Milled grains

I'm getting ready for my first all grain batch. It'll be Tire Biter Bitter from Radical Brewing. I was wondering how long milled grains will stay fresh? How should I store the leftover milled grain? Any general advice on brewing a bitter?

I store all of my milled stuff in the keezer with my kegs. I usually have it used up within the month. You should be able to keep it for a few months as long as it is cool and dry. As for brewing bitter, I assume you hit it like a pale.

Have you got a vacuum sealer? That would help for sure.
I think that if they are kept cold, dry and in a good container they should be good for a month to month and a half.
Some grains are going to keep better than others.

Thanks for the info. I had been considering a vacuum sealer, but had not thought about it for this reason. I guess the other answer is to brew more!

I don't live near a brew store so I like to keep some stock on hand to be able to brew if I decide to so I'm getting a mill.

Grain stores much better when it's not milled yet.

Vacuum sealer...probably one of the best investment I have made in my brewing. Wifey loves it for food too!

Think of Quaker Oatmeal. It's a milled grain. It keeps well for months in the dry cupboard. No refrigeration needed for it. Your milled grains should be good for a long time if kept dry and (relatively) cool.

RM-MN said:

Think of Quaker Oatmeal. It's a milled grain. It keeps well for months in the dry cupboard. No refrigeration needed for it. Your milled grains should be good for a long time if kept dry and (relatively) cool.

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Very good example! Thanks!

However, you might notice that your old oatmeal doesn't taste a whole lot like freshly milled oats. People keep oatmeal around for month and month, just like they do flour. It doesn't spoil, but it certainly looses flavor.

In contrast to the oatmeal analogy, coffee starts going stale the second you mill it. The best coffee is ground up and immediately brewed. The longer coffee sits around milled the more it dries out and loses flavor/aroma.

I wouldn't recommend keeping milled grain around for a while. I milled some grain for an AG batch of Dunkelweizen at the homebrew store and life got in the way and it sat in my closet for a month in the plastic bags with wire ties. I brewed the beer and it was good, but not great. It was missing a depth of flavor I could only attribute to stale grain. My friends/family thought the beer was good, but I could tell it was not as 'fresh' as the dunkelweizens I had brewed in the past.

Moral of the story, if you are going to mill it and let it sit around, don't just leave in plastic bags with wire ties in your closet. Take measures to keep it fresh.

Along with RM-MN's Quaker Oats analogy, remember that light is also an enemy of maintaining freshness in your grain.

Obviously, the sooner you brew after milling the better, but you should have no problems with spoilage during short term (6 -8 weeks) storage of grain in a cool, dry, dark place.

Well - there are a range of opinions on this! I have to go along with how I treat coffee that I grind. I try to use it as quick as possible and tend to throw it out after if I don't brew it soon. I think I'd prefer to take the same approach with my beer too! Thanks guys. The feedback is really appreciated.

I think if you vacuum sealed it and kept in a cool/dark place it would probably last a while. I don't have a vacuum sealer, and I know without that the freezer might dry out the grain.