Harvesting Coopers commercial yeast while drinking one or two at a time

[Cassius]

Apologies if this has been asked before but I'm struggling to find the right keywords to search for past threads.

I think I've got a good idea of what I need to do to reactivate the coopers commercial from bottles of coopers green, but what if i don't want to drink 6 in a setting? Can I just add the sediment to the larger bottle over a few days and then "re-activate"? Or should I pour all the beers into another vessel or vessels and do all the sediment at once, as if I've drunk them all in one sitting?

TIA.

[Malter White]

I think you should be ok to accumulate the sediment over a few days. Make sure you sanitise your storage vessel. I'd also be inclined to use a smaller storage vessel so the yeast is exposed to less oxygen and then transfer into your harvesting bottle once you've gathered all your sediment. Naturally, keep the lid closed and in the fridge until you're ready to harvest.

[Shamus O'Sean]

I left the dregs in the Coopers greens and just covered with glad wrap.  I figured they would be reasonably sanitised in the bottle.  At least enough to last for a day or two until I had six bottles.  This approach worked fine.

[Cassius]

Thanks very much. As it turns out I was out last night so didn't end up starting the 6-pack. With the heat today it wouldn't surprise me if I got through all 6 haha.

[Aussiekraut]

That's a good question. I've been down south across the border yesterday and picked up a 12pack of Coopers Green from Aldi (@$16.95!!!), mostly for the yeast but also for the beer  I prefer drinking the 6 bottles needed over a couple of days, so there is room for other beers as well  

[King Ruddager]

21 hours ago, Cassius said:

Apologies if this has been asked before ... what if i don't want to drink 6 in a setting?

You're safe - I can pretty much guarantee that, in the history of brewing, this has never been asked.

[Cassius]

19 minutes ago, King Ruddager said:

You're safe - I can pretty much guarantee that, in the history of brewing, this has never been asked.

Well it's been an hour and I'm on my third. Now I'm just glad I put some of my Session Ale in the fridge haha.

[Cassius]

Well it's now been over 5 days and there's no activity on top of the liquid. There is, however, a huge amount of pressure in the 1.25l soda water bottle I used. When I twisted the cap to release a bit of pressure a large amount of foam formed and rose to the cap before I twisted it closed. The escaping gas had a strong beer/yeast smell. Any ideas?

[Naughty Corner Brewing]

It’s probably done. You’ve essentially fermented under pressure which prevents a krausen forming, however letting the CO2 out will make it puff up like a chemical reaction.

Between now and when you want to pitch it, you’ll want to do that a lot! Let as much CO2 out as you can without wearing it.

[Cassius]

10 minutes ago, NewBrews said:

It’s probably done. You’ve essentially fermented under pressure which prevents a krausen forming, however letting the CO2 out will make it puff up like a chemical reaction.

Between now and when you want to pitch it, you’ll want to do that a lot! Let as much CO2 out as you can without wearing it.

Great, cheers. Is there any time limit to when I should use it? Sooner the better I imagine? And is there a concrete way for me to confirm it's active before I go and ruin 23L worth of other ingredients?

Thanks again.

[Shamus O'Sean]

9 minutes ago, Cassius said:

Great, cheers. Is there any time limit to when I should use it? Sooner the better I imagine? And is there a concrete way for me to confirm it's active before I go and ruin 23L worth of other ingredients?

Thanks again.

I would use it within 3-4 days of first mixing it up.  If that is not possible, you could put it in the fridge for several weeks and it should still be fine to pitch into a wort.

I harvested Coopers Commercial slurry from a previous brew into a jar and into the fridge on 1 November.  I am just reinvigorating it over the last couple of days for a Coopers XPA I am doing today.

See: 

 

[Naughty Corner Brewing]

32 minutes ago, Cassius said:

Great, cheers. Is there any time limit to when I should use it? Sooner the better I imagine? And is there a concrete way for me to confirm it's active before I go and ruin 23L worth of other ingredients?

Thanks again.

What @Shamus O'Sean said

[Cassius]

Quick update to say that I pitched the reactivated yeast a couple of days ago, with my fingers crossed. Within about 12 hours there was a very nice krausen formed, a bit different to any I've seen in my 6 or so previous brews. About one inch thick with very fine bubbles; almost like a layer of mashed potato. Delicious.

[Malter White]

I appreciate this is an old thread but I'm kind of proud of myself at the moment and needed to tell the world, it appears I've been successful at reactivating the Coopers commercial ale yeast. My first attempt didn't work.

My krausen and wort appearance was as Cassius described. Bottled yesterday and sampled. Tasted very much like the real thing.

Go me!

 

[UncleStavvy]

I'll consider myself slightly biased, but if you have issues drinking 6 stubbies in a sitting might I suggest an alternative hobby to home brewing?

It's an amazing yeast however and well worth the effort. Harvested 6 dark ale stubbies in March and still using the yeast in multiple brews

 

Edited July 29, 2020 by UncleStavvy

[Cassius]

14 hours ago, UncleStavvy said:

I'll consider myself slightly biased, but if you have issues drinking 6 stubbies in a sitting might I suggest an alternative hobby to home brewing?

It's an amazing yeast however and well worth the effort. Harvested 6 dark ale stubbies in March and still using the yeast in multiple brews

 

Tone is hard to convey through text so I'll be an optimist and assume this is a light-hearted dig. While I don't really feel the need to defend my drinking habits, maybe an explanation will preempt any future digs: some nights, particularly on weekends, I'll have 8-10 beers. Some nights I feel like having 1 or 2 beers, usually with dinner. To forestall my inevitable decline into alcoholism, I have made a rule that I don't drink at all Mon-Wed. With that out of the way, great job @MUZZY.

[Shamus O'Sean]

Hi @Cassius, Your numbers look similar to my commitment.  Six beers on a school night is a bit much for me.  But come the weekend, watch out.

Good job @MUZZY, it sounds like you have had success this time around.  I am drinking two beers done with the same harvested Coopers Commercial.  One at 18°C and one at 24°C.  The 24°C is supposed to produce a fruitier outcome.  I cannot really pick a difference between the two.  I also did a side-by-side last night with an Original Pale Ale (can).  The original had a more noticeable fruitiness.  Maybe next time I use it I will have to up the temperature a bit more?

[Malter White]

7 minutes ago, Shamus O'Sean said:

Good job @MUZZY, it sounds like you have had success this time around.  I am drinking two beers done with the same harvested Coopers Commercial.  One at 18°C and one at 24°C.  The 24°C is supposed to produce a fruitier outcome.  I cannot really pick a difference between the two.  I also did a side-by-side last night with an Original Pale Ale (can).  The original had a more noticeable fruitiness.  Maybe next time I use it I will have to up the temperature a bit more?

Thanks, Shamus. I can never pick subtle differences in tastes either but it's not such a bad thing to have an unrefined palate. It means I can enjoy more things without worrying they don't taste right.

[UncleStavvy]

On 7/30/2020 at 8:36 AM, Cassius said:

so I'll be an optimist and assume this is a light-hearted dig

Truth be known I couldn't drink 6 pales either because I just don't like it that much. Which is why I hand picked the freshest dark ale stubbies I could find, no trouble knocking them down at all

[Beerlust]

18 hours ago, Shamus O'Sean said:

...I am drinking two beers done with the same harvested Coopers Commercial.  One at 18°C and one at 24°C.  The 24°C is supposed to produce a fruitier outcome.  I cannot really pick a difference between the two. 

The higher ferment temp brew will generally throw a more prominent banana-like ester. The ester is an aroma, rather than something imparted into the beer flavour. At least from what I read with some yeast strains, a fruitier outcome (a derived flavour) often happens at the lower end of ferment temps rather than a higher temp with numerous strains.

The ability to promote the ester profile is also affected by yeast cell pitching rate. Much like a wheat beer, under-pitching & fermenting at an elevated temp will help to encourage this.

Just my 20 cents,

Lusty.

[Shamus O'Sean]

5 hours ago, Beerlust said:

The higher ferment temp brew will generally throw a more prominent banana-like ester.

Thanks Lusty,

Both brews have a definite banana aroma, or ester.  More banana than a Coopers Original Pale in a side-by-side test.  The Pale has a citrus/spice that my brews do not.  Mine were also half Wheat Malt Extract which might enhance the banana a bit.  

[Beerlust]

The Chinook you used in the Pale Ale can add a light spicy tone. The citrus would be that combined with the Cascade & Columbus. 

In the Summer time, the Fruit Salad Ale using Amarillo & Cascade along with the CCA banana ester produces a very cleverly constructed & enjoyable beer.

Cheers & good brewing,

Lusty.

[Tom Charter]

Hi all, maybe a really dumb question but haven’t seen it mentioned anywhere else and I’m about to have my first go at reactivating coopers commercial. 

everything I’ve seen  Is based on a 6 pack but I’m a longneck man, surely there’s no difference in going with 3 longnecks is there?

cheers!

[Shamus O'Sean]

10 hours ago, Tom Charter said:

Hi all, maybe a really dumb question but haven’t seen it mentioned anywhere else and I’m about to have my first go at reactivating coopers commercial. 

everything I’ve seen  Is based on a 6 pack but I’m a longneck man, surely there’s no difference in going with 3 longnecks is there?

cheers!

That's what I did once.  There did not seem to be a difference.  Is there actually a difference?  I do not know.  The logic says, probably not.

[loafing_about]

I've just started a culture using the hazy IPA. Dregs of 2 cans last night into a dextrose mix in a sterilised bottle and already showing good signs of activity tonight when I added dregs of 2 more cans with plenty of bubbles and fizz. Will let it go for a few days then if all good step it up to use when I brew the vintage ale recipe of the month. I wasn't sure how it would go with high alcohol content of the hazy but seems pretty lively!

A bit excited, a bit nervous, to go to the vintage ale after only 2 brews following a 15 year pause but the first brew went well. It was a very simple Sierra Nevada clone (brewmart) with some cascade hops. Tasting good after 3 weeks in the bottle but in hindsight bottled too early and it's over carbonated. Second brew a simple straight pale is still in fermenter.