old yeast

[canvasback]

I just started brewing a Irish stout in the process of steeping my grains and realized my wlp004 Irish ale yeast is marked best before July 3 - 14 . Should I still pitch it ? It has been refrigerated the whole time . The only other ale yeast I have is safael s-04 dry ale yeast. Should I try the white labs and use the dry yeast as back up if it doesn't start , pitch them both or just use the dry to be safe ? I don't have a lhbs nearby and would not be able to get the proper yeast for at least a week

 

[Singletrack]

Never mind please. Just saw you said 2014, not 2015.

 

[flars]

S-04 is one of the yeasts recommended for a dry Irish stout in the Northern Brewers site. The White Labs is to old to pitch without a starter. If your stout is below an estimated OG of 1.060, you would not need to rehydrate the yeast before pitching. Rehydrating dry yeast is always a good idea though.

 

[canvasback]

Ok thanks I'll just go with the fresh s-04 dry yeast wasn't sure if that was for a stout or not . Got about 15 mins left on my boil . You guys are great thanks again .

 

[Calder]

Probably too late, but pitch the S-04. Excellent yeast for an Irish Stout.

You do not know the viability of the WLP004. It is probably low, and if you straight pitch, it will be a huge under-pitch. The good news is that there is almost certainly a lot of healthy cells in the pack, and if you build up a decent sized starter, you can use it in another beer.

 

[canvasback]

Thanks Calder I'll save it and try a starter with it .

 

[BigPicture]

Just an FYI.

I washed a special yeast of PacMan & stored it for over 2 years. I did a starter on a stir plate and it took 4 days before I saw any activity. Now I've washed yeast many times in the past with great results but I've never kept it longer than 6 months.

Then I pitched the starter as normal. It never really took off. It didn't ever create a robust fermentation as every other brew I've done. Just a steady bubble.

After all is said & done.................................... it tasted terrible. Sure I hit my Final Gravity................................... but wow. 5 gallons of gutter beer.

I will spend the $6 and get FRESH yeast even if I have to special order it again.

Learning Lesson.