Mail Order yeast?

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Toadkiller Dog

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Howdy all--

I have a situation that I could use some advice with. I am currently assigned to spend a year in Morgantown, WV. It is a cool town, but unfortunately has no LHBS. I can mail order all of the ingredients I need to brew, but I am not sure about the yeast. I generally use liquid yeasts (different ones, depending on the style I am brewing), and like many brewers, I am on a budget. I am concerned that I would be spending the extra money and getting a bottle of "dead" yeast once it gets here.

And what about ice/2nd day shipping, etc? Is it necessary? It adds quite a bit to the cost of the yeast (sometimes tripling it!), making the brew more expensive. On the other hand, I could drive to Pittsburgh (1.5 hours), but again, its tough to justify spending half a day and $20 in gas for a bottle of yeast.

Do you guys have any recommendations for places that mail-order liquid yeast for a reasonable price and can get it there "alive"?
 
I've had no problems ordering yeast and having it delivered. Maybe get dry yeast? There are plenty of online shops around that area that can get it to you in a short amount of time.
 
At this point, I usually use three yeasts in my brewing (California, Edinburgh and Witbier) and use the harvesting and washing techniques described here https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/yeast-washing-illustrated-41768/

I try to purchase from my lhbs, but have occasionally had to order yeast that they didn't carry - they've used ice packs but I never asked for special, speedy delivery. I think I've done this three times and never had a problem with dead yeast.

You might do an order with a couple of types of yeast that you think you'll reuse, purchase them together to save on shipping, and begin harvesting and washing the yeast. This will save you significantly more money than you will be spending on the shipping. For me, brewing approximately once per month, I now purchase yeast very infrequently.
 
I only order mail order since it is a ton cheaper than our local HBS. I use dry yeast as well as liquid White Labs and Wyeast and have never had a problem. As soon as I get it I put it in the fridge, but they have always worked very well. I order from Brewmasters Warehouse mostly, but have used Midwest as well as Austin Homebrew Supply.
 
Thanks for the replies. Sounds like you're generally not ordering expedited shipping.

As for planning my summer brews and making one trip, I'm afraid the stuff would be dead before I would use it (other than the first batch). In my experience, liquid yeast doesn't keep all that long before it is at high risk of being a dead starter.

I checked out Brewmaster's warehouse--they seem to have a good selection, and they're not too far away. I think I'll try ordering a smack-pak or 2 and seeing how it does.
 
Toadkiller Dog said:
Howdy all--

I have a situation that I could use some advice with. I am currently assigned to spend a year in Morgantown, WV. It is a cool town, but unfortunately has no LHBS. I can mail order all of the ingredients I need to brew, but I am not sure about the yeast. I generally use liquid yeasts (different ones, depending on the style I am brewing), and like many brewers, I am on a budget. I am concerned that I would be spending the extra money and getting a bottle of "dead" yeast once it gets here.

And what about ice/2nd day shipping, etc? Is it necessary? It adds quite a bit to the cost of the yeast (sometimes tripling it!), making the brew more expensive. On the other hand, I could drive to Pittsburgh (1.5 hours), but again, its tough to justify spending half a day and $20 in gas for a bottle of yeast.

Do you guys have any recommendations for places that mail-order liquid yeast for a reasonable price and can get it there "alive"?
Click to expand...

I get most of my liquid yeast from Brewmasters warehouse year round . It takes two days regular ground to get to me here in NY as they are in GA . They charge $1 for an ice pack Brewmasters warehouse is a vendor here
 
I don't order much yeast in the summer, as I wash and reuse all of my yeast. I tend to order in the fall and spring, but I have ordered in the summer and winter. It's a LONG way from Brewmaster's Warehouse or Austinhomebrew.com to here, but I've always received good, viable yeast.

I always have to order yeast, as there isn't a homebrew store around me within 150 miles. It'll be fine!
 
I order in spring and fall too and haven't had a problem yet. But I haven't ordered (nor will I) when it's hot out. Maybe order some now before it warms up too much.
 

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