"Old hops" question

[BeerNsteadofH2O]

Tonight after dry hopping my black IPA. I was getting "stuff" together for fridays brew and decided to calibrate my PH meter, while digging through my bin looking for the calibration solution I found, ( amongst other treasures) a large zip lock bag with assorted hops, dating from 10/21 to 3/23, it is part of an emergency repair plan I had put together with DME,(I keep a few packets of safbrew US 05 in the cooler) my question, would you guys brew something with them or toss them, I saw Citra, Cascade,Fuggles and Mosaic..they are un opened been in there in the basement, average temp. Is high sixties.

 

[OleBrewing]

I have used three year old home grown hops that were vac sealed and frozen. and the beer was a yellow somewhat wheat beer with little bitterness and or hop profile in recipe. turn out great.

dont expect super floral activity with aging hops or super bitterness.

 

[z-bob]

If they smell okay, they are usable but don't expect much. If they smell like cheese or don't smell like anything, throw them out.
If they had been stored in a deep freezer they would be fine.

Wait a minute, I just saw that the newest ones are from 2023. I would use those.

 

[BeerNsteadofH2O]

Thanks guys, my biggest concern was if I use them , I turn the brew I to "lawnmower beer" but not because of low ABV,but more that it would taste like a hay field, or have a rank bitterness, now adays i put any extra unopened hop packets in vacuumed sealed bags and freeze them, I'd forgotten I had those , i need to dig into the bottom of that bin more often, I found hop socks and bottle caps and a spare controler for my Grainfather i didn't know I had.. as far as the hops, I think considering the price of grain and effort involved, tossing a few bucks worth of hops is better than the potential for ruining a batch.. I brought up the conversation in the spirit of someone else may be wondering the same thing.

 

[balrog]

Trust your nose. Open 'em and smell 'em.
Really.
Maybe even rub a bit between your hands. If all you get is vegetative/grass without hint of spice/floral/citrus/pine, then yeah, the oils have degraded in time.

Chances are really good, though, that while not peak efficiency, those hops will not ruin a batch.

 

[kingmatt]

Everyone's situation is different so you have to decide what you want to priotize with your brew. Is cost your number one concern? Is it the quality of the finished product? Is it experimentation and learning from the ingredients/process?

I personally am focused on the quality of the finished product and the fact that I am limited in how many brew days I have these days. I would never take the chance with questionable ingredients, even if I have to sactrifice some old stock and buy fresh. YMMV

 

[day_trippr]

I am quality driven and highly risk-adverse, thus I would line up behind ^that person^...

Cheers!

 

[Broken Crow]

I've had the same thing...In my case: Fuggles, EKG and Citra. I was a bit worried but doing some experimental smaller batches to test gear I'd built, so what the heck.. I assumed some IBU loss and since I didn't care a lot about precision for these, I wieghed an arbitrary extra 30%: The Fuggles had the right taste and I probably could've used a bit less, The EKG's and Citras were a write-off in their respective batches though...

taste like a hay field, or have a rank bitterness

..is exactly what happened with them. The dark ale with Fuggles was pretty good. None of them smelled like dirty socks though, but they were clearly headed in that direction... I think if you adjust your expectations, you could try them within reason. Otherwise, if you're not feeling experimental or have absolute flavour profile expectations, toss them and start another "Organizing Your Stuff" thread.

 

[BrewZer]

Thanks guys, my biggest concern was if I use them , I turn the brew I to "lawnmower beer" but not because of low ABV,but more that it would taste like a hay field, or have a rank bitterness...

"Lawnmower beer" isn't a taste description -- it's an activity.

You mow the lawn, you drink a "lawnmower beer." Or two.

 

[BeerNsteadofH2O]

"Lawnmower beer" isn't a taste description -- it's an activity.

You mow the lawn, you drink a "lawnmower beer." Or two.

I knew that..I was born at night, not last night, I tried to be ",cute"..FAIL, anyway, my wife mows the lawn( and doesnt drink beer, it costs me a Belvideere martini or 2 every Friday night) while I brew or fish!

 

[JAReeves]

I purposefully aged a # of hops for sours and it took over a year at room temp to get past cheesy to rum-raisin. I vote you have fun with it and see what happens. Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn.

 

[ncbrewer]

my wife mows the lawn( and doesnt drink beer, it costs me a Belvideere martini or 2 every Friday night) while I brew or fish!

You are obviously living a charmed life - you can get away with anything.

 

[Wrendelar]

If they smell like cheese …. No bueno … toss’em

 

[BeerNsteadofH2O]

You are obviously living a charmed life - you can get away with anything.

It's a trade off, she like Martinis and Scotch.. I like beer and fishing, she "processes" the lobster and fish i catch, she doesnt like the way i mow the lawn..i wasnt so lucky my first "kick at the can,".

 

[rmchair]

Congrats. It’s a good idea to break a few dishes and ruin some laundry early on in the marriage. It took me a few years to figure out the nuances of the lawn. But now, im barely allowed to gas up the mower.