Laboratory Techniques

This page will focus on home lab and small brewery lab techniques.

Equipment

(To do)

• Microscope
• pH Meter

Growth Media

Lactobacillus

See Rogosa SL Agar

Brettanomyces

A few different medias can be used to isolate Brettanomyces but DBDM media is commonly used. WLD with additions of cycloheximide can also be used.

DBDM Media Recipe

Chemical	Usage Amount
Yeast nitrogenous base (YNB)	6.5 grams
Ethanol	6% v/v
Cycloheximide	10 mg
p-coumaric acid	100 mg
Bromocresol Green	22 mg
Agar	20 grams
Distilled Water	Fill to 1000 ML

WLD Media Recipe

Chemical	Usage Amount
Cycloheximide	4 grams
Yeast Extract	4 grams
Pancreatic Digest of Casein(Pepton)	5 grams
Dextrose	50 grams
Monopotassium Phosphate	.55 grams
Potassium Chloride	425 mg
Calcium Chloride	125 mg
Magnesium Sulfate	125 mg
Ferric Chloride	2.5 mg
Manganese Sulfate	2.5 mg
Bromocresol Green	22 mg
Agar	20 grams
Distilled Water	Fill to 1000 ML

Reference on DBDM: https://www.facebook.com/groups/MilkTheFunk/permalink/1805210829507123/?comment_id=1805397166155156&comment_tracking=%7B%22tn%22%3A%22R%22%7D

Misc/Other

• MTF tips on autoclaving wort extract based media in such a way that prevents precipitation and darkening.

Propagators

• MTF thread on DIY and carboy-sizzed propogators for small breweries.

Techniques

(Videos provided by Bryan of Sui Generis blog and Zach Taggart.)

Making Agar Plates

• Making WLD plates:

Yeast/Bacteria Isolation

• Mark Trent details his method for isolating Brettanomyces from Saccharomyces from dregs or other mixed cultures.
• See Wild Yeast Isolation.
• See isolating Lactobacillus.

Shipping Cultures

Example of DeWayne Schaaf's packaging for shipping cultures.

DeWayne Schaaf recommends the following procedures for shipping cultures with the USA states and territories :

1. Use 15ml centrifuge tubes from Cynmar LLC - Wine & Brew. They are great quality and have a very low rate of leakage, especially when combined with electrical tape.

1. Place each liquid filled tube into its own snack sized baggie to minimize cross contamination if they do happen to leak.

1. Each of these smaller bags will be placed into a quart Ziplock.

1. My main shipping container are Uline Poly bubble mailers. I don't tend to use ice packs as I've found them unnecessary when shipping in favorable temps (use ice packs during the summer).

1. USPS is my preferred shipping method. Using first class shipping, my packages typically take no more than 3 days to reach somewhere in the USA and cost right around $3, and that includes a tracking number. Shipping rates are roughly the same for any USA state or territory. The 48 continental states, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Guam all cost roughly the same.

For 5 gallon pitches or cultures that may still be a bit active creating cO2 Soda Preform tubes work very well. These are the same type of tubes White Labs uses for their homebrew pitches. https://www.amazon.com/Soda-Bottle-Preforms-Caps-30/dp/B008MB1QNY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1504524577&sr=8-1&keywords=soda+test+tubes

See also:

• Bryan of Sui Generis Blog guide to shipping yeast (recommended for larger quantities).

See Also

Additional Articles on MTF Wiki

• Microscope
• PH Meter
• Wild Yeast Isolation
• Titratable Acidity
• Saccharomyces
• Brettanomyces
• Pediococcus
• Lactobacillus

External Resources

• "Brewers' Laboratory Handbook: Brewing Without the Blindfold™", by Brewing Science Institute.