Top Cropping WY1318 question.

[kadozen]

I made up a porter two weeks ago and I'm going to bottle Saturday and brew a stout and just drop it on the cake. Now, as some of you know, 1318 will make a beautiful krausen that sticks around forever. If I wanted to, could I just use a sanitized ladle and to scoop up some of that krausen still chilling at the top, and just put it in a sanitized jar? Would it be better to scoop some of the cake out instead?

Thanks in advance

 

[giraffe]

Certainly can. Traditionally, the first crop is thrown away (after 24 hours), that has the bitter dark brown stuff, on it, and the second crop is taken. But its usually is taken, I believe (and I have always done), when the fermentation is very strong, day 3 or 4 ish. Taking from a beer that is finished fermenting and is just sitting on top, may effect floculation charecter if you keep selecting that yeast for many generations, but in a homebrew setting it should matter less.

 

[kadozen]

Certainly can. Traditionally, the first crop is thrown away (after 24 hours), that has the bitter dark brown stuff, on it, and the second crop is taken. But its usually is taken, I believe (and I have always done), when the fermentation is very strong, day 3 or 4 ish. Taking from a beer that is finished fermenting and is just sitting on top, may effect floculation charecter if you keep selecting that yeast for many generations, but in a homebrew setting it should matter less.

Thanks. I'll probably do it then just because I'm lazy and that time has passed.