I’d like to save the yeast (Wyeast 1968) from a stout I plan to brew. I hope to be around 1.070 on the stout and am wondering if that is too high and dark for a future, pale(r) ale.
I haven’t crushed the stout grains yet, so I could brew a pale ale first and then use the slurry for the stout, but that messes with my timeline. I suppose I could also save some yeast from the starter.
Generally, I like to take the scenic path of least resistance. What would you do?
Personally, I make my starter a little larger than needed, and save the extra to build up a new starter for next time. I don’t think there would be any problem with using some of the slurry from the stout to do the pale ale, though. It would probably be a good idea to rinse the yeast with some pre-boiled water so that you can separate out all the trub. That should minimize flavor transfer.
I have been doing a quasi-wash on the yeast which seems to work fairly well so far. My starter set-up is 2L capacity so i really like to put all the yeast in the brew.
The “rule” says that that is too high to reuse. It will work and you will make beer.
Fred
What is the “rule”? 1.060? SRM?
thanks
The only “rule” I’ve heard is that you always go from lighter to darker, and from lower gravity to higher. That might have been all Fred meant.
Beersmith says I will have an SRM of ~45 on the stout so I think I’ll just make a big honkin starter and save some yeast from that.
Now if I can just get the stirplate to work with a gallon jug.
Right. Besides the fact that “rules” like that one are meant to be broken, 38 years of brewing and 20 years of repitiching from and to various gravities as well as darker to lighter (and back again, repeatedly) says that the “rule” is probably wrong anyway. At least, it has never presented a problem for me.
Go for it. You’ll make beer.
If you’ve kept it all clean and in balance, you’ll make very good beer.
Hello, my name is Denny and I am a yeast abuser…
The “rule”, as stated, is to not reuse yeast that came from a fermentation over 1.060 and always go from lighter colors to darker ones. Many times over the years I’ve broken that rule with no negative consequences. As The Professor relates, just try it and see what happens…based on the experiences of many of us, I think you’ll get good results.
For the record I’ll state that I have NEVER broken any brewing rules, Denny, would you like to try my RIS that sat in a carboy, under a table in my basement out of sight, on the primary yeast cake for two years? Taste something like Sam Adams Triple Bock, but as a stout.
Fred
“rules” are meant to be broken!!!
Of course you haven’t broken any rules, Fred, since your rule is to break the rules! 
I didn’t even know there was this rule… I’ve been fermenting on slurry back and forth and sideways and never heard any complaints from the yeast or beer.
EDIT: Though I had wheat smell like pumpkin and cinnamon in primary, but it went away after secondary and fruit addition.