Canned Wort. PROs and CONs
Over the course of the last several months pre-packaged wort has been hitting the market in a big way. Inland Island Yeast Co introduced a version of concentrated wort 3 or 4 years ago which didn't gain much of a following. Now, several new products are available which may gain more attention.
Propper Starter and Fast Pitch seem to be the two largest canned wort producers. Canned concentrated wort makes it fast and easy to create a starter for high gravity brews (1.060 OG and higher), pilsners/lagers, yeast packs nearing (or over) expiration or whenever a starter is recommended.
So what are the benefits of using canned wort?
First, both brands require a 1:1 wort/water (distilled/bottled) dilution to reach an ideal 1.040 OG for a 1L starter size. The process is very simple: Sanitize everything like you normally would, i.e. can, flask, water bottle, yeast package, scissors, hands, etc, etc, etc... Mix the wort and water and pitch the yeast (no nutrient is necessary as the wort contains the proper amount). Depending on the yeast source and your batch requirements you are ready to go in 1-3 days. All in, the process takes roughly 20 minutes with clean up. Much faster than building a traditional DME/LME starter which usually takes over an hour with the cool-down.
The investment isn't a big issue: you can get a 4-pack of wort for roughly $3/can plus $2 (?) for a bottle and 20 minutes of time of V.S. 4oz of DME for $1.25 + 1 hour of time.
Seems like a toss up to us.
- > ABS
