1st Lager- starter temp when pitching?

[rdbrett]

The wort of my first lager was around 52 degrees when I pitched into it last night. I allowed the yeast starter to warm to room temp prior to pitching. Is this ok? Or, should have I pitched it at the same temp as the wort?
Seem to recall some mentioning shocking the yeast in some manner. Hope I'm good. Thx for any help.

 

[iowabrew]

FWIW i've always pitched room temp starters into my lagers with no ill affects. Fermentation might take a little while to really take off but IMO shouldn't be a big deal. As long as you pitched an appropriate sized starter you're good to go

 

[osagedr]

The general rule is you want your starter temp to be as close as possible to your wort temp, and no more than 10 degrees warmer than your wort to avoid shocking the yeast. Denny told me some time ago that pitching a fridge-temperature starter into much warmer wort is okay and I've been doing it ever since.

Like pretty much every single thing in brewing, you will find someone who says "But I don't do that and my beer is GREAT!"

 

[iowabrew]

^^true, just if i weren't a little "lazy" i'd pry bring my starters down to temp. But the pitching hasn't hurt me yet YMMV tho!