count. You can kickstart the yeast with a very small amount of wort (with very limited cell count increase), but that's not what is generally meant by starter.
     
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  17. AlCaponeJunior

    AlCaponeJunior Grand Pooh-Bah (3,452) May 21, 2010 Texas
    Society Pooh-Bah

    I have never pitched liquid yeast directly, I've made starters since day one. The preponderance of threads and other info I have read point towards "make a starter." Thus, I make starters. They're easy and not expensive, and my beer is worth the extra effort.
     
  18. jncastillo87

    jncastillo87 Initiate (0) Jan 27, 2013 Texas


    Excellent .. point taken and now I will make starters !
     
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