Brewing Experiment: Reusing Yeast Via Yeast Rinsing

My next brewing experiment was with yeast rinsing, a process where you can harvest active yeast from the sediment at the bottom of a carboy, store it in your fridge, and re-use it to brew another beer. This experiment was in-part born out of necessity as I had screwed up on my last batch of beer and didn't want the Bell's Oberon yeast that I'd harvested from bottles to go to waste. 

I'm not going to post complete instructions here as there are many other sites with great instructions. As in all things brewing: good sanitation is important, and with yeast washing in particular using deoxygenated water sanitized by boiling and returned to room temperature (or the temp of the yeast in the carboy) is key. Again, see one of the sites linked above for details.

Brewing Experiment #2: Harvesting Commerical Yeast For Brewing

I grew up in Michigan, and when I was of age I grew to love the beers of Kalamazoo-based Bell's Brewery. Their American wheat ale, Oberon (originally called Solsun), was a particular summertime treat. I'm now living in Maryland, and Bell's beer is available all around us -- but not in Maryland:

So unfair! (Map excerpted from http://bellsbeer.com/brands/brand-finder/)

So I could drive to PA, WV, NC, OH, KY or DC when I want a Bell's. Or I could make my own. According to brewers on the internets, one of the keys to Oberon's unique flavor is the yeast they use.