For my next brew, I’m planning on a 5 gallon batch of Scottish 60. I’ve never made a starter before. In fact, this will be the first time I’ve ever used liquid yeast. The beer’s intended OG range is 1.030-1.035. Everything I’ve read about starters say that the starter wort’s OG should be in the 1.030-1.040 range. I didn’t calculate exactly how many cells I’d need, but in estimating, I put it in the ballpark of 112 billion cells. An Activator pack has 100 billion cells. So my question to you experts: should I make a starter for this batch or not? If so, how big and what OG should I shoot for?
That is making an assumption that the cells are 100% viable, which unless the yeast is less than a week old it probably is not. With liquid yeast you are probably always better off making a starter than not - however for a beer under 1.040 SG you can safely skip making the starter as long as your yeast is fresh. For anything above 1.040 - yeah, always make a starter!
For more information check out the pitching calc. at www.mrmalty.com - it will tell you how large you starter needs to be for any size batch.
I always make starters with my liquid yeast packs. The bigger the beer, the bigger the starter. In my experience it always gives me a better product, so its well worth the small effort that goes into one.
Rule of thumb from my perspective. Liquid Yeast = Starter. Dry Yeast =No Starter. If you want to skip the starter use dry yeast. There’s nothing “taboo” about using dry yeast. I use both depending on the situation. Liquid just gives you so many more options…
OK, mr malty says I need 1 liter (1.06 quarts) of starter for my 5 gallon 1.033 batch. What gravity should my starter wort be, and how much DME do I need to get that gravity? Based on a formula from another forum, I figure that if I’m after a gravity of 1.030, then I’d need 1/6 lb of DME per quart. Is this about right?