• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • About Craft Brewing Business

Craft Brewing Business

Professional Insight, Unfiltered

Craft Brewing Business Craft Brewing Business
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment & Systems
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • COVID-19

Five quick recommendations for handling pitchable yeast cultures from the experts at White Labs

October 31, 2019Keith Gribbins

We know you’re busy, CBB reader. There are so many headlines to click. So much content to consume. You’ve come here for some quick professional-level tips for handling and pitching yeast in brewing — temperatures, volume, storage and beyond.

Before we get to those juicy morsels (apologies for the delay), let us thank the source. Based in one of the great hubs of American craft beer (San Diego), White Labs is a global supplier of innovative yeast products, lab equipment and analytical services for beer, wine, distilling, cider and homebrewing communities. The company has its own brewery in San Diego, a yeast-forward restaurant and taproom in Asheville, N.C., and a fairly cool app with a Custom Culture Calculator.

We often reach out to see what’s new with White Labs, hoping to glean some tips on microscopic fungi, insights into new products or just to find some weird yeast strain stories. This go around, White Labs gave us five recommendations for pitchable yeast cultures. Drum roll, please.

Recommendation No. 1

Always store the yeast at temperatures between 36-40°F (2-4°C) and follow the recommended best by dates for optimal performance.

Recommendation No 2

For the first generation of the new yeast culture, a lighter style beer with a 10-12°Plato gravity is recommended for best yeast performance. WLN1000 White Labs Yeast Nutrient will help shorten the fermentation cycle and make the yeast healthier for subsequent generations.

Recommendation No. 3:

Keep yeast in the refrigerator until needed. Do not freeze the culture. Remove yeast at least two hours before pitching, so the slurry can come close to room temperature. To inoculate, sanitize scissors, cut the top left of the bag and pour in.

Recommendation No. 4

The fermentation is best started at 70-72°F (21-22°C), even for lagers and lowered to desired fermentation temperature after krausen formation or CO2 begins, which is usually less than 12 hours.

Recommendation No. 5

The initial signs of fermentation should be evident within 12 to 20 hours depending on the age of the yeast. Successive generations will have a shorter lag time and faster fermentation. The first complete fermentation usually takes one to three days longer because yeast needs to adapt from a laboratory culture to a fermentation environment.

Bonus: Enjoy this volume graph

Watch how White Labs’ WLP077 Tropicale yeast intensifies fruity flavors in hop compounds
Yeast experts White Labs celebrate 25 years with contests, giveaways to big beer events and the promise of hot new products
Charlie papazian
CBB Exclusive: The story behind Charlie Papazian’s Fist Bump Yeast, now available via White Labs
Enjoy this Valentine’s yeast strain: rare cacao bean yeast captured at the source of the Amazon

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Scott Stokes says

    November 1, 2019 at 12:43 am

    Ryan Blondell

    Log in to Reply
  2. Melissa Luelling says

    October 31, 2019 at 8:50 am

    Aaron Luelling

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

Latest News

  • 12 Orlando breweries to gamify their ale trail via Hot Hopz program
  • BeerBoard and Encompass team up, offer a powerful technology platform to manage alcohol programs
  • Cartsyde, PourMyBeer launch mobile self-pour tap system and walk-in cooler
  • Ferment Brewing to digitally print new year-round can lineup

Sign up for our newsletter

unsubscribe from list

Most Popular Today

Recent Features

  • Constellation sells Funky Buddha and Four Corners back to original owners, says see ya to craft sector
    May 31, 2023
  • liquid-riot-teamCheers to 10 Years: Liquid Riot freshens up look for next decade
    May 30, 2023
  • People news: Colorado’s Dry Dock names new head brewer + moves from Wiseacre, Crooked Hammock and more
    May 30, 2023
  • Distribution update: Athletic Brewing brings NA beer to JetBlue + big acquisitions from Markstein and Hensley Beverage
    May 25, 2023
  • Who is ready to order alcohol direct from Diddy?
    May 25, 2023
  • taproom foodTaproom guests want food. How can you best provide it?
    May 24, 2023

Footer

  • Email Newsletter Sign Up
  • About Craft Brewing Business
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise on Craft Brewing Business
  • Media Kit Download
  • Privacy and Terms

© 2023 · CBB Media LLC