[denny]

   I've been brewing for a year and producing not-so-great beer. I now wonder if overpitching with shear stressed, stir-plate yeast is the cause of my poor results. I stumbled upon the SNS method in this forum a few days ago and am hoping this method will sort me out. I have been using brewunited's starter calculator with MrMalty's viability percentages. I appreciate any thoughts and opinions you guys have. Thanks.

What kinds of issues do you find with your various beers?

For my lagers (mostly pilsners) I get a weird off flavor/aroma that I originally thought was DMS, then I thought was residual sulfur, and now maybe stressed yeast. Two months post brew day and the flavor/aroma is still present in the fermenter. I'm wondering if I'm overpitching or pitching stressed yeast.

Has anyone else whose judgement you trust tried the beer? Might be time for a second opinion.

[jd.knightjr]

   I've been brewing for a year and producing not-so-great beer. I now wonder if overpitching with shear stressed, stir-plate yeast is the cause of my poor results. I stumbled upon the SNS method in this forum a few days ago and am hoping this method will sort me out. I have been using brewunited's starter calculator with MrMalty's viability percentages. I appreciate any thoughts and opinions you guys have. Thanks.

For my lagers (mostly pilsners) I get a weird off flavor/aroma that I originally thought was DMS, then I thought was residual sulfur, and now maybe stressed yeast. Two months post brew day and the flavor/aroma is still present in the fermenter. I'm wondering if I'm overpitching or pitching stressed yeast.

Has anyone else whose judgement you trust tried the beer? Might be time for a second opinion.

Yes, you're right. This will push me to finally check out the local HB club.
What kinds of issues do you find with your various beers?

[MNWayne]

I worked on my pilsner for years before I got it right.  My final hurdle was water chemistry.  That said, I just dumped a batch due to underpitched/stressed yeast and/or possibly infection.  It took an entire week to show signs of fermentation.  When finished it was terrible, like beginner hooch.  The only thing I did different was the yeast.  I didn't propagate or even ensure viability, just dumped a stored slurry.  Well that's what you get when you're in a rush.  I've made plenty of great pilsners using a stir plate and plenty more using SNS.  I'd look beyond your yeast method, are you pitching enough?  How's your sanitation?  Were these tried and true recipes that you used before, recipes sometimes need to be tweaked to work on your brew system.  Are you checking your pH and mineralization?  Pick a recipe/style and keep working it until you get it right.

[jd.knightjr]

I worked on my pilsner for years before I got it right.  My final hurdle was water chemistry.  That said, I just dumped a batch due to underpitched/stressed yeast and/or possibly infection.  It took an entire week to show signs of fermentation.  When finished it was terrible, like beginner hooch.  The only thing I did different was the yeast.  I didn't propagate or even ensure viability, just dumped a stored slurry.  Well that's what you get when you're in a rush.  I've made plenty of great pilsners using a stir plate and plenty more using SNS.  I'd look beyond your yeast method, are you pitching enough?  How's your sanitation?  Were these tried and true recipes that you used before, recipes sometimes need to be tweaked to work on your brew system.  Are you checking your pH and mineralization?  Pick a recipe/style and keep working it until you get it right.

I believe I'm pitching enough yeast; in fact I think I'm pitching too much. My process has been to use Mr. Malty's viability percentage combined with brewunited's yeast calculator. I wonder if the combination of the two leads me to pitching more than I realize.

As for sanitation, I believe my method is sound. I admit I don't freak out about sanitation like I used to, but I am mindful of it during my entire process.

Most of the recipes I've brewed have been taken from Brewing Classic Styles, but scaled for batch size and my mash efficiency. Would these recipes need to be tweaked to produce good beer?

As for water, I use beersmith's water calculator set for distilled water. But I actually use RO water from a dispensing machine at the front of my local Publix grocery store. Actual mash pH has always been fairly close to beersmith calculations.

[denny]

With SNS, you have to train yourself to not think about cell count 99% of the time. It's the active starter that matters. You'll get the cell count quickly after pitching the AHA. https://www.experimentalbrew.com/blogs/saccharomyces/yeast-cultures-are-nuclear-weapons

[waltsmalt]

I've had great luck with SNS Starters and I am definitely a convert.  I'm currently doing 10 gallon batches, so I generally use two gallons jugs each with 32 oz of water and 1 yeast pack.  Next up is a lager with a standard gravity (don't have it in front of me know).  My question is whether two is still sufficient for a lager? 

[ynotbrusum]

With ten gallon batches of lager, I have found that two dry yeast packets is sufficient, so two standard liquid yeast SNS starters at high krausen should be fine. 

[denny]

I've had great luck with SNS Starters and I am definitely a convert.  I'm currently doing 10 gallon batches, so I generally use two gallons jugs each with 32 oz of water and 1 yeast pack.  Next up is a lager with a standard gravity (don't have it in front of me know).  My question is whether two is still sufficient for a lager?

For 10 gal? My experience says yes.