My Saaz leaf hops have been in the freezer for 6 months: are they knackered?

[tomsan]

Will my Saaz leaf hops still be usable after 6 months in the freezer? Or should I bin them?

 

[BigMack]

How were they stored in the freezer? If they were vacuumed they should be absolutely fine. A quick sniff should tell you whether or not they're oxidized as well. If they smell good and were well packaged they should be good to go.

 

[brewcat]

I bet they are still good even if they weren't vacuum sealed as long as they were dry. I think last year I used hops that were in the freezer for at least 8 months.

 

[HomebrewSupply]

Will my Saaz leaf hops still be usable after 6 months in the freezer? Or should I bin them?

Unopened? Absolutely fine. Vacuum sealed? Totally good to go. Left out in an open cup... maybe not as good.

 

[k1ngl1ves]

Saaz hops smell like wet socks to me. You should just toss them.

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

I have some 14 month old chinook hops that sat in the fridge (not freezer) with the original packaging lightly wrapped around them and a cheaply ziplock bag. They smell completely fine. I forgot I had them and saw them digging through my other hops and decided they would be good aged hops for a lambic. They smelled completely fine, I sat huffing the package for a couple minutes trying to dig out the cheesy dirty sock smell but could not find it. I was SURE they would smell like cheese and be all yellow. I'm still aging them in a tea cup on a counter and 2 weeks out of the fridge still green and piney.

6 months in the freezer in some sort of packaging? They're fine.

 

[foam_top]

Saaz hops smell like wet socks to me. You should just toss them.

On a completely unrelated note, is your profile picture Aaron Rodgers as Mr. Rogers? Man, now I've seen it all...

 

[slym2none]

I have two different bags of hops in my freezer, one about 12oz and one over a pound, just in Ziplocs. I don't have a vacuum-sealer. Should I be worried?