Nottingham yeast question...

[bri11oh34d]

Hey guys...I'm starting my 2nd batch of cider now and having some concerns...

Tuesday evening I put the 5 crushed campden tabs in...12 hours later, the pectic enzyme, and 12 hours later the nottingham yeast (wednesday evening)...

it is now about 60 hours later and there are some medium sized bubbles on the surface, but they have pretty much been there since thursday morning...no activity in the airlock, and some globs of whitish/yellowish stuff on the surface that looks like yeast blobs...

so i'm a tad worried here...maybe I activated the yeast wrong? I put it in warm water for awhile and then let it gradually cool down to room temp and put it in

this is the first time I've used nottingham, so I'm not really sure how it's supposed to behave...

 

[The Pol]

I put it in warm water for awhile and then let it gradually cool down to room temp and put it in

this is the first time I've used nottingham, so I'm not really sure how it's supposed to behave...

Nottingham is probably one of the quickest starts out there. Do you know how "warm" your water was that you rehydrated in? Sometimes warm to the touch can be deadly to yeast, did you take the temp? That may help us, help you.

 

[MikeRLynch]

Did you give it a really good shake when you put it in? Otherwise, don't expect ale yeast to act the same in a cider as with a beer. It won't have a very big krauzen, in fact it most likely will drop to the bottom and ferment from there. If it's only been a day or two, give the carboy another good shake, that should rouse them and get things going.

 

[bri11oh34d]

i'll try shaking it up a bit...if that doesnt work, what should I do? The rehydrating water was warm to the touch, so maybe I did kill it...what's the process to repitch the yeast?

 

[RugenBrau]

I doubt you killed it if it was only "warm" to the touch. I wouldn't repitch until after you have tried giving it a shake.

 

[Yooper]

i'll try shaking it up a bit...if that doesnt work, what should I do? The rehydrating water was warm to the touch, so maybe I did kill it...what's the process to repitch the yeast?

It sounds ok, though- if you've got a "yeast blob", it sounds like it's active. I've had wines and ciders ferment out without much noticable activity, so don't worry yet!

If you need to repitch, just add the yeast to some 80 degree water, don't stir- just let it rehydrate for 10 minutes, and then gently stir and add to your carboy.

Check to make sure your cider didn't have sorbate in it. If it didn't, just wait it out!

 

[bri11oh34d]

I shook it up a bit like 13 hours ago and that cider still looks dead as a doorknob...but I'll wait it out a little while longer...

how long can it sit in the better bottle with no fermentation or anything going on and still stay fresh? I might not be able to go get more nottingham until tuesday...

 

[bri11oh34d]

Ok...it has now been 3 1/2 days since pitching the yeast and 24 hours since stirring it up a bit. Last night the cider looked dead as can be...this morning, it has an orange-yellow colored algae look on the top...little patches of this yellow-orange haze floating around...but still no airlock activity...

should I keep waiting it out?

 

[Sager Brewing Co.]

You don't really need to re hydrate the yeast. When I started mine, I just dumped in the juice one gallon at a time, before the last gallon I dumped in the yeast and then used the last gallon of juice to wash it off of my funnel. Splashing in the juice helped to give it more oxygen, and it took off after about 24 hours. Mine had a very small krausen and has gotten very cloudy, my juice was fresh pressed so it was dark to begin with, but now its light and milky. So I am just waiting for it to clear out then bottle.

 

[benjita]

As long as it has been I think that you are still ok. It took my Nottingham yeast about 4 days for it to start going. The algae like particles you describe are also ok. Slap an airlock on it and tear yourself away from it for a few weeks.