Possible Bad Yeast?

[naaate89]

Hello!
I made an extract kit yesterday and I'm noticing something different about this brew than others. I normally use liquid yeast but this time I decided to just use the dry yeast that came with the kit. The directions in the kit specifically state to NOT re-hydrate the yeast. However, the back of the yeast packet provided re-hydration instructions. I decided to follow the kit instructions and just dropped the dry yeast into the fermenter once I chilled the wort to 72 degrees, aerated it and added yeast nutrient. Normally the morning after a brew my fermenter is very active. This morning it's crystal clear with no activity at all. I have a refrigerator with a temp controller set to 69 degrees and the airlock is sealed with no bubbles.

Should I just wait it out and see if it's a slow starter? Or should I go pick up some liquid yeast of a similar variety and re-pitch?

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

What was the brand / strain of dry yeast that you used?

The directions in the kit specifically state to NOT re-hydrate the yeast. However, the back of the yeast packet provided re-hydration instructions. I decided to follow the kit instructions and just dropped the dry yeast into the fermenter once I chilled the wort to 72 degrees, aerated it and added yeast nutrient.

Looking good so far ...

Normally the morning after a brew my fermenter is very active. This morning it's crystal clear with no activity at all. I have a refrigerator with a temp controller set to 69 degrees and the airlock is sealed with no bubbles.

... if you see bubbles, you can anticipate the yeast is working. If you don't see bubbles, the fermentation gases may be escaping elsewhere.

With US-05, it's not unusual for me to see a 24 hour "lag" between pitching the yeast and visible signs of fermentation (bubbles in airlock, stuff on top of the fermenter, ...). Other strains can show visible signs faster (sometimes within 12 hours).

What was the brand / strain of dry yeast that you used?

 

[JimRausch]

It's true that one tends to see a longer lag period with dry yeast, especially if you don't rehydrate it. After all, you're giving the yeast an extra step (hydration) that liquid yeast avoids.

 

[naaate89]

Here are some photos of the carboy and yeast packet (LALBREW® BRY-97 WEST COAST ALE YEAST). I'm using a glass carboy with a #7 stopper and a 3 piece airlock so I don't think I'm leaking anywhere.

 

[naaate89]

Created a duplicate post and now I can't delete it.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

I don't have any recent experience with BRY-97 so I won't comment with any experiences on how fast/slow it starts up.

A quick web search (BRY-97 slow startup) with duckduckgo suggest it's a slow moving (both starting and finishing) yeast but worth the wait.

 

[Kickass]

I wouldn’t be worried yet. Give it a little more time.

 

[naaate89]

Thanks! I'll give it a couple of days.

 

[seatazzz]

The one time I used BRY-97 ( and I rehydrated it) it took about 36 hours to get going. Once it did, the beer was okay, but I didn't like the lag time. My sanitation is on point, so I wasn't worried about infection, but it was nervous-making.