How long will pellet hops last in the fridge?

[JeramyD]

I assume that hops, like any ingredient, will go "stale" or "bad" after a certain amount of time.

Now that I have time to brew again, I was taking a little inventory to find out what I had from my last round of experimentation. I have probably close to 2-3 pounds of pellet hops that were in ziplock bags in my fridge. If I had to guess as to how long they were there I would say about 1.3-.15 years. Are these hops trash now? About how long will refridgerated, ziplocked hops last before going stale... if that even happens.

 

[helibrewer]

Zip lock bags in the fridge I would say is a rather short term solution (a few months). In oxygen barrier bags, in the freezer, you might be able to use them over the period you describe....2-3 pounds is a lot of hops to chuck though.

Beta acids convert to Alpha acids as they oxidize so you could probably get decent bittering from them but I would not use them for flavor or aroma.

 

[JeramyD]

Thanks for the reply!

 

[Calder]

What hops?

If you post the type, the AA%, the age (months), and the temperature (38 would be a good number for fridge), a lot of people on here can tell you how much they have deteriorated. Many Beer programs have hop age calculators. I know BeerSmith does.

I suspect they will be useable. They may not be best for flavor or aroma (smell them and make a decision), but they will still be useful for bittering, but will have a lower AA% than you have listed on the packet.

Hops have a stability number which generally ranges from 20 to 40%. The number represents the percentage loss of AAs over 6 months if left open to the air at 70 F. So if a hop has a stability number of 30%, and started with 10% AAs, after 6 months left out in the air, it will have 7% AAs left. Storing in a container, and at colder temperatures reduces the amount of loss.

The best way to store them is vacuum packed in the freezer. they will last for years like that.

 

[JeramyD]

Great information Calder, thank you!
I'll have to open up the tupperware and check to see what hops we have left. We were using a lot of cascade and chinook I belive so it is likely that we have those in there. It has been a long time ( > 1 year) and I imagine their aromatic qualities have passed. It is good to hear that we may still be able to use them for bittering though. I plan on making some 1 gallon test batches to try some things out. Maybe I will make a batch of these and see what happens.

 

[Calder]

Plugging in the hops into the BeerSmith calculator, assuming a storage temp of 38 F for 18 months in a plastic bag (non-vacuum), I getthe following:

Cascade Original AAs = 5.5%, after 18 months AAs = 2.1

Chinook Original AAs = 13%, after 18 months AAs = 6.1

Both of these are some of the worst for storage. If you had some Citra, they would have fared better, going from 12% to 8% over the same time.

FYI:

If stored for 18 months in plastic bag in freezer, the AAs would be; Cascade = 3.8%, and Chinook = 9.8%

If stored for 18 months vacuum packed in freezer, the AAs would be; Cascade = 4.6%, and Chinook = 11.3%

Even if you can't vacuum pack the hops (and if you use them in a reasonable time, there is no need), you should always keep them in the freezer.

 

[Ramitt]

A foodsaver with the ball jar attachment is fairly inexpensive ( $100 or less) and a simple invaluable way to preserve bulk hops and save money. Worth buying just for buying whole primals of meat and separating into chops and steaks. The brewing side is just a bonus really. Truly a tool that pays for itself.