Beer Forum

I'm going to brew a Lagunitas [CENSORED] clone tomorrow and I'm using Wyeast 1968. This is my first time using this yeast and I'm starting to get a little concerned. I made a 1.75L starter Friday morning and it took off like a rocket. I used 2 smack packs and 1.75L wort + yeast nutrient and antifoam. I am brewing a 12 gallon batch and hoping to have an OG of 1.071. What is in my Erlenmeyer right now looks like a sloppy batch of watered down cottage cheese. I think this is normal for the strain but I am concerned that I need a bigger pitch, as this looks like it will floculate quickly and fall out. I want to make sure it gets the job done before it all takes a nap at the bottom of the fermenter. I can run out and grab another smack pack today if I need to. I would appreciate any comments or suggestions. I don't want to dry the beer all the way out, but I don't want to be left with a stuck ferment.

Thank you for your support!

Cottage cheese is quite normal for that yeast. It's fine.
Just go with it. It'll work.
You may need to swirl it up, but if you aerate well (90 secs of O2 in a 5 gallon batch) you'll be fine.
If you are really concerned, if you have an ancient pack of dry yeast that's been sitting in your fridge, go ahead and throw it into the boil. Yes, I said throw it into the BOIL. It's a great way to rotate out your "just in case" yeast and it makes a fantastic yeast nutrient.
Of course, if you have actual yeast nutrient, throw that in instead.

HTH-

I might be reading your post wrong, but two packs into a 1.75 liter starter, even on a stir plate, seems WAY low for 12 gallons of 1.071 beer. The MrMalty calculator, as an example, asks for almost twice that much (2 packs/vials in 3.58 liters on a stir plate with a 97% viability).

Your starter definitely could work. If it were me though, I'd be a bit nervous, especially with an English strain. I've had bad experiences with the yeast either dropping before it was fully attenuated or before it was done cleaning up (diacetyl bomb). Do you have the ability to step up the starter again? If not, can you at least warm the beer up toward the end to encourage the yeast to stay in suspension and keep working?

I've only used 1968 about 5-10 times. But, my experience is that It does really flocc together and pack tighly. My starters also look pretty chunky.

I have 12 gallons of the CYBI Mirror pond clone, which uses 1968, sitting in a conical right now. I tried to dump the yeast cake after day 11, and even with 5psi on the conical it was packed too hard to budge.

Edit****. When you through fresh wort in the starter, it pretty much instantly breaks the chucks up.

I've used 1968 a bunch, and although it will flocc like a ton of bricks, I've never had it leave an incomplete fermentation. Break it up real good before pitching, and give it a solid week to clean up after fermentation seems to have ended. Your pitch does seem a little low, but I think you'll be alright. BTW, I always ferment that strain at 67-68F.

I have a dual stage temp controlled refrigerator that I ferment I so I can bring it up a few degrees when it slows down. I've read that it ferments out very quickly. I have a couple packs of US-05 in the fridge and I also have a couple vials of yeast nutrient. I planned on adding 3/4 tsp with 10 minutes left. Does anyone think I should pitch a pack of dry yeast too just to be safe?

Also, the starter is in my fridge right now as I'm firing up the HLT. I could easily decant it and make another 1 liter of starter wort and add that too it but I think it might be too late. If I do this and it doesn't work is there a chance it will hurt anything?

As stated above you will probably be fine although slightly under pitching. Just be sure to provide lots of good oxygen for aeration and as the yeast starts to flocc out be sure to swirl the carboy a couple times a day to keep the yeast in suspension while warming the fermenter up a few degrees to promote a healthy attenuation.