Saflager Yeast
Saflager Yeast
For my second brew im planning a Czech Pils and as my first step in improving my HB I have bought Saflarger yeast to use in place of the Kits yeast. Should I be using 2 packets of 11.5g if im planing to brew at optimum temp of 11- 15.
Re: Saflager Yeast
Only if you are going to pitch the yeast to a wort which is at that temp. If the wort is at 20C or more then 1 packet is fine.
Re: Saflager Yeast
And it is better to pitch your yeast early than try and cool to 12*C and pitch too.
Good choice on the Saf. Yeast quality is one of the most important parts of brewing good beer.
Good choice on the Saf. Yeast quality is one of the most important parts of brewing good beer.
A beer in the hand is worth two in George Bush...
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
Re: Saflager Yeast
I disagree on this one... if you do everything right, you can safely wait 12-24 hours before pitching without worry! In fact that is what I do with all of my brews...Chris wrote:And it is better to pitch your yeast early than try and cool to 12*C and pitch too.
Re: Saflager Yeast
I guess we'll have to disagree- getting the yeast in is a big priority for me. Lag = evil flavours for me.
A beer in the hand is worth two in George Bush...
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
Re: Saflager Yeast
But the time you take to pitch has nothing to do with the lag time...
Re: Saflager Yeast
Fine, get me on terminology 
I'm referring to the 'lag' between the wort being at a temperature that will sustain microorganisms (both good and bad) and the time at which the yeast goes nuts. The lag (proper) and the 'lag' are basically one in the same if you pitch immediately, but not if you don't. I wouldn't want to extend the time that the wort is at the vulnerable stage any longer than I need to.
I'm referring to the 'lag' between the wort being at a temperature that will sustain microorganisms (both good and bad) and the time at which the yeast goes nuts. The lag (proper) and the 'lag' are basically one in the same if you pitch immediately, but not if you don't. I wouldn't want to extend the time that the wort is at the vulnerable stage any longer than I need to.
A beer in the hand is worth two in George Bush...
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
Re: Saflager Yeast
got to agree with Chris there.. while the conditions should certainly be sanitary, they're far from sterile. you want the yeast getting a good head start over any other potential evil.
Re: Saflager Yeast
Well, there are plenty of us who have a deliberate delay between brewing and pitching.
In my case, the immersion chiller gets me down to about 25ºC. I then drain to the fermenter, gladwrap it, and put it in my beer fridge. I don't pitch my yeast until later that night or the next morning when it's down to temperature.
That's never been a problem for me, and I doubt it ever will be, and I've never had an infection that way.
Personally, I prefer to pitch my yeast at fermentation temperature, rather than pitching it when it is too high and expecting it to come down. I think it gives me cleaner beer.
In my case, the immersion chiller gets me down to about 25ºC. I then drain to the fermenter, gladwrap it, and put it in my beer fridge. I don't pitch my yeast until later that night or the next morning when it's down to temperature.
That's never been a problem for me, and I doubt it ever will be, and I've never had an infection that way.
Personally, I prefer to pitch my yeast at fermentation temperature, rather than pitching it when it is too high and expecting it to come down. I think it gives me cleaner beer.
Re: Saflager Yeast
Generally, yeast won't produce strange flavours associated with temperature during the reproductive phase- that happens once they switch to beer mode. So as long as you get your temp down by the time they get to beer mode...
Plus, the extra heat helps them get going- especially if you are going to brew cold.
And I wouldn't want to put fresh wort in the fridge- there are more bacteria there than any other surface in the house!
Plus, the extra heat helps them get going- especially if you are going to brew cold.
And I wouldn't want to put fresh wort in the fridge- there are more bacteria there than any other surface in the house!
A beer in the hand is worth two in George Bush...
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
Re: Saflager Yeast
It is my experience that anything that may be in the wort doing its nasty business (which I am sure there is a bit of growth of something or another) has a much lesser impact than pitching hot and crash chilling the wort.
You are right of course that the lag phase can be enough time to cool the wort, but the problem with that is that the purpose of the lag phase is for the yeast to adapt, take up nutrients, and get ready to reproduce in the reproductive phase (logarithmic phase). Now if the yeast is under the stress of going from say 20-12C in this time it is going to produce fewer healthy cells and in turn will be stressed further. This can lead to strange flavour once they enter the reproductive phase (logarithmic phase) which is where all of the flavours in the beer that come from the yeast are produced unless of course you get autolysis flavours during the death phase.
In short it is generally best to pitch to a wort which is at or as near as possible to your ferment temp. It is also necessary to pitch enough, but not too much yeast. This is far more important with lagers where you usually aim to have the cleanest ferment possible. There is certainly a point at which you will want to pitch the yeast reguardless of whether the wort is at ferment temp or not, but I have never had problems waiting up to 24 hours with my sanitisation techniques.
You are right of course that the lag phase can be enough time to cool the wort, but the problem with that is that the purpose of the lag phase is for the yeast to adapt, take up nutrients, and get ready to reproduce in the reproductive phase (logarithmic phase). Now if the yeast is under the stress of going from say 20-12C in this time it is going to produce fewer healthy cells and in turn will be stressed further. This can lead to strange flavour once they enter the reproductive phase (logarithmic phase) which is where all of the flavours in the beer that come from the yeast are produced unless of course you get autolysis flavours during the death phase.
In short it is generally best to pitch to a wort which is at or as near as possible to your ferment temp. It is also necessary to pitch enough, but not too much yeast. This is far more important with lagers where you usually aim to have the cleanest ferment possible. There is certainly a point at which you will want to pitch the yeast reguardless of whether the wort is at ferment temp or not, but I have never had problems waiting up to 24 hours with my sanitisation techniques.
Re: Saflager Yeast
Thanks for all the advice boys. Seeing as it is only my second brew I think I will pitch earlier rathan than waiting for the wort to cool. Maybe when im a bit more experianced I will try the other and see for myself if I prefer one method to the other. The main reason for asking this question is that on the packet it suggest double the amount of yeast if you are planning on brewing at temps between 11 - 15c and one packet at room temp. My shed sits about 16c with no assistance.