Did my starter culture yesterday (Friday) evening. I brought 1 quart of water to a boil and added ¼ cup Breiss “sparkling amber” dry malt extract, then boiled for 10 minutes. I then chilled the wort to around 78° and got my yeast out of the fridge. It was at that point that I realized I was supposed to let the yeast acclimate at room temperature for 3-6 hours before pitching. Oops. I transferred the wort to my 1 gallon jug and put the jug and the yeast vial in the boiler room, which is the warmest room of the house this time of year. I let the yeast acclimate for an hour and a half. By that time it was 11:30pm, so I went ahead and pitched. I figured what the heck, it’s just a starter culture, not 5 gallons of wort.
The next morning there were signs of fermentation, with the airlock bubbling about once every 20 seconds or so. This continued into the afternoon. By evening it had slowed down quite a bit. Could be that it’s already burned through all the sugars… ¼ cup isn’t very much.
At any rate, we’ll brew tomorrow afternoon and pitch it, and see how it goes.
If this batch goes well, I’m thinking about possibly trying a lager. The Sun Porch should be at a good temperature for lagering this winter. I’ve never done a lager before, so it might be fun. My recipe book has some extract-based recipes for German Dark and Black lager styles, which sound yummy.