My brother last Christmas was given a beer making kit. The person who gave it to him obviously knows nothing about beer because he just gave him the kit which had the grains, DME, hops and yeast. Obviously, my brother never got to brewing because he never had any of the equipment. I just recently moved back home and saw that my brother still had this stuff hanging around, hops in the freezer, yeast in the fridge and DME and grains still in the box. My question is, would these still work or are they too old? I know yeast and hops can stay good for a while if they are kept refrigerated, but can they stay for 10 months? Is there any chance it would still work or should I just forget it since I am sure it was only like a $30 kit?
Almost year old beer kit
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dantodd
Well-Known Member
should work fine.
I'd personally rehydrate the yeast first and give it a teaspoon of so of sugar just to make sure it's nice and lively before I fired up the brew kettle. but otherwise everything should be perfectly fine.
I'd personally rehydrate the yeast first and give it a teaspoon of so of sugar just to make sure it's nice and lively before I fired up the brew kettle. but otherwise everything should be perfectly fine.
ThreeRatBastards
Well-Known Member
Yeah go ahead and brew it. On one hand it could turn out good/drinkable, and on the other hand it turns out crappy and you are out 5 or so gallons of water and a couple hours of time.
If you don't want to brew it, at least keep the DME around to make yeast starters for later batches.
If you don't want to brew it, at least keep the DME around to make yeast starters for later batches.
I'm drinking one right this minute which is from a kit that was 2 years old when I brewed it a month ago. It's fine.
bronzdragon
Well-Known Member
If the yeast was not abused, and kept in the fridge, you should be able to revive it by making a starter. You would probably be doing good to get another yeast though, just in case. As far as the hops go, if they were vacuum packed, they should be ok.
If it's a dme with steeping grains kit then everything should go fine. If it's a partial mash kit, then you'll see a decreased amount of converted sugars from the grain, but it should be fine.
The only thing I'd worry about is if the kit was in a hot place, then the plastic bag may leave a plasticy taste on the grains.
So basically, if you open the grain and it smells fine, you're probably good to go. Just make sure you have an extra pack or vial of yeast on hand in case the other doesn't kick off.
If you're not quite sure about it, you can always make a big beer or barleywine out of it by buying a few extra ingredients.
Cheers
~r~
If it's a dme with steeping grains kit then everything should go fine. If it's a partial mash kit, then you'll see a decreased amount of converted sugars from the grain, but it should be fine.
The only thing I'd worry about is if the kit was in a hot place, then the plastic bag may leave a plasticy taste on the grains.
So basically, if you open the grain and it smells fine, you're probably good to go. Just make sure you have an extra pack or vial of yeast on hand in case the other doesn't kick off.
If you're not quite sure about it, you can always make a big beer or barleywine out of it by buying a few extra ingredients.
Cheers
~r~
Just saw this thread I created a little while back and thought I would report back that I actually kicked the keg of this year old beer a few weeks ago. I am crying as I type this thinking about how it is all gone. It was absolutely delicious and possibly the best batch I have made yet.
