I was reading on a beer forum about methods that allow you to store you yeasts for later use.
You will need:
• a large pot to boil water
• three or four smaller glass jars
• one large glass jar
• plastic wrap or lids
• a primary or secondary fermenter with a cake bed of yeast and other grudd
- jars and pot
- the inside of a fermenter after a berry wash (for brandy)
Start off by boiling the water along with any other equipment you would like to see sterilized. This will push the oxygen out of the water so that the yeast are forced into their slower metabolism stage. (like hybernation)
- smaller jars in pot with water..... cheapest sanitizer EVER!
Next fill the larger glass jar up with some of the boiled water (after it's cooled down of course!) and then pour it into your fermenter and shake it up!
Now pour the contents of the fermenter back into the large glass jar.
- pour back into jar
- full jar of yeast
Then let rest for 15 or 20 minutes. This will allow the dead yeast and junk to fall to the bottom of the jar while the more active yeast will stay in suspension longer. Eventually the sediment will fall and it should look like this.
- sediment of dead yeasts and stuff
Now all that's left to do is to decant the liquid portion off the sediment. I pour this into smaller glass jars filled half way up. This is so that later when I want to use these stored yeasts all i have to do is pull it out and add some sugar. With the jars being half way up there will be room for foam or what have you..
