German Brewing

Depends on the concentration and yeast strain. Over 75mg/l and one can experience a 2-4 pt difference between the FFT and batch EVG. In this case, we're trying to solve a problem through the process of elimination.

You may be better off aerating the yeast in a conical flask, then pitch that. If your yeast doesn't score high in viability and vitality, then the cold schedules can become tricky. You don't want to over-aerate either. That can have quite detrimental effects. Without a meter, you are flying blind. I use welding O2.

I use the original W34/70 from the laboratory in Weihenstephan, but also had great results with the Wyeast equivalent.

Nowadays I propagate on stir plates, then a quick burst of O2 into the flask and then pitch at 5Celsius for a slow rise to 7-8 degrees over the next two days.

I also quite like the W838 from White Labs, but you need to keep sulfites in check. Approx 20-25mgl.

I did write all that up on the blog. There you have the details on cell count etc... If anything is missing, let me know.