How do I know whether a starter should be stepped up due to inviability?

I took my rinsed yeast out of the fridge and it's looking like it has very low viability. It might have partially frozen at some point while it was in the fridge due to an issue with the fridge, and it was in there for a good few months too.

When I did the starter I initially thought it was completely dead but 12 hours on there were a few bubbles and it looks like it's coming to life ( wp 568) ... I could get new yeast but long story short that's not going to happen the only reason I was doing this brew was because I had the yeast in the fridge.

Assuming the starter gets into a decent ferment then I'm wondering whether I should just do the brew and pitch it in, or whether I'd need to step up the starter.

My question is generally speaking how would I figure this? Ideally I'd like some way of knowing by looking at it or smelling it or something which I know is not very scientific but I have no idea of the original viability so I don't have a starting point really.

Topic viability yeast-starters homebrew

Category Mac

1
answered at

I would make another starter with what you have, and get it going at full strength, and ferret out any contamination that may be present.

But in general I would just get new yeast, I just ruined a whole batch by doing this same thing, it was sitting in the fridge for 2 months, then created a starter, then did another one with it. and somewhere along the line it got a contamination of something, when all was done, i had to dump my batch....goodby 5 gals of cream ale.

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