Lag time with WLP-005

[mixbrewery]

I made up a normal starter for an out of date WLP-005 (Sep-07).
There was no activity after 24hrs so i was going to bin it. After 48hrs the odd bubble started to rise and now 3 days later a thin layer of bubbles is now on the surface.

Is it safe to use or will it be infected?
Is there any easy way to test if its usable?

Suppose a new starter is cheaper than a failed brew with dodgy yeast.

[oblivious]

probably just a low number of viable yeast, see what starter smell like

[steve_flack]

That's very out of date - that tube was a year old and the best before date is 4 months after it's made. There would be very few live cells in it which is why it was so slow.

If your technique is very good then there's no reason that it shouldn't be clean. That is a pretty big 'if' though. As DaaB says, pour off some of the starter and see what it tastes like when it's done. If it tastes like arse then you have your answer.

[mysterio]

I've successfully recovered old yeast, although I started with a very small starter and stepped it up. As the others say, give it a taste.

[mixbrewery]

Thanks guys - i'll taste when i get home tonight