Old Yeast

Yeast & Fermentation
1

I had a Wyeast American Ale 1056 dated from Sep. Mr. malty suggested a 2.5L starter, but I went with a 1.2L starter instead. After a day the starter seemed to look pretty healthy to me. I was going to do another 1.2-1.5L starter on top of what I already have. I have it sitting in the fridge now. Any thoughts on what to do with this starter?

2
http://www.wyeastlab.com/hb_yeaststrain_detail.cfm?ID=5

[quote]
Very clean, crisp flavor characteristics with low fruitiness and mild ester production. A very versatile yeast for styles that desire dominant malt and hop character. This strain makes a wonderful “House” strain. Mild citrus notes develop with cooler 60-66°F (15-19ºC) fermentations. Normally requires filtration for bright beers.

Origin:
Flocculation: Medium-Low
Attenuation: 73-77%
Temperature Range: 60-72F, 15-22C
Alcohol Tolerance: 11% ABV

Styles:
American Amber Ale
American Barleywine
American Brown Ale
American IPA
American Pale Ale
American Stout
Braggot
Brown Porter
Christmas/Winter Specialty Spiced Beer
Cream Ale
Dry Stout
Fruit Beer
Imperial IPA
Irish Red Ale
Other Smoked Beer
Russian Imperial Stout
Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer
Strong Scotch Ale
Wood-Aged Beer[/quote]

3

The viability by date that Mr. Malty produces is very conservative. In my experience there isn’t much change in viability at all. The Vitality may be low, but even after a few months it is probably above 90% viable. So it might take a little longer to get going, but once it is going it will do just fine.

See here for data:

http://woodlandbrew.blogspot.com/2012/1 ... ility.html
4

[quote=“WoodlandBrew”]The viability by date that Mr. Malty produces is very conservative. In my experience there isn’t much change in viability at all. The Vitality may be low, but even after a few months it is probably above 90% viable. So it might take a little longer to get going, but once it is going it will do just fine.

See here for data:

http://woodlandbrew.blogspot.com/2012/1 ... ility.html[/quote]

This is extremely interesting! I have no scientific facts behind this, but I and others I know have used rinsed yeast that’s been stored at cold temps for up to a year with good results, which completely goes against what Mr. Malty says. Your findings are more in line with what I and others in my brew club have suspected.

5

Thanks for the info. I’m going to let it ride with the starter i made and see how it goes.

:cheers:

6

[quote=“dobe12”][quote=“WoodlandBrew”]The viability by date that Mr. Malty produces is very conservative. In my experience there isn’t much change in viability at all. The Vitality may be low, but even after a few months it is probably above 90% viable. So it might take a little longer to get going, but once it is going it will do just fine.

See here for data:

http://woodlandbrew.blogspot.com/2012/1 ... ility.html[/quote]

This is extremely interesting! I have no scientific facts behind this, but I and others I know have used rinsed yeast that’s been stored at cold temps for up to a year with good results, which completely goes against what Mr. Malty says. Your findings are more in line with what I and others in my brew club have suspected.[/quote]

The calc by date is very inaccurate. I stored a washed slurry for over 2 months and it was 80% viable.

http://bkyeast.wordpress.com/2013/01/26 ... -vs-death/