[HoosierBrew]

For lagers I still use a stirplate, crash and decant. Just can't bring myself to pitch 2.5 liters of starter into 19.

Yeah, I've never been on board with pitching that much spent wort. The shaken thing worked fine for 1.050 ales, but I wouldn't use it for big beers or lagers.

[klickitat jim]

I wonder if yeast starters should be added to the list with religion and politics

[yso191]

I am more than happy to learn from someone else's research and experience.  We all have, and all continue to.  My brewing library, this forum, and podcasts are the primary ways I have learned how to brew.  For me, if the explanation is cogent, I try it.  The shaken yeast starter process makes sense to me, so I have begun using it.  What I like about it is it is easier, quicker, and requires less equipment.  I have yet to decide whether it makes better beer. 

I always appreciated Mark's contributions here.  I've made the point elsewhere that part of the constellation of characteristics that include the desire to research exhaustively includes the characteristic that some perceive as being too blunt, too know-it-all, or even rude.  I don't think this is actually the case, just how they come across to some people.  These people are not aggressive with people, but they are aggressive with ideas. 

I have offended others as I tend to make categorical statements too.  It is never my intention to offend or be abrasive, but sometimes it is perceived that way.  Now my area of expertise is not brewing, so I tend to be far less categorical here, but in my area of expertise, I have no problem saying "You're wrong, and I'm going to tell you why."  I hope to have learned better ways of communicating over my life, so that I offend fewer people, but sometimes encountering ideas other than what one already knows makes people mad regardless.

Is this post too 'preachy?'  Perhaps.  My reason for writing it is not to be parental with anyone, but hopefully to contribute to understanding so that this forum remains a place that all persons feel a valued.

[toby]

Mark is not some super genius micro biologist. He is certainly a smart guy that did perform a lot of research while honing his method, but then again so did Kai, JZ and Chris White.

Chris has a lot more money to spend on this sort of stuff than you or I do. 

I am amazed at how quick the sheep on this forum have gone from using stir plates to accepting his method to decrying all others as so inferior they should be mocked.

Did some comments I didn't see either get deleted?  Honestly, my method is similar to Mark's, but I was using it for _way_ longer than he started posting about it.

This forum is starting to become a collection of elitist snobs.

So, if I happen to agree that shaking instead of spending the money on a stirplate works just as well, I'm an elitist snob?  RDWHAHB. 

[klickitat jim]

Mark is not some super genius micro biologist. He is certainly a smart guy that did perform a lot of research while honing his method, but then again so did Kai, JZ and Chris White.

Chris has a lot more money to spend on this sort of stuff than you or I do. 

I am amazed at how quick the sheep on this forum have gone from using stir plates to accepting his method to decrying all others as so inferior they should be mocked.

Did some comments I didn't see either get deleted?  Honestly, my method is similar to Mark's, but I was using it for _way_ longer than he started posting about it.

This forum is starting to become a collection of elitist snobs.

So, if I happen to agree that shaking instead of spending the money on a stirplate works just as well, I'm an elitist snob?  RDWHAHB. 

Nothing deleted. Post 1 and 3 apparently was elitist sheep snob hive mentality

[toby]

Incidentally, the video appears to be back up.  It seems to have been setup to go along with this article:

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/how-to-brew/make-yeast-starter/

The video is obviously abbreviated.

[toby]

Unfortunately it's gone now, but the video showed boiling 150g of dme in 1000ml water with 1/4tsp nutrients. So 1.060 wort if I'm adding right. After 15 min boil, cover with foil and cool to 70F. Then pitch yeast and put a stopper with air lock on it. Stirplate for I forget how long. Then pitch the whole thing.

I was just curious what folks thought of that. I'll bet it would make beer. If my post enraged anyone so much that they had to resort to insults, that was not my point.

That being said, my process is slightly different, but works for me.  I do 10 gallons, so I typically start with ~2.5L using ~3/4 dry cup of DME per L (which should be about 100g).  I don't do nutrients, but do use 2 drops of fermcap.  Boil for 10-15 minutes and cool.  I just use foil and don't bother with a stopper and airlock.  Shake and agitate initially and then every few hours when I pass it.

[Indy574]

After you have poured the yeast in with the shakin not stirred method, Does the lid remain loose or does it get screwed on tight?  Does one put an airlock on it or a foam stopper?

[toby]

In my case, neither.  I just use aluminum foil.

[brewinhard]

I think the feeling here is that even if you use a stirplate, what was (supposedly) shown in the video wasn't even the best approach to the stirplate method.

This is how I read it.

Me too.

For lagers I still use a stirplate, crash and decant. Just can't bring myself to pitch 2.5 liters of starter into 19.

I feel the same. I also feel that it is underpitching, (and yes I do understand Mark's nuclear bomb idea) and if my lagers/ales are earning medals in big competitions then I don't see a reason to fix what is not broke. Just my 2 cents. Will I try the shaken not stirred method in the future? Most likely when a competition beer is not being brewed.

[brewinhard]

Heck, I don't even boil my starters...

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Are you using malta Goya straight out of the bottle like the guys in my local club?   

[erockrph]

Heck, I don't even boil my starters...

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Are you using malta Goya straight out of the bottle like the guys in my local club?   

I've thought of trying it for fun.

I just add the DME to a sanitized jug and top it off with filtered water. Shake to dissolve, pitch yeast, then shake until it's all foam. Cover with foil and I'm done. The longest part of the process is cleaning up the inevitable DME all over the kitchen that happens every time I open a bag no matter how careful I am.

I will boil for situations like waking bottle dregs where I am starting with an exceptionally low cell count. But DME is not an infection risk when pitching a full smack pack or vial of healthy yeast, AFAIC.

[Pinski]

For lagers I still use a stirplate, crash and decant. Just can't bring myself to pitch 2.5 liters of starter into 19.

Same here, Jeff.

[brewinhard]

Heck, I don't even boil my starters...

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Are you using malta Goya straight out of the bottle like the guys in my local club?   

I've thought of trying it for fun.

I just add the DME to a sanitized jug and top it off with filtered water. Shake to dissolve, pitch yeast, then shake until it's all foam. Cover with foil and I'm done. The longest part of the process is cleaning up the inevitable DME all over the kitchen that happens every time I open a bag no matter how careful I am.

I will boil for situations like waking bottle dregs where I am starting with an exceptionally low cell count. But DME is not an infection risk when pitching a full smack pack or vial of healthy yeast, AFAIC.

Wow.  Good to know.  I will try that sometime.

[jjflash]

For years I made starters in Erlenmeyer flasks I put on top the refrigerator.  Every time I walked by I would shake the flask.
Made great beers.

For years I made starters in Erlenmeyer flasks on a stir plate.
Made great beers.

For years I made starters in Erlenmeyer flasks on a shaker plate.
Made great beers.

The answer how to make great beers must be Erlenmeyer flasks!!

All the above methods work if you use good technique.