sayteller
Active Member
I brewed up my first batch ever last night. All was well. Heated barley at 155 F for a half hour in water, added malt extract and water, added hops at correct times. Then came the cool down time. I used ice and water in the fermentor then added the wort. It didn't cool it down enough! My probe thermometer decided to stop working at about 97 F (don't bother buying the cheap red ones from Walmart). I drew a cold bath and with the lid on the fermentor I placed it in the bath to cool some more. Because my thermometer was busted I had to guess on the temp (bad I know). I had pitchable yeast in an Activator pack that never seemed to swell up even after multiple hits with my palm and 2 hours of waiting. Regardless, I pitched it in, put the lid on with the airlock, and went to bed. This morning I awoke to NO BUBBLES! Shouldn't I be seeing mad bubble action? I was pissed. I was sure that I killed the yeast due to the wort temps still being too hot. In a fit of rage I dumped the batch . I obviously made mistakes. Please advise on where I went wrong. I'm heading to the local brew shop to get ingredients to try again tonight. I want a batch for the 4th of July. Thanks in advance.