Doh... I used the wyeast wrong, will it still work?

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pfunc

pfunc

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I'm an idiot. I didn't read the instructions close enough on the wyeast packet. I shook up the package but never broke the yeast packet inside. Then I poured it into my fermenter, the yeast packet fell out unopened. So then I just poured that packet into the beer and shook it up.

Will this still work? I guess I can just re-pitch if it doesn't.
 
Yes, that probably should work OK. That little packet inside is not the yeast packet - it's a nutrient packet that's intended to "wake up" the yeast and basically confirm to you that you have viable yeast before you open the pouch and pitch them into your wort. The rest of the fluid that poured out of the smack pack was the actual yeast.

So long as you were good and sanitary, and the yeast itself was not old or poorly stored, you should be just fine.
 
So long as you were good and sanitary, and the yeast itself was not old or poorly stored, you should be just fine.
Click to expand...

This.

Depending on your og you really should look into making a starter for future brews.
 
Ok thanks, I was pretty thorough with sanitizing, so hopefully it will work. I definitely will make a starter next time, just was going for a quick and simple solution since I'm pretty inexperienced brewing on my own.

I'll post back with results when/if it works out.
 
I'll be trying the Wyeast smack packs for the first time myself with 2 BerlinWheat PM kits. It's the Bavarian wheat yeasts blend. The wort should be of average gravity,so I'm going to try one pack straight up. Then maybe make an 800mL starter for the other. I've used a couple White Labs vials before in the same way.
It basically looks to me thus far that the straight pitch wouldn't take much longer than the starter version. Kinda like pitching a packet of US-05 dry,with another similar beer pitched with the same,but rehydrated. I've done that one too,but rehydrated a 7g Cooper's ale yeast packet,pitching the US-05 dry. They both started about the same time & just as vigorously.
Rehydration or starters seem to cut lag time before visible fermentation begins.
 
unionrdr said:
I'll be trying the Wyeast smack packs for the first time myself with 2 BerlinWheat PM kits. It's the Bavarian wheat yeasts blend. The wort should be of average gravity,so I'm going to try one pack straight up. Then maybe make an 800mL starter for the other. I've used a couple White Labs vials before in the same way.
It basically looks to me thus far that the straight pitch wouldn't take much longer than the starter version. Kinda like pitching a packet of US-05 dry,with another similar beer pitched with the same,but rehydrated. I've done that one too,but rehydrated a 7g Cooper's ale yeast packet,pitching the US-05 dry. They both started about the same time & just as vigorously.
Rehydration or starters seem to cut lag time before visible fermentation begins.
Click to expand...

Pitching the proper amount of yeast (starters) is thought to lower the stress on the yeast that will have to first reproduce to cell counts sufficient to ferment the wort. Under pitching can lead to off flavors. I believe that making starters with liquid yeast is important. And, IMO, more important than re-hydrating dry yeast.

A pack or vial of yeast contains far fewer yeast cells than a pack of dry yeast so comparison to dry or re-hydrated is not equivalent. However, the lessened lag time should be evident.
 
I am brewing 22 gallons tommorow and have 4 Wyeast packs. I did make a starter from 2 of the packs.

One of them did not expand as I had not "burst" the internal pack. This is not the first time this has happened as some just refuse to "burst" I tried 3 different times.

I simply pour in the yeast then cut open the internal pack (with sanitized sissors) and pour the "nutrients" in as well and the starter is going great.

When we first started brewing, we had a Wyeast pack with the same problem and used it without a starter and the brew was fine.

I would suggest that you get on the starter band wagon now and you can kiss thge "non start" goodbye.
 
kh54s10 said:
Pitching the proper amount of yeast (starters) is thought to lower the stress on the yeast that will have to first reproduce to cell counts sufficient to ferment the wort. Under pitching can lead to off flavors. I believe that making starters with liquid yeast is important. And, IMO, more important than re-hydrating dry yeast.

A pack or vial of yeast contains far fewer yeast cells than a pack of dry yeast so comparison to dry or re-hydrated is not equivalent. However, the lessened lag time should be evident.
Click to expand...

Yeah,I know about over-underpitching & the reproductive phase. Ime,there's still a reproductive phase with or without starters or rehydrating. They lessen this lag time,but never elliminate it altogether. As I mentioned,I found it interesting that a 7g dry packet started visibly fermenting about the same time as the 11.5g US-05 packet did when pitched dry. Not to mention,they both needed blow offs,as they fermented with equal vigor. So rehydrating a lesser amount of yeast worked as quickly as a larger amount pitched dry.
 
I have also done the hydrated vs non hydrated dry yeast in two different caboys with the same wort side by side and did not see or taste any difference. If you look at the dry yeast web sites, there is an elaborate and time consuming process where you start hydrating at about 110 then incrementally down to 70. I doubt many if any follow the recommended process for hydrating dry yeast.
 
Just a followup, fermenter is bubbling away this morning. Although I will make a starter in the future, good to know that it still works.
 

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