Hello! First time brewer. I started with the Mr Westcoast Ale kit and followed instructions. The keg is now sitting in a dark cooler at fairly the right temp.
Somewhere I have read that if the yeast is doing it's job right, I should see bubbles. I opened the cooler and shined a flashlight in and the liquid is calm as a mountain lake. I wish they still had kits with the aerator.
So is this common that the liquid is motionless (as in - no bubbles) after several hours?
Thanks

Sometime within the 12 to 48 hour timeframe there should be a visible layer of foam on top of the beer. Within 24-48 hours a small shotglass sample should show really cloudy beer. If it is not fermenting it will be completely clear and really sweet.

It is probably fine. How many hours?

Thank you! That was great info!

3 to 4 hrs

yup... "several hours" is not enough time... you're probably stil lin the lag phase, when the yeast are reproducing enough little yeastie soldiers to wag war on the sugars in the wort.

anytime after 8-12 to 24 hours, fermentation will start, and you'll see the krasuen (kroy-sen... the "bubbles and "scum" on top of the beer). check back in and let us know.

Sometimes, especially with the standard refills, there is little noticeable krausen. Or it was there, but for a short time and you missed it. One sure sign of fermentation is trub forming on the bottom.

Thanks! I am feeling a lot better!

Ok, I'll watch out for that!

Also as you get further into your brewing knowledge you will find out that 2 grams of yeast is not enough to properly ferment a Mr Beer batch. If you were to pitch a packet of US-05 (11.5g) or even a half packet you would see a shorter lag time. and benefit with a better tasting brew.

I usually see the action the following day after I brew the beer, be patient. As long as you sanitized everything well you cannot mess it up. And do not open the top just shine the light through the side.

I've had yeast go days before springing to action so definately be patient. Also,you don't know how long that packet of yeast has been siting under that can's lid so it may have a slower response. I know you're amped that you're making beer but give it time,be patient and in a month it'll reward you!

when I pitch white labs with no starter, i've seen it take 72 hours to get going. never caused any problems though. rehydrated dry yeast always starts within 6-12 hours for me. I usually check it the next morning after pitching and it's going.

Update on my first batch of WCPA.
Last evening a layer of scum formed and this morning I saw nice foam! I am happy!

I have heard of people who had problems with the yeast packets after several years. Does anyone know the shelf life of the included packets? I forgot if mine had an experation date. This one seemed to work, but for future reference...

That's what happened to me! Thanks!

Yes! I am definitely not opening it! Thanks for the tip!

Welcome! Yes, I believe the packets should have a use by date printed on them. And yes, you'll want to either use more than one Mr. Beer yeast packet or use a different yeast--you'll get beer with one Mr. Beer packet, but you'll get better results with more yeast. The Mr. Beer yeast is an all-purpose type of yeast. Other yeasts bring different things to the party, and can make a big difference in the beer.

IIRC, they don't have a proper date, just a code you have to decipher.

one of the best moves you can make is to move away from mr. beer yeasts and use the right amount of rehydrated dry yeasts or liquid yeasts with a starter. that, combined with temp control makes a big difference in my opinion.

That's correct. And it's the packaged date, not a use by date.

There's a Batch Number on the package and it will be something like Y18110. Ignore the letter. The first three digits are the day of the year. The last two are the two digit year.

So the example I gave was packaged in the 181st day of 2010. If you plug in 12/31/2009 in A1 in Excel, then in B1 enter =A1+181 it will display 6/30/2010, which is the date that yeast was packaged. Some yeast pitching calculators let you enter the packaged date to help determine the correct amount of yeast to use.

Interesting! Thanks for the tip. Now there is a lot of different kinds of yeast around. Can I completely screw up a batch (as in: undrinkable) by using the wrong type of yeast or will it just be a different flavor?

If you ferment at the wrong temp for the yeast it could make the beer pretty undrinkable.

i dont think using the wrong type of yeast for a style of beer will make it undrinkable, it just won't be to style. can you use t-58 in an IPA? sure. will it taste good? that is up for debate.

more to point, certain yeasts are for certain styles for some of the flavors they put out and for some of the fermentation characteristics as well. some yeasts don't attenuate all that well and leave the FG high, which is what is needed. some ferment at certain temps and some bring the FG down low, again, mostly all to style.

In a lot of cases there would be a subtle difference in others you would not be to style. Malt, hops, and yeast always make beer. Can you always drink it? I don't know.
I'd say the main thing to be careful of is the differences between Ale. Lager, Wheat, and Belgian yeasts.

Thanks! That's some food for thought

+1 as long as your fermentation follows one of the styles above for their respective yeasts then you will be fine....sure you can mix them around a little bit..but I would def not start doing that right away...lol

more important than the type of yeast is how you treat it, to making a good beer....doesn't have to be to style to be a good beer...

How I treat the yeast? Do you mean storage? Activation?

activation - rehydration and starters, as well as proper pitching amounts, temps and fermentation time and temps. storage is important as well, always store in the fridge until you are ready to brew.

A little update. Almost one week in. All noticeable activity has ceased in the fermenter for two days. So I wanted to see how far along it was. Took a little taste in a shotglass and HOLY F%#^$&BALLS!!! It tastes like flat beer! And like pretty good flat beer at that! Lightly carbonated. Lightly bitter. And I made it! I made beer! Still waiting until next weekend to bottle, but so far I love it.
Note: Liquid was cloudy and I was surprised by the small amount of trub on the bottom. The bottom surface was covered, but somehow I thought that there would be sizeable buildup.

It seems like you have made some beer and appear to be quite happy about it. Congratulations and you now know what you will be able to do in the future.

gotta love that moment...

HOORAY BEER!

Yay, beer!

Beer. All hail beer.

+1!! Welcome to the world of Homebrewing!