Retreaving yeast

[bitter_dave]

Hi all

I'm going to barrel my American Pale Ale type beer in the next day or two. There is still a thick head on the beer which doesn't look like it's going anywhere. I've left it alone and not skimmed it.

This has made me wonder about saving the yeast (US 56) for a future brew. This was what I was thinking of doing:

1) Skimming the surface layer of the head off with a sterilised spoon.
2) Taking the next layer with the sppon and placing in a sterlised glass bottle via a funnel. (Bottle is a SNPA bottle which I've used for brewing before).
3) Adding small layer of boiled and cooled water (don't know why, just seem to remember something about this).
4) Capping bottle and placing in the fridge.

Is this right? Perhaps I should do this after I've barreled the beer only leaving the yeast behind. How long do you think it could remain sound in the fridge like this? Questions, questions, tips etc

[Boo Boo]

Well for a start, I wouldn't cap that bottle unless you wanted yeast all over your fridge. An airlock or even sanitized tinfoil will keep anything out while giving the yeast a chance to vent the co2 produced.

What I do is to wait until primary is finished and swirl the yeast (after the beer is racked) and put into a sanitized mason jar with a airlock on it. If I am keeping it longer than a week, I'll rinse the trub from it with cooled boiled water after decanting the old beer on top.

I freeze my yeast in test tubes for later batches as I don't always brew the same beer 2 times in a row. I use this method for my freezing.
http://www.schwedhelm.net/brew/yeast_harv_freeze.html I have been using this method for the past 6 months and haven't bought yeast for the strains I have frozen since.

[Jim]

I keep plastic bottles in the fridge for up to six months with yeast in - as long as the beer you got the yeast from has fermented out, you don't need to worry about explosions!

I've seen it recommended that you replace the beer above the yeast slurry with boiled and cooled water - I've tried both and didn't notice any difference.

[bitter_dave]

thanks for the help guys; and nice link boo boo

I think I'll try the bottles in Fridge method - the beer will have been sitting in primary for at least 10 days by the time I get around to barreling it so I think it highly unlikely I'll have bombs on my hands... I hope

[crow_flies]

My last three brews have consisted of an initial gervin ale yeast, in the fermenter for 14 days, then beer straight to barrel for priming/conditioning and left for a month before drinking. I've then recovered 1/2 plastic coke bottle of the slurry in primary and stored in the fridge for next brew (usually the next day and no more than a week).

This has had some of the wort added 1/2hr before pitching and shaken vigourously. Each one has taken off like a rocket

Its seems to work well, fits in with my brewing schedule twice per month and also means the yeast is not stored too long (though understand its not a problem to store it for some time in the fridge).

I know this perhaps not optimum or completely best practice, but I'm working on the theory that if you collect enough there will be more than enough viable cells to start the brew off well - and experience to date has shown this to be the case.

/CF

[oblivious]

Its best to freeze the yeast with glycerine to avoid potential damage.

In the lab we used around 10% glycerol, we use -80c freezers. You could go up to 20% for a home freezer.

[steve_flack]

They're the same stuff 1,2,3-trihydroxypropane.

[Talheedin]

So to keep yeast all I need to is scrape the gunk out of the bottom of the primary, put it into a sterilised container with some glycerine (what sort of ratio?) and bung in the freezer? Then to use: defrost and make a starter?

Is it as easy as that?

Talheedin

[inthedark]

Can it go straight from the fridge onto the wort then?

[inthedark]

OK, and is washing the yeast that comes out of the fermenter necessary?