Wyeast Smack pack did not inflate till next day...

Ok I have had a couple of Wyeast 2565 packs in the fridge for a couple of months. I decided to use them up. Busted the packs yesterday and not much expansion. Looked at them this afternoon and they where finally expanded fully. Made a starter and tossed them in on a stir plate. Question is, are these going to be any good or is alll that dead yeast going to screw it up. Wanted to brew tomorrow but looks like I will have to wait till Tues. in light of this yeast if it is good. Should I just go get a couple of more?

You'll be fine. Wyeast is notorious for not expanding. I use it all the time whether its expanded or not, and I've never had it fail.

I think you should be dandy in your case. Is there any problem with it expanding after activating the nutrients, then just putting it back in the fridge? I did this after the pouch did not expand for 3 days. The 4th day it was ballooning but unfortunately I had already pitched some other yeast. Its been in the fridge for about a week now. I will probably be able to use this next weekend (maybe make a starter on Wednesday).

From the horse's mouth.

From the Wyeast FAQ website:

3. Does the package need to be fully swollen before pitching?

No, The package can be pitched before activating, or at anytime during the activation process. The activation process "jump starts" the culture's metabolism, minimizing the lag phase.

Click to expand...