Bag of Rinwood yeast, what to do?

[Piperbrew]

Ringwood Brewery have kindly given me a whopping bag of there yeast taken freshly from a fermenter. Now as I am not intending brewing for a week or two what are my best options please?

I don't want to keep it in a bag as to easy to puncture. So I am thinking of sterilising two Kilner jars and putting two sample slit 50/50 with sterilised water in the fridge. I am also thinking of boiling up some light DME to maker a starter yeast in case I have time to use it sooner than I think, also for the practice of course. I also have glycerol so might even try to freeze some. I am guessing that the bag is mainly yeast as brewery's harvesting from the bottom of the fermenter, would this be correct? This stuff is like cream its that dense ))

Am I correct doing this.

 

[foxbat]

Your plan is good. It'll be safe under sterilised water in the fridge in a Kilner jar. If you've got so much that you have spare to play with then a trial starter is also a good idea to check the viability and make sure it's not infected. I bet it makes some cracking bitter when you get around to using it.

 

[Thumper]

I love Ringwood beers. You lucky thing, you.

 

[Piperbrew]

Thanks for the replies gents.
Thumper, they are my favourite beers too, real easy drinking and lovely malty taste. I have done as suggested and had pre boiled a couple of Kilner jars as pre-empted the answers as such. Two jars filled and cut 50/50 with sterilised water, though I think there will be a lot of yeast in the bottom and hardly any clear liquid which is good. I also started a starter which hopefully will be ok as I went over board sterilising everything.

Question....how long will a starter last??? .......is it possible to 'feed' one to extend its use.....only asking as bought my pal an extract kit and need to possibly stretch it till next week , or just make another one with the other yeast I have or course.

I think the yeast likes my DME....its over flowing out of the flask. I might have out a tad to must yeast in:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

 

[Thumper]

The yeast in a starter is alive and reproducing, so providing you keep changing the wort that's feeding it I can't see any reason that it wouldn't last forever. However, I haven't made a starter yet, so hopefully one of the more experienced members will chip in.

 

[BeerCat]

Yeast will last years in fridge so i am told. You can dry out the yeast slurry on parchment paper in the oven and then freeze it. That's what the Norwegians have done for years. But if you make some starters just put it in a jar and leave in fridge. I have some a year old which still looks good.

 

[cheapbrew]

If it came straight from the fv then it will have wort/beer with it so I would just leave it as is don't add water, its better stored under beer, in a plastic bottle in the fridge, you can use glass but make sure lid is loose if you don't want glass everywhere.

 

[Slid]

David Heath did a video recently on drying yeast slurry, from wintery Bergen. Searching for David Heath on U tube should find it easily enough. Looked like a lot of faffing to me, but I am a lazy git, TBH.