Getting back to yeast starters....

[morebeermark]

G'day to all,
I'm a novice at this computer stuff and new to the world of internet forums so I'll try not to draw this out.
I've been brewing for about 30 years using exclusively Coopers kit products and have never had a bad beer. I've always just used the dry yeast cast into the top of the fermenter. With all the great information that I've absorbed, I'm now keen to try a yeast starter.
I know you've covered this at great length, but I just need some prompting.
I've just purchased 4 x Coopers Traditional Draught, 4 x Liquid Light Malt Extract and 500gms of Light Malt Extract powder. I also purchased a sachet of Brewmaster Premium Ale Yeast with the idea that I was going to use this to make my starter, but I have since read that the Traditional draught comes with specific yeast so I suppose I should use that.
I want to make 4 batches concurrently. Should I use all 4 sachets of the yeast and the L.M.E powder to make up say 1.5 ltrs of starter or is that overkill ?
What volume of yeast starter is required for each batch ?.
Thank you all for the great information and tips I've already gleaned.

[Oliver]

Hi Mark (?),

Welcome, and sorry for the late reply.

If you haven't already, have a read of this thread about making starters and reusing yeast.

As you'll see in that thread, the objective of making a starter is to propagate yeast - to start off with a small amount and end up with a much larger amount, which you can pitch into your beer.

To be honest, I wouldn't worry about making a starter if you are doing a kit beer, unless you want the practice.

But let's say you do, or decide you want to make a starter from the Brewmaster sachet, for four batches of beer you will want to start small and "step up" to a larger volume. The bit in the thread about "Re-culturing yeast from a bottle" discusses how to step up. Basically, you'd start with a 2-litre starter instead of a 250ml starter, and then use that to make a larger starter.

Again, sorry for the late reply.

Hope this helps.

If you have any more questions, give us a yell.

Cheers,

Oliver

[Flux]

Question guys, as I've never left a starter past the 3 wk mark in the fridge.
What I normally do if work interrupts my brewing, I keep the starter refrigerated say 2 wks or so then I make a fresh batch of wort, drain off the starter to just the yeast cake slurry then re-pitch it too the fresh starter, to get it to re activate.
What I want to know is what is the longest the starter will stay ok prior to this in the fridge at 2-3C?
It's been there for a month thus far.

[warra48]

Question guys, as I've never left a starter past the 3 wk mark in the fridge.
What I normally do if work interrupts my brewing, I keep the starter refrigerated say 2 wks or so then I make a fresh batch of wort, drain off the starter to just the yeast cake slurry then re-pitch it too the fresh starter, to get it to re activate.
What I want to know is what is the longest the starter will stay ok prior to this in the fridge at 2-3C?
It's been there for a month thus far.

At 2 to 3ºC you will be fine for some considerable time, I'd say for months, provided it is all sanitary.
I keep small vials taken from my starters in the fridge, and have built them up again about a year later. It just needed small initial steps to revive it, but it did work.

[morebeermark]

G'day Oliver, Mark or Curly it is.
Thanks for the reply, timeframe is not an issue, I expect to be brewing my own for many years to come.
You are correct when you said that I missed the significance of 'stepping up' my yeast starter. I went with the sachets of yeast from the Coopers kit and about 125 gms of LDME and left it go for a couple of days.
I did notice a definate reduction in the time it took for fermentation to start so that part of the experiment must have been a good thing. Anyway, the beer tasted fine, unfortunately it never got to truly mature.
I didn't try harvesting the yeast from those brews because I left them to brew out a bit longer than usual (2 weeks) and small white spots appeared on the fermenter walls where the krausen had been. I wasn't sure if this was an infection and I didn't want to perpetuate the problem. It happened in all 4 fermenters so I suspect it came from my water which is pumped diectly from a spring. Next leave I'll try boiling my water first or at least taking it from the hot tap.
Thanks again, your forum is a great inspiration.