Hop buying

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Big10Seaner

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I was trying to figure out my brewing schedule for the rest of the year and realized some of the hops I'm going to need might be hard to get ahold of (EK Goldings, etc.). If I want to remain true to some of these recipes, I want the hops they call for. I was wondering, if I happen to find some of these hops, should I buy them and hold onto them for the year until I need them? Basically, I'm asking if any of you think there will be any hops which will be totally unavailable this year?
 
Buy what you need when you find them. Kept sealed in a freezer, they're good for a couple years.
 
You can store the pellets for about a year in the freezer if they are vaccuum sealed. They do loose some of their alpha acids, over the year, but you can just assume that after a while they will be about 25% less potent than on the label and adjust your recipe accordingly.

Most freezers have an auto defrost, and the freezing and thawing in the frezer is not ideal for the hops, so you may want to put them inside a cooler inside the freezer so that the temperature stays more constant. I personally have about 8 pounds of hops stored in my freezer, mostly pellets because they stay good longer, but I also have some whole leaf hops as well.
 
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