Sorry for the extremely newbie question, but I couldn't find a definitive answer on this. I brewed my first batch of beer this afternoon, and it's been in a plastic fermentation bucket for about five hours now. I filled the airlock with about 2 inches of sanitized water solution, and put the cap in.
What should I expect when fermentation takes off? Will there be a lot of activity in the airlock? As of right now, there are bubbles present in the water in the airlock, but I expected more volatile (for lack of a better word) activity to be taking place. Also, how long before fermentation really gets going?
One concern of mine is I hydrated the yeast in some pretty warm water (95-100 degrees Fahrenheit) before pitching it, which is what I read in the Papazian book. I'm now reading on various sites I've been perusing tonight that 70 degrees F is more appropriate. Did I possibly kill the yeast???
Please, someone tell me I'm just being impatient and everything will be fine...
What should I expect when fermentation takes off? Will there be a lot of activity in the airlock? As of right now, there are bubbles present in the water in the airlock, but I expected more volatile (for lack of a better word) activity to be taking place. Also, how long before fermentation really gets going?
One concern of mine is I hydrated the yeast in some pretty warm water (95-100 degrees Fahrenheit) before pitching it, which is what I read in the Papazian book. I'm now reading on various sites I've been perusing tonight that 70 degrees F is more appropriate. Did I possibly kill the yeast???
Please, someone tell me I'm just being impatient and everything will be fine...