So there I was, just shakin’ that gallon jug like mad, waiting for that big foamy froth to rise up… and nothing. Shook it even harder… nothing. Then I thought, “Oh… Fermcap in the starter. Whoops.” So I fired up the stir plate this time, and I’ll give SNS a shot next time.
Don’t put Fermcap in your SNS starters! Should have been obvious, but hindsight is 20/20.
Done it too. I make my one quart starters in an eight quart pot now. Less chance of a mess.
Foam or not - you were still aerating the wort. I don’t see why it wouldn’t have been fine.
True, but the concept leverages the massive surface area of the foam.
I tried it again without the Fermcap, and it was mighty frothy. Talk about an easy way to make a starter. I wish I hadn’t wasted all that time making my double stirplate!
I guess when rousing old yeast, one would shake the crap out of it and start @ 020? Say around 500ml? Would you then let it ferment out and start again as if it were fresh? I have several WL packs that are older and want to get them active, or at least see if they are toast.
That’s what I have been doing. I make a smaller weaker starter four or five days out and let it ferment fully. I crash and decant the spent beer before adding the yeast to my final SNS starter.