5 week old yeast starter. Good or not?
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 12:33 pm
by KidHop
I have a yeast starter that has been sitting in the fridge 5 weeks. Decant spent wort, add new starter wort and use or not?
Re: 5 week old yeast starter. Good or not?
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 12:36 pm
by brewinhard
How big was the original starter? I would say you could decant, and add new starter wort to get them going again. But do be aware that your viability and cell count has probably decreased quite a bit during this time. You may need to step the starter up a couple times to get back to where you originally started from. Be sure to smell/taste the spent wort each step of the way to make sure your yeast is healthy enough to pitch into a full sized batch.
Re: 5 week old yeast starter. Good or not?
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 12:42 pm
by KidHop
Spent wort smells and tastes fine. It was a 1.5 liter starter.
Re: 5 week old yeast starter. Good or not?
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 1:46 pm
by BrewerJ
add new wort and it will be fine, there shouldnt be to much die off since the gravity was low and you kept it in the fridge.
Re: 5 week old yeast starter. Good or not?
Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 11:15 pm
by Kbar
Saw a video with a technician from Wyeast. He strongly advised not using starters after 1-2 days old. Pitch within a 24 hour window.
Re: 5 week old yeast starter. Good or not?
Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2012 2:28 am
by BrewerJ
Thats why he needs to pitch new wort and let the yeast grow. Then he will have a fresh starter.
Re: 5 week old yeast starter. Good or not?
Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2012 4:05 am
by KidHop
That's exactly what I'm doing. Thanks for the feedback. I'll let you know how it turns out.