Rehydrating Yeast Issue, Need Advice

[daytonlawvol]

Ive rehydrated my Nottingham Yeast, but I cant add it to the wort yet because its taking way too long to bring the temperature down to be able to pitch the yeast. Would I be safe to allow the yeast to sit in the water bowl overnight, should I refrigerate it, or will leaving it in water that long screw up the yeast?

Thanks

 

[Brewham]

Yes and yes. Your yeast have nothing to eat and are hungry. Cool a quart of the wort and feed them or chill them and hope they sleep well. Either way, be sterile and be careful not to contaminate anything. Pitch in the morning after a good night's sleep.

 

[ekranzusch]

Cover them with sanitized foil. Try to keep the whole works as sanitary as possible. The sooner you can get your wort to pitching temp and get your yeast to work in it the better. Your yeast will survive until morning.

Refrigerating it won't really help or hurt much. Yeast is a pretty tough beast, your biggest concern is to keep out hitch-hikers.

This type of thing is why I don't bother rehydrating dry yeast anymore. You don't really gain anything (IMO). It just makes things more complicated.