I can’t find any DME in my city, so I am thinking on making a yeast starter from 2-row. Can I use well water and don’t worry about my PH? I don’t have a PH meter. Or do what I do when I make beer, Bru’n Water, RO water with brewing salts.
If it were me, I’d make a small batch of beer basically.
You could certainly wing it, but think about the fact that DME is previously prepared wort. You want those yeasties in tip-top for the wild ride they’ll be going on and a lovingly prepared wort is a great start.
If you make beer with that water, just scale down to the starter batch size you need. Some yeast nutrients are going to help the yeast grow and build reserves. I have done what you propose, no issues.
What about my water profile? No hops though? Minimum on everything?
I would do a mini-mash, no salts, get the pH in line and just do a beta rest for 30 minutes. Boil it briefly and add yeast nutrient then cool and pitch the starter yeast.
Sounds good. Thanks for the replies.
How are you going to store it?
I would mash (using brunwater for pH) at 3.35 qts/lb to get 1.040, run off to half gallon canning jars, run them through pressure cooker for 15min.
Never try to treat water unless you know where the water is to begin with. If you don’t know the makeup of your well water just use the RO and Bru’n Water.
THIS^^^^. And I don’t know why there’s any need to worry about pH in this case.
My thinking is that pH effects conversion and could effect tannin extraction. Frankly, If there was no DME in town, I would order some online.
I just ordered some stuff online and assumed our local Brew Your Own would have some DME. They no longer sell supplies of anything. Yea, a city of 75,000 and not one place that sells DME. I am using my wort right away and not freezing it.
I just did this. I used some older 2 row and made 3 gallons of wort. Boiled it for 45 min. Cooled it and came out at 1.045. Used it to step up some 2124,860, and a really old tube of 036. Worked great, but a lot more time than DME. I did adjust with a little acid. Under up going low, yeast didn’t seem to mind.
I make starter wort from old 2-row and freeze it. I make a 1.080 wort, freeze it in 1 pint and 1 quart containers. When I need a 1 liter starter, use 1 pint of frozen wort and dilute to 1.036, 2 liter, use a 1 quart container. It saves space in the freezer if you make a 1.080 wort. The wort made from 2-row is dirt cheap compare to DME.
I just tossed it in the fridge to settle and step it up again for my lager. I couldn’t believe how fast it started to work, within 2 hours. Very light compared to DME. It was done in just over 24 hrs. which is fast compared to DME. I did make 2.5 gallons and put the left over wort in a santized container in the fridge for around 3 days until I use it to step up my WLP810.
I heard that honey can be used in a pinch.
My 2nd stepping up with my WLP810 lager yeast foamed over last night. I used some no-foam to finally get it to go away. I have never had a foam over with DME. This was in a 5 L flask too.
Wow, how full was it?