First time with Yeast Starter

[Incredible Bulk]

Hey guys!

This batch was the first time I used a yeast starter with a beer, and I'm wondering if anyone else has ever had this happen with a starter.

I pitched the yeast into a wort with an original gravity of 1.043 (quite a bit lower than it should have been - 1.055) but I racked it over into the secondary today, and took a gravity measurement and it was 1.016 which is REALLY close to the finishing gravity of the beer. (1.014)

It's only been 33 hours. That sounds uncommonly fast. Is that fairly typical when using a yeast start? As it was fermenting, all day yesterday it bubbled at a multiple bubbles per second rate. It was really cooking. Very low froth, but was really moving. I used Wyeast 1010 - American Wheat.

If this is typical, I will use a Yeast Starter for every batch from now on. This is great! :)

-Bulk

[brrman]

I find using a starter decreases the lag time significantly. I see major activity within 1-3 hours sometimes. And it can be a very very active fermentation.

Last night I brewed a stout and for the first time, never used a starter. Used a Wyeast smackpack only. It was going on 8 hours when I went to bed and still no activity in the airlock. It was bubbling away this morning though.

[texasliam]

Yup, starters rock.
Shortens the lag time to fermentation so that bacteria doesn't get a chance to take over. Decreases the chance of a stuck fermentation too. And more importantly decreases my anxiety.