Should i risk this yeast ?????

Would the expert's please advise quick, 'cos I plan on brewing tomorrow and if the response is negative, I must change my recipe.

Here's the story. I want to brew an Octoberfest Ale using vial of White Labs Kolcsh yeast I've had stored in my fridge.

Problem is that the yeast's Best Before date was Feb 19 2012.

I have however made yeast starter (using a stir plate and light DME) 2 days ago and have since done two 330 ml step ups since, the last being this morning.

The yeast however has not taken on that milky brown colour and there is no krausen - although could the lack of krausen be attributed to the action of the stir plate ?????

Should I risk using this yeast tomorrow or brew something else ? I'm worried that the yeast starter is still quite dark which suggests to me that yeast is not waking up in there.

Please help !!!

Couple of questions:

- Have you tasted the starter or checked gravity to see if there has been any fermentation occuring?

- What was the size of the original starter you are stepping up from?

Based on your description of the starter still being quite dark I would guess that there is not adequate yeast present to pitch into a full batch, you may be able to continue to nurse it along till you have enough but it wold probably be cheaper and easier to go buy new yeast...

Viability is pretty low at this point, less than 5%. Are there any bubbles in the starter? I don't see much krausen with my stir plate but I do see plenty of CO2 being released. I agree with the Chief, I'd spring for some new yeast

Thanks guys

I started off with a 1 liter starter.

I didn't check gravity before I started but my stock starter mix is 100 gram light DME per liter of water,

Is the starter color turning light brown a reasonably reliable indication that things are progressing ?

I think I'll just brew a nice Two Hearted IPA in the meantime and wait until I can figure the starter out.