Does the starting gravity of a yeast starter dramatically effect it’s growth rate? In other words, would I end up with a higher final yeast count if my starting gravity was 1.040 vs 1.030?
I would assume so but the yeast calculator I use, doesn’t change the growth rate when I enter a higher gravity.
That would depend on the volume of the starter and the cell count pitched. The way I understand it is that only so many cells that can populate a given volume. so if you’re up against the limit, increasing the OG theoretically won’t increase the cell count.
Lower gravity also stresses yeast less, leading to greater vitality and viability. So the best way to increase count is to keep the gravity the same and increase volume. Inoculation rate is the biggest variable; Chris White and Jamil Zainasheff’s book on yeast has good information on optimizing all these factors.