Doug
Active Member
Ok, here's my story. I'm still new (batch 3 now) and making plenty of mistakes.
I bought a new kit (Liberty Cream Ale) from the local shop, and brought it home. I went out to eat first though, and in the process left my Wyeast smack pack out in the car for a couple hours on a warm day.
I realized when I got home that it should have been refrigerated. It wasn't hot, but it wasn't cold anymore either. I put it back in the fridge, and two weeks passed.
Last night I decided it was time to start up this batch. I took out the yeast and waited till it was back to room temperature. I smacked it several times to make sure it got going. I heard it making noise, so I figured it was working. I started brewing, and after a few hours, I could have sworn the smack pack was swelling. This is only the second time I've used one though, so I guess I was wrong. When I opened it up and prepared to pitch it, I realized the inside packet wasn't broken open. It was pretty late though, so I figured I'd take a risk. I cut the inside packet open with some sterilized scissors and poured it into the yeast. I probably should have let that sit until morning to do it's thing, but I just threw it into the wort.
So, here's the question - is my yeast going to make it? What's going to happen next? After 7 hours, no activity in the carboy yet...
Also, any speculation on what I should have done differently throughout these stages?
- Doug
I bought a new kit (Liberty Cream Ale) from the local shop, and brought it home. I went out to eat first though, and in the process left my Wyeast smack pack out in the car for a couple hours on a warm day.
I realized when I got home that it should have been refrigerated. It wasn't hot, but it wasn't cold anymore either. I put it back in the fridge, and two weeks passed.
Last night I decided it was time to start up this batch. I took out the yeast and waited till it was back to room temperature. I smacked it several times to make sure it got going. I heard it making noise, so I figured it was working. I started brewing, and after a few hours, I could have sworn the smack pack was swelling. This is only the second time I've used one though, so I guess I was wrong. When I opened it up and prepared to pitch it, I realized the inside packet wasn't broken open. It was pretty late though, so I figured I'd take a risk. I cut the inside packet open with some sterilized scissors and poured it into the yeast. I probably should have let that sit until morning to do it's thing, but I just threw it into the wort.
So, here's the question - is my yeast going to make it? What's going to happen next? After 7 hours, no activity in the carboy yet...
Also, any speculation on what I should have done differently throughout these stages?
- Doug