Yard Sale Kit

Ok so here is the deal. A friend of mine told me about a bucket that had some brewing stuff for $5 during our town wide yard sale. I told her WTH just get it. Well when I picked it up there was all brand new stuff (except the bucket). There was a True Brew Amber Ale kit, brand new Red Barron capper, bottle brush, cheesy racking cane, hose, caps and a brand new air lock. I was stoked on this "deal". I got it home and broke the seal on the kit. The yeast and LME is Muntons and the DME is some other brand I do not recall atm. The DME was hard as a rock but it does appear to be a vacuum sealed package so could be fine. Will not know until I open it. The yeast has a sort of date on the back that says 03 01 so I am thinking I will just toss that. I am just wondering if the DME and LME should still be good or even the hops for that fact as well? Probably wouldn't be the best but probably wouldn't hurt to brew it up to see. If the DME is a solid brick will it dissolve still?

Everything except the hops and yeast should still be okay. Great find.

There's a video on YouTube about a guy who tried brewing an old Mr beer kit like that. It was about nine years old of I remember correctly. His pale ale turned out black. He tried to drink some and couldn't even get through half the glass.

That being said...give it a shot! Worst that could happen is you dump it down the drain.

Get new yeast and brew it. It will at least show you the effects of old extract and old hops if nothing else, but you might just get a great surprise. The deal was worth it for the capper.

DrawTap88 said:

Everything except the hops and yeast should still be okay. Great find.

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You know I never even took the age of the yeast into mind. I will write down what it is and then try and find one down at my LHBS. I may try to find a different recipe here that calls for that LME and DME.

jmweirick said:

There's a video on YouTube about a guy who tried brewing an old Mr beer kit like that. It was about nine years old of I remember correctly. His pale ale turned out black. He tried to drink some and couldn't even get through half the glass.

That being said...give it a shot! Worst that could happen is you dump it down the drain.

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I am going to have to check that out. That is definitely an old kit for sure. I agree worst that could happen is it is nasty.

Gartywood said:

Get new yeast and brew it. It will at least show you the effects of old extract and old hops if nothing else, but you might just get a great surprise. The deal was worth it for the capper.

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Oh yeah I thought the same thing. Between the capper, air lock,bottle brush and the bucket I actually stole it for that price. I am now a firm believer of hitting garage sales:rockin:

jmweirick said:

There's a video on YouTube about a guy who tried brewing an old Mr beer kit like that. It was about nine years old of I remember correctly. His pale ale turned out black. He tried to drink some and couldn't even get through half the glass.

That being said...give it a shot! Worst that could happen is you dump it down the drain.

Click to expand...

LOL thanks, just watched the video.


15 year old extract FTW! Roflmao

Yep, that's the one! One of the most entertaining brewing failures out there.

Throw the muntons yeast into the boil (guess what one of the ingredients in yeast nutrient is?) and get a pack of S-05 from the LHBS.

Should the DME be ok as well? I hate DME anyway so if it is bad I am fine with that and can get some LME from LHBS. I hate to throw out a free kit so will do it up anyway whether it turns out bad or not.

DME is too rich of a sugar for anything to grow in it. It should be fine.

that said, I'm not an extract brewer and only use dme to make starters, slants, etc.