Brew time again – with more adventures in reusing yeast from bottle conditioned ales. This time using Hopback yeast from the dregs of a couple of Summer Lightnings – and looking to brew much the same beer with it if possible.
The yeast was grown up in a half-gallon demijohn, using some wort made up from spraymalt dissolved in water, boiled and cooled. 
This was sat onto a DIY stir plate (computer fan, two strong button magnets and a PWM controller borrowed from the astronomy kit for a bit). The yeast was grown up using a 500ml batch of wort, and then, once this had fermented out, another 1.5l batch of wort. After this, stored in the fridge until the evening before the brew, and then allowed to warm and re-awakened by running off and cooling a litre of fresh wort during the boil.
The recipe for the beer was:
5.5kg Maris Otter
Mashed at 64C for 90min.Hops:
44g Challenger (5.6%, 90min) – 27IBU
26g EKG (3.9%, 90min) – 11IBU
15g EKG (15min)
10g EKG (0 min Steep)Irish Moss at 15minutes.
All in the FV – 23L at OG of 1050 – I chucked in 1/2tsp of Brew-vit for good measure too when aerating it, and it was put under the control of the ATC800 between 17C and 18C.
UPDATE:
The yeast is particularly active! It’s tried to make it’s way out through the lid a couple of times – I’ve now skimmed some off the top to keep for a next brew and put it away again to finish up.
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I grew some yeast up for the guys in the brewing group and they’ve been brewing with it and passing it round for a few weeks now. I found that it really hit it’s straps after the second or third brew it fermented, I got a slug of it back off Rob and it went crazy, it filled the eight litre space in the top of my fermenter four times and still fermented the brew out even with me scooping the head into sterilised takeaway cartons, top stuff. Next up for me is either Brakspear or Black Isle.
Absolutely – Hopback is a vigorous top fermenter – it has continuously regenerated a thick yeasty sludge at the top of the fermenter, and this after I cropped a batch off for future use and skimmed a couple more loads off. It’s taken 2 weeks, but we’re down to 1013 (4.8% ABV) – I reckon it must be done now (??)… maybe I think I’ll crash cool and bottle this week. I’ll reuse this one again and see if it does the same for me after two or three brews with it
[...] the hopback yeast skimmed off the top of the Summer Lightning clone. Again, it toook off well, but then slowed up – eventually (2.5 weeks later), it was down to 1.008 [...]