how long does grain stay good for?

[zodiak3000]

i just got my crushed grains from northern brewer yesterday for my first AG. due to my poor planning, i dont have a wort chiller. i wont have time to get one till sometime next week. will my grains stay legit if i just leave them in the NB packaging till i brew next sat 4/10? im sure they will be fine, but just want some reassurance as this is my first AG. i also have a 1/2lb of carapils about 4 months old from my last batch. is this still good? ive had it in tupperware in my closet dry. i cant remember what it looked or smelled like 4 months ago..

 

[IceFisherChris]

Yes. I left mine for about 2 months before I brewed.

 

[zodiak3000]

any other opinions?

 

[coryforsenate]

A lot of it depends on the humidity and temperature you store them at.

They'll go bad a lot faster in a garage in florida than in montana.

 

[zodiak3000]

i got em at 65 in the closet in all the northern brewer packaging. they were crushed by NB about a week ago, and i wont be brewing for about another week.

 

[coryforsenate]

Your grain should be fine then. 2 weeks ain't that bad as long as they're kept in a dark and cool area.

If you think delays like this might happen again, it might not be a bad idea to make friends with somebody who has a grain mill or finding a used one somewhere.


If you want a hands on way to get an idea if it's still good or not, take a little bit of the grain and steep it in some warm water. If it doesn't taste funny, then you should be good to go.

 

[Pick]

Unmalted grains can last for years in storage under the right conditions. In order to keep seeds viable the humidity and temperature should equal 100. In other words at 60* the humidity would be optimal at 40%.

I do not know what those factors are for malted grains.

 

[bruno_78]

I've kept crushed grains for a couple weeks, stored in my refrigerator.

 

[osagedr]

I don't know what the storage life would be, but certainly more than a few weeks. You have nothing to worry about.