2018 dry yeast - trash?

[htims05]

So I just saw I have a 2018 dry yeast only one of its kind...I assume it’s trash not going to do anything?

 

[IslandLizard]

Still sealed? How was it stored?
How come it's one of its kind?

Most dry yeast is pretty hardy as long as it didn't get cooked.
When in doubt about her viability, you could brew a small, 1 or 2 gallon batch with it and use the resulting yeast cake for a bigger batch.

 

[htims05]

It’s just a random one off that I didn’t realize I had until some reorganization.

yeah still sealed - looks new. Stored cool but not refrigerated. But who knows what happened to it before I acquired it.

 

[IslandLizard]

It’s just a random one off that I didn’t realize I had until some reorganization.

yeah still sealed - looks new. Stored cool but not refrigerated. But who knows what happened to it before I acquired it.

Yeah, I'd ferment a gallon (or 3/4 gallon in a gallon jug) with it. Like making a big starter.
Or make a regular stirred starter with it.

But then again, how rare is it? Irreplaceable?

 

[htims05]

Yeah, I'd ferment a gallon (or 3/4 gallon in a gallon jug) with it. Like making a big starter.
Or make a regular stirred starter with it.

But then again, how rare is it? Irreplaceable?

It’s not rare at all it’s probably a $5 loss if it’s no good. It’s just a wheat ale yeast.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

It should be fine - I recently revived some dry yeast that had spent nearly 20 years in a cupboard.

 

[RM-MN]

Sealed dry yeast that is 2 years old, no problem. I will keep opened yeast for 8 months and it still ferments well.

 

[THESULLI]

I just pitched a packet of US-05 that expired 2 years ago that was just put in the pantry and forgotten about. I did pitch it along with another pack at the advice of the forum however. Most vigorous fermentation I have had yet. It seems like most people don't really worry about old yeast. If there is any concern about its viability, they just make a starter with it. Just what I have observed while cruising around on the forum for the last couple of days. Not much else going on lately...

 

[IslandLizard]

If there is any concern about its viability, they just make a starter with it.

You could with dry yeast, sure.
But making starters is much more the terrain of liquid yeasts, which lose viability at a steady rate, especially when not stored refrigerated or mishandled in other ways (shipped in hot or freezing weather). That's what most banter about yeast starters here is about.

 

[THESULLI]

You could with dry yeast, sure.
But making starters is much more the terrain of liquid yeasts, which lose viability at a steady rate, especially when not stored refrigerated or mishandled in other ways (shipped in hot or freezing weather). That's what most banter about yeast starters here is about.

Somewhat related to the original question... My basic understanding based on the little reading I have done so far is that the advantage of liquid yeast tends to produce cleaner beer in terms of the taste. The downside being questionable viability which turns into more involvement to prepare the yeast such as doing a starter. Now the part that is loosely related to the original post. The advantage of dry yeast is that it is pretty much always good to go even after the expiration date and questions of viability are mostly tossed out the window, making the ease of use much higher than that of a liquid yeast. The downside being that the finished product does not tend to come out as clean as if a similar style liquid yeast had been used. Not to say it produces inferior beer... Seems based on what I have read that the final outcome tends to be a little different.

I don't mean to hijack the thread by starting a dry vs liquid thing. This just raised another question in my head and since we were originally talking about the viability of old dry yeast I thought I would toss this thought in instead of starting a whole new thread.

I could be horrendously off and I hope you guys will correct me if that is the case. That is just based on what I have read so far in my quest to better understand the tiny miracle monsters we call yeast.

 

[smata67]

Somewhat related to the original question... My basic understanding based on the little reading I have done so far is that the advantage of liquid yeast tends to produce cleaner beer in terms of the taste. The downside being questionable viability which turns into more involvement to prepare the yeast such as doing a starter. Now the part that is loosely related to the original post. The advantage of dry yeast is that it is pretty much always good to go even after the expiration date and questions of viability are mostly tossed out the window, making the ease of use much higher than that of a liquid yeast. The downside being that the finished product does not tend to come out as clean as if a similar style liquid yeast had been used. Not to say it produces inferior beer... Seems based on what I have read that the final outcome tends to be a little different.

I don't mean to hijack the thread. This just raised another question in my head and since we were originally talking about the viability of old dry yeast I thought I would toss this thought in instead of starting a whole new thread.

I could be horrendously off and I hope you guys will correct me if that is the case. That is just based on what I have read so far in my quest to better understand the tiny miracle monsters we call yeast.

This is the conventional wisdom and is generally in line with my experience. Liquid yeasts also have the advantage of having a vast selection to pick from. Dry yeasts have their place and I always keep a good stash in case of something going not as planned on pitch day.