Saving yeast from a starter

[beerrepository]

I have a gallon starter going right now of Wyeast 1762 Abbey II. I would like to save some but now the yeast will be pretty well shot after fermentation. What is the best way to save a portion of a starter? I have a bunch of half pint jars that I use for washing. Should I pour a portion into a sanitized mason jar?

 

[SOB_OCDAVE]

I have been saving yeast lately from my starters by allowing the yeast to floculate in the fridge the night before I brew. During my brew session I decant about 90% of the spent wort in the starter and then swirl the yeast into suspension. I then use a sanitized turkey baster to suck out some of the slurry and squirt it into the yeast tube that it came in (White Labs Tube). I put that into the fridge with the cap on very tight until my next brew day which is about a two-three weeks apart. I like this method b/c the yeast is clean and its just enough to make a new starter with.

 

[beerrepository]

I don't have any White Labs vials sitting around so I think I might try pitching 90% of the yeast and then wash the remainder and keep it in a mason jar. Hopefully that will work.

 

[AmandaK]

I don't have any White Labs vials sitting around so I think I might try pitching 90% of the yeast and then wash the remainder and keep it in a mason jar. Hopefully that will work.

That's what I do. Works just fine for me.

 

[emjay]

I have been saving yeast lately from my starters by allowing the yeast to floculate in the fridge the night before I brew. During my brew session I decant about 90% of the spent wort in the starter and then swirl the yeast into suspension. I then use a sanitized turkey baster to suck out some of the slurry and squirt it into the yeast tube that it came in (White Labs Tube). I put that into the fridge with the cap on very tight until my next brew day which is about a two-three weeks apart. I like this method b/c the yeast is clean and its just enough to make a new starter with.

I do pretty much the same thing, and actually came here to ask if there was any problem with it... so this thread is good timing.

Right now I also just reuse the White Labs vial (sanitized, of course). The only real difference to my approach is that it's a bit more methodical. I calculate the appropriate starter size for my beer PLUS 100 billion extra cells. This way, when I calculate how much I need for the next beer, I can basically just act as if it's another fresh vial (for a few generations anyways) to calculate the precise size of starter I need for the next time, using the day of making the starter as the new production date.

I'll be getting some additional vials soon enough though so that I can bank more 100 billion-count vials per generation, enabling more use of the strain before having to buy a fresh vial.

 

[Stand]

If you just repeated this process indefinitely, I wonder if the yeast would start to change?

 

[SOB_OCDAVE]

If you reuse the same yeast over and over they eventually start to mutate and cause off-flavors in your beer. I'm sure exactly how many times you can reuse the yeast, but I've read some info that suggests 5 - 10 generations is about the max.

@ beerrepository, I have used mason jars to store yeast in before. Just be careful and use an airlock or a balloon over the mouth of the jar b/c it will build up a lot of pressure inside the jar. FYI...

 

[theIrish]

I have been saving yeast lately from my starters by allowing the yeast to floculate in the fridge the night before I brew. During my brew session I decant about 90% of the spent wort in the starter and then swirl the yeast into suspension. I then use a sanitized turkey baster to suck out some of the slurry and squirt it into the yeast tube that it came in (White Labs Tube). I put that into the fridge with the cap on very tight until my next brew day which is about a two-three weeks apart. I like this method b/c the yeast is clean and its just enough to make a new starter with.

If you make the starter with a white labs vial, do you have to wash and sterilize the vial before you put the same yeast back in (when you go to save part of your starter)?

I'm wondering if the vial would already be more "sterile" (except for containing the same yeast you are adding back) than what I could achieve through my efforts with dish soap and Starsan. If I was saving a different yeast strain, I would want to wash and sterilize the white labs vial. But if its the same strain...