WYeast Laboratories packet

Today i brewed my second beer, an Irish Stout. All went well until I had to activate the yeast. I followed the instructions on the back of the packet, which said to locate and move the inner packet to a corner and then pretty much smash the crap out of it until it breaks. I did this...only i find out later that it didn't actually break. At this point the packet has been sterilized and was ready to pitch.

Not sure how smart my solution was: Fished out the unbroken packet, sterilized it along with a pair of scissors and pitched it directly from it's packet. I guess we wait and see if the yeast catches on.

Anyways, is this a common problem with this type of yeast packet? Not too concerned though, worst case i'll pitch another packet in a week if this one doesn't start. Being new to this hobby i'm finding that i enjoy the journey almost as much as the beer.

Did the smack pack inflate? The packet inside is just a nutrient pack I think, so it really shouldn't hurt you too much to have done it the way you did.

the inner pack is just a nutrient package. the other liquid is the yeast. the idea is that when you smack the package it gives the yeast some food and by the pack swelling you get an idea that it is viable..as well as give it a dose of food to get it off to the right start

see #2...might as well read #3 while you are there.

Wyeast Laboratories. Customer Service FAQs

(third wyeast website reference today...adivse everybody to spend some time there reading)

I think you'll find that the beer will turn out just fine. Especially a full bodied brew like an irish stout. Ideally you want to minimize your lag time, to discourage the wild-type yeast and bacteria, but as long as you use good technique, you should be fine. Let us know how it goes.

i did the quick pitch because i brewed as soon as i got home from my LHBS. Next time I will plan a little better and have it inflate first. Thanks for the quick post.

I think it's quite common for first time users of the smack pack.
(Read I did exactly the same.)
For second time and subsequent users, I think it is fairly rare.
(Read I only did it once.)

-a.

My last smack pack I just put both the yeast and the other stuff in a 1.5 litter starter. It worked great.

First time I used Wyeast I didn't break the inner pack. I did the same thing as the OP did and the beer turned out fine. I think if we took a poll most people have done this.

Thanks for the replies. Its bubbling this morning. Should be good to go.