Okay guys-I have already received invaluable information from you. I once again need your input. I have made a starter-Brix was about 16 or 1.064. I will be brewing a double IPA of about 1.083 OG. Now I am reading that starters should only be about 1.030 to 1.040. Should I toss this and simply buy two smack packs tomorrow?
Additional info: put pure O2 in for about 5 to 10 seconds, hand shook and placed on a starter plate. By they way, I took everyone’s advice and simply place aluminum foil on top of the flask. I am using Wyeast 1056.
This newbie truly appreciates the information provided by all of you.
In general, you’ll get better yeast growth from a starter in the 1.020-1.035 range. The easiest way to achive that is to use .75 oz. DME (by weight) for each cup of water in the starter. You’re not in serious trouble this time, but try to get that gravity down next time.
Yeah… those instructions are going to make a very small, very high-gravity starter. Stick with 100 g per L (post-boil) and 1.5 L is about the minimum volume. Use the calculator at mrmalty.com to determine how large the starter needs to be, and decant off the spent starter “beer” before pitching. Also, NEVER use an airlock on a starter.
What’s the reasoning for that? It’s been awhile but I’ve used an airlock on a starter done in a 2 quarter tomato juice bottle. The mouth is wide enough to fit a smaller sized stopped and the airlock fit in just fine and the starter did what is was supposed to and the beer turned out just fine.
I agree with Jeff - I user a stir plate and just loosely cover with aluminum foil as well.
Also, a friend of mine who makes quarts of starters in advance with his pressure cooker weaned me away from making starters in the 1.040 range and closer to the 1.020 range. He provided me the info that basically boiled down to the fact that I am trying to get the yeast simply to reproduce, not make excessive alcohol.
However, after getting the smack pack/tube started with a low gravity starter, I will increase it with a second feeding of a higher OG starter. While I once heard I should try to match the gravity to be close to the end brew, I now am confortable just making the second round about 1.040, even if it is for a barley wine, tripple or other high gravity brew.
I never used a stir plate, just shook the hell out of it and popped in a stopper and airlock. But that makes sense. I do have a few of those foam stoppers lying around as well. Thanks for posting the link to that article.
After I decant my starter I add a couple qts of cooled wort from the boil and put it back on the stirplate…
By the time the batch is cooled…the starter is usually going crazy and starts fermenting quickly…
Just add 1/2 volume of your starter as boiled/ cooled water. Mix and you should be about 1.040.
Don’t Bogart that starter!
Any gravity over 1.040 makes alcohol, some new yeast. Dropping it will increase yeast production.
Stirring and oxygenating it will increase your rate.
My setup:
Variac runs aquarium pump through HEPA filter and down pipe right into center of vortex.
Wort is 1.040 OG with 5 drops of foam control. ( 15 oz DME to 1 gal water in a 5l Erlenmeyer )
I since dumped the Variac and went to a blowoff jar
I’m Canadian and grew up with the metric system (sort of - we did the ‘official switch’ when I was in early grade school) - I don’t find that easy at all! I’d have to go buy a scale that measures in grams and turn the measuring cup around to see the metric side and pour left handed!
“The metric system is the tool of the devil! My car gets forty rods to the hogshead and that’s the way I likes it!”
Grandpa Simpson
