Cider yeast

Share your experiences of using brewing yeast.
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guypettigrew
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Location: Christchurch, Dorset

Cider yeast

Post by guypettigrew » Tue Jan 18, 2022 11:19 am

For some months I've been brewing WobblyGob Great Barr cider. And loving it!

To date I've only used the dried yeast which comes with the kit. This time I thought I'd try the liquid cider yeast sold by The Malt Miller. WLP775.

I'm thinking of making a starter using a litre of apple juice at about 1.040 to ensure a good pitch rate and healthy yeast.

Has anyone else used this yeast and does anyone have any thoughts on the idea of a starter vs just pitching direct from the sachet?

Couldn't find anything relevant on here when I tried a search.

Thanks.

Guy

guypettigrew
Even further under the Table
Posts: 2616
Joined: Mon Mar 22, 2010 7:10 pm
Location: Christchurch, Dorset

Re: Cider yeast

Post by guypettigrew » Sat Jan 22, 2022 1:48 pm

This seems to be going well.

The yeast from MM was pitched into 1 litre of apple juice from Tesco with a small amount of yeast nutrient added and put on the stir plate. After a couple of days the yeast had clearly grown and, after cooling, left a nice thick deposit on the bottom of the flask.

The deposit was pitched into the Wobbly Gob apple juice in the fermenter at about 24°C. Fermentation started within about 4 hours, evidenced by bubbles through the blow off tube. With the dried yeast it's usually 24 hours before bubbles are seen.

Cider yeasts, dry or liquid, seem to ferment much more slowly than beer yeasts. The bubbles show at a slow rate and there's not any 'boil over' into the blow off bucket.

Does anyone have any thoughts on how best to harvest this yeast? With beer yeasts I take 1/2 litre from the top of the FV. This gives enough yeast to create a starter for the next brew.

Should I do the same for the cider yeast, or would it be best to collect it from the bottom of the FV? The FV is a conical with a tap at the bottom, so either way is possible.

Thanks.

Guy

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