I had a wyeast 1056 smack pack shipped to my house. When I opened the shipping package the smack pack was swollen, not just a bit, but about 1/2 way to being fully "puffed-out". I immediately put in the fridge. I won't have time to brew for a few more weeks... I have the following questions. I guess I'll need to make a starter, since I can't smack the pack due to the swelling, correct? Assuming I make a starter, and stick it in the fridge, how long will it be good for? The manufacture date on the pack is Oct 2012, should I be concerned? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!
“I guess I'll need to make a starter, since I can't smack the pack due to the swelling, correct?” It is your choice whether to make a starter or not (i.e., you should make a starter if you think you need additional yeast count for the beer you are making). It is perfectly acceptable to pitch a smack-pack without smacking it. “Assuming I make a starter, and stick it in the fridge, how long will it be good for?” I would recommend that you make the starter just prior to brewing your batch. “The manufacture date on the pack is Oct 2012, should I be concerned?” The pack you have is about 3 months old. Wyeast states that a package is ‘good’ for 6 months. The yeast pitch rate calculator on the Mr. Malty website claims that a 3 month old package has 32% viability. I personally think that is a very conservative estimate. I would guess that your package is less than 100% viable but greater than 32%. It certainly would not hurt to make a starter since the package is a few months old. Below is from the Wyeast FAQ: “25. What are the causes of swollen packages? Can you sell them? Swollen packages are almost always the cause of a small amount of sugar or CO2 being left in solution at the time of packaging. Upon shipment, CO2 can be released from solution or the yeast can consume the sugar and create a small amount of CO2. Cell autolysis, or cell death can also be a cause of swelling packaged. However, this is only in rare cases where the yeast is exposed to high temperature for an extended amount of time. If a package is swollen and has not been mishandled, it can be sold with confidence.” Cheers!
Thanks for the information! Looks like I should be OK,.... I'll make the starter a few days before brew day.
It's a fairly common misconception that smacking a smack pack is the same thing as making a starter. It's not. Starters provide enough food and space to significantly increase yeast cell counts. The tiny amount of sugar and nutients in a smack pack simply makes the yeast active enough to swell the pack and thus prove that there are some viable yeast inside. But smacking does not increase the cell count. Most beers will benefit from making a starter. You can't go wrong using the calculator at Mr. Malty... http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html
In the past I have taken a needle and sterilized it, poked a little hole in the packet and then squeezed the air out. Once the air is out, I put tape over the hole and then smack the pack. After a while, it should swell once again. I havent had any problems (granted I was making some session beers so a starter wasn't really needed)
If the pack is swollen, doesn't that mean the pack inside has broken? As Vikeman said above, it's more a test of viability than to help the yeast along. If you have a swollen pack and you're not making a starter, you could just pitch your yeast and add the nutrient into your wort after it's out of the pack.
Not necessarily. Some of my smack packs have arrived all but fully inflated with the inside pack fully intact.
