Mr. Beer's dry ale yeast

[Tw0fish]

Hi guys! It's not often I wander back over to beer.. I respect what you all do but it's all mysticism to me

So I've got Whispering Wheat going from an extract kit, which includes the standard Mr. Beer dry ale yeast, which according to linky is happiest at 68-76 deg F.

Well the house is at 68, and the ferment looks to be going very slowly if at all (today is day 3 since pitching and there's minimal accumulation of bubbles on the surface, for instance). I'm wondering, would there be any harm in putting my primary nearer/next to the hot air vent for that room? The rest of my projects (two meads, skeeter pee and a cider) are going happily and well within their ideal range..

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I also use Mr Beer and have notice their yeast is not very active. I don't trust the Mr Beer instructions much either. Your temperature now should be good, if not a little warm as your temp in the fermenter will be 5-10 degrees higher than ambient. Take the time to read through the Mr Beer thread... There is a lot of good knowledge there. I just recently bottled a Whispering Wheat kit that I added a pound of wheat DME to and used Danstar Munich yeast to substitute the weak Mr Beer yeast (which resulted in a much more active ferment).

 

[tre9er]

Do you rehydrate the yeast first?

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I normally don't and it still works, just does not have a very visible fermentation compared to other yeasts.

 

[tre9er]

I normally don't and it still works, just does not have a very visible fermentation compared to other yeasts.

I use some boiled and cooled water (about 90* or so), a half cup or so, and toss the dry yeast in there, cover with foil about an hour before you'll pitch. It will form a nice foamy muffin in there, usually. My fermentation with nottingham dry yeast on the Kolsch began within 8 hours...bubbling away in the airlock probably 20-30 bubbles per minute.

 

[Tw0fish]

Do you rehydrate the yeast first?

Nope! I know, I probably ought to.

I think the cold plus not being rehydrated did a number on my yeast.. after posting I said "screw it, it's an ancient mr beer kit", wrapped it in a towel and put it about three feet from the air vent.. when I came back, KRAUZEN!

Of course now that the yeast are going the smartest thing would be to take it away from the heat source right? haha.

 

[tre9er]

Just don't let it's temp get up too high. Take it off the heat and put it room temp and let it finish fermenting, then leave it in there another week or so. Should be just fine.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I just cracked open a "surveillance beer" of my Whispering Wheat that had been in the bottle 2 weeks... I added a pound of wheat DME to the kit along with subbing the Mr Beer yeast for a wheat beer yeast (Danstar Munich). This one is tasty already!!!