Hi,
I'm brewing a double IPA (1.074 SG) later this week with Wyeast 1056. The yeast has been in my refrigerator since I got it a month ago. I noticed the pouch was pretty swollen when I got it, but I didn't think a lot about it. The yeast has a best used by date of 05/23/2021 (I really wish they'd go back to the packaged on date, but that's another topic). I got the yeast out yesterday to make a starter and the pouch was really swollen - like rock hard. I didn't "smack" it as it was way too hard to locate the nutrient pouch, much less smack it. I made a 1.8 liter starter and put it on my stir plate.
I usually create my starters in the afternoon, and they are usually completed by the next morning - layer of dried krausen in the flask and little to no active fermentation. When I checked the starter this morning, roughly 15 hours after creating it, there was only some condensation in the flask and just a little bit of foam in the middle of the whirlpool. About three hours later I did see some krausen forming. It's now been 24 hours and it's showing active fermentation (see photo).
I can't say how many starters I've created over the years, but I've never had one start this slowly. I'm also not sure what would have caused the pouch to swell so much. I did check the little nutrient pouch, and it was intact, so that wasn't the cause. I did not add the nutrient to my starter; I don't know if that may have slowed it down, although I've used plenty of White Labs and Omega and they don't have one to begin with.
Do you think I should just let fermentation complete and use it like normal, or get a new pouch of yeast? I appreciate your thoughts on this!
I'm brewing a double IPA (1.074 SG) later this week with Wyeast 1056. The yeast has been in my refrigerator since I got it a month ago. I noticed the pouch was pretty swollen when I got it, but I didn't think a lot about it. The yeast has a best used by date of 05/23/2021 (I really wish they'd go back to the packaged on date, but that's another topic). I got the yeast out yesterday to make a starter and the pouch was really swollen - like rock hard. I didn't "smack" it as it was way too hard to locate the nutrient pouch, much less smack it. I made a 1.8 liter starter and put it on my stir plate.
I usually create my starters in the afternoon, and they are usually completed by the next morning - layer of dried krausen in the flask and little to no active fermentation. When I checked the starter this morning, roughly 15 hours after creating it, there was only some condensation in the flask and just a little bit of foam in the middle of the whirlpool. About three hours later I did see some krausen forming. It's now been 24 hours and it's showing active fermentation (see photo).
I can't say how many starters I've created over the years, but I've never had one start this slowly. I'm also not sure what would have caused the pouch to swell so much. I did check the little nutrient pouch, and it was intact, so that wasn't the cause. I did not add the nutrient to my starter; I don't know if that may have slowed it down, although I've used plenty of White Labs and Omega and they don't have one to begin with.
Do you think I should just let fermentation complete and use it like normal, or get a new pouch of yeast? I appreciate your thoughts on this!
