Smack Pack Didn't work - viability and stir plate questions

I am trying to build a 2 step yeast starter with wyeast 1214 yeast. I smacked the package and felt around to see if I broke the stuff inside. It felt okay so I wennt to work and left it to swell. When I got home it wasn't swollen...The package date was Nov 15, 2015.

I made a 1.5L 1.040 starter for it, cut the package open and the smack pack "wort" was still contained in the plastic bag so I cut it open and
I dumped everything in my 2L flask and left it on my stir plate for 24 hours.

There is a small layer of foam on the top, and a lot of CO2 bubbles escaping from the liquid. I can't tell if a krausen has formed and then been consumed in the swirling starter, or if it is just really really slow?

Should I leave it on the stir plate until the bubbles die down? I'm assuming the yeast was shocked since the smack pack didn't work, but I want to try to save $10 and use the yeast. So I think it would take a bit longer than the average 18-36 hours everyone suggests? I'm concerned about the viability...

When it's time to be removed from the stir plate I'll cold crash it, then make another starter in a few days

Any suggestions would be great. If it all works out, I will be making a Belgian Trippel...

I think you're fine. I'd let it go 24-48 hours and cold crash. Did you happen to take gravity readings?

Will-D said:

I think you're fine. I'd let it go 24-48 hours and cold crash. Did you happen to take gravity readings?

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I didn't take a gravity reading in the beginning, unfortunately.
My starter was: 180g of LME, 1.7L of water in the pot, resulting in 1.4L in my flask at the end.

Wyeast 1214 is a notoriously slow starter.

The little pack in the smack pack in the Wyeast pouch is totally irrelevant as you made a starter and chucked it in. No worries there. Give it two days at least on the stir plate for this strain.

Making a starter is a heck of a lot easier with DME than with LME.

Just heat it to dissolve everything, boil for 1 minute to sanitize and it's done. Ready to chill. Sounds like you boiled for quite some time reducing the volume increasing the gravity of the starter wort. No big deal but there is no need to do this.

You also increase the starter's gravity over the desired level of ~1.040 which is the sweet spot for starter gravity. Lots of good places to explore why that's the sweetspot so I won't bore you with that.

Gavin C said:

Wyeast 1214 is a notoriously slow starter.

The little pack in the smack pack in the Wyeast pouch is totally irrelevant as you made a starter and chucked it in. No worries there. Give it two days at least on the stir plate for this strain.

Making a starter is a heck of a lot easier with DME than with LME.

Just heat it to dissolve everything, boil for 1 minute to sanitize and it's done. Ready to chill. Sounds like you boiled for quite some time reducing the volume increasing the gravity of the starter wort. No big deal but there is no need to do this.

You also increase the starter's gravity over the desired level of ~1.040 which is the sweet spot for starter gravity. Lots of good places to explore why that's the sweetspot so I won't bore you with that.

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Yeah I boiled it too high and also read something about boiling 15mins to kill any bacteria, but afterward I read more and found out most people don't do that.

I don't mind using LME, DME is rare and hard to come by up here for some reason...

Good to know that 1214 is slow! I'll leave it on longer

Left it on for 3+ days and the FG was 1.006 so the yeast ended up being slow, but healthy in the end

Thanks for the help!!

Another update: the second stage starter was very healthy: visible krausen within 12 hours, almost overflowing by 24hrs and completely finished by 36 hours.
Very excited

Gavin C said:

Wyeast 1214 is a notoriously slow starter.

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I second that. I've brewed a Belgian dubbel twice with 1214.