Thinking of doing a 3 gallon batch- yeast question

i would use mr malty for reference. depends on mfg date of yeast and og of beer. i recently did 3gal 1.048 blonde ale with a 1L starter- for reference my yeast was a month past mfg date

 

I agree with a Mr. Malty check. My personal opinion is that it's better to overpitch than underpitch. If it's healthy yeast, within a few months of the manufacturing date and an average beer 1.055 or below, I would just toss it in. A starter never hurts and helps prove viability.

 

You'll be fine, pitch the hell out of those yeasties.

 

When I do two and half to three gallon batches I use one white labs vile and they have always turned out great.

 

There is no golden rule for any size batch. It depends on several factors. Trust Mr. Malty. (BTW, a Wyeast Smack Pack and a White Labs vial have about the same amount of cells, assuming similar freshness.)

 

The one Golden Rule is make a starter...regardless of batch size.

All else being equal...pitch 1/2 cup of somewhat thick slurry into a 3G batch for an ale...twice as much for a lager.

 

Mr. Malty is rad and all but.......I much prefer yeastcalc.com for yeast pitching calculations and starter planning. It's much more versatile. (IMO)

http://yeastcalc.com/