Wyeast smackers - how long to puff up?

[timmy]

Hi all,

I smacked my 4th Wyeast pack on Saturday (3 days ago) after it had been out of the fridge for a day. I'm seeing no activity at all after this time. It is a London Ale pack (1098 IIRC) and I've verified that the internal pack has broken. How long should I wait until I give up? The mfr date is May '07 and I bought it from G&G and it's been in the fridge since I got it.

Cheers,

Tim

[Kevnlis]

I pitch mine to a low gravity starter on the stir plate and slowly build it up. Works every time for me!

[Chris]

I'd give it a good shake, then put into some warm water~ 30*C or so.

If that doesn't work, I'd be chucking it.

[rwh]

I'd be taking it back for a refund.

[Trough Lolly]

...good luck, it's nearly a year old!

[rwh]

Aaah, I missed that. I've bought a few from the G&G 6-12 month bargain bin, but I always culture them up on my stir plate, and they do sometimes take some time.

[timmy]

Well I came back from work today to find a fat, swollen Wyeast packet.

I asked John from G&G about it (before I realised it was OK) and he said that they only guarantee the viability for 6 months after mfr. He also said to allow 1/2 a day extra for every month past the mfr date. Seems about right to me. Top marks to the guys at G&G for their after-sales support.

Cheers,
Tim

[lethaldog]

Ive had packs that old and older and although they do take a bit longer i have never had one fail to work, as you found out patience is always part of the brewing process. i had one pack that worked fine but when i opened it to culture it i almost lost my lunch the smell was that bad and it remained ( the smell i mean) in the house for days after, obviously i chucked it but got straight onto the company that makes them and they organised a replacement from the grain and grape ( where i bought it from) so if anyone ever does have any real dramas with the smackpacks and you have done everything right then dont hesitate to send them an email, they were very easy to deal with and the impression i got was that they like to keep their customers happy

[SpillsMostOfIt]

There's some variation. I've had some take quite a while - overnight - to swell, but others have come good in a couple of hours.

I am told that some of the popular strains are being packaged a little bit early in order to keep up with demand, so they may even be a tad swollen when you buy them.

I've only had one that I wasn't happy with, but that could be because I made crap beer with it. I haven't pitched one directly into a beer for quite a while.