Seasonality

[beerd]

Hi All -

Just getting into stocking up on supplied for impromptu brew days. Wondering about the shipping/seasonality/freshness aspect of a few things and how you all handle it:

- From what I can tell, a lot of the online malt ordering options don't really let you know when the malt you ordered was originally malted. Safe to assume if you're getting it from one of the common/reputable sources that it's usually fairly fresh and can last at least a year or so - if stored well? Is there any kind of seasonality to this - i.e harvest in the fall, so malt bought in winter more likely to be fresher, or is this just kind of a rolling thing?

- Any considerations when having hops, malt, or dry yeast shipped in the summer heat? Imagine at least the hops and maybe dry yeast would be impacted at 2 or 3 days at 100 in a delivery truck? I support the LHBS whenever I can, but just can't get everything I need sometimes. Is it best to avoid shipping anything in the summer?

- If you're buying hops new now from, say the 2018 harvest (from a reputable source, assume flushed and stored cold), do you reduce the expected IBUs in recipe contributions? Is there a calc for that?

Thanks!

 

[Calder]

If buying on-line from a major company, most everything is fresh due to high turnover.

- Grain, probably is seasonal, but I assume it is fresh from the date ir arrives and is good for a couple of years stored 'cool' and dry.

- Hops: Harvested in September/October. Leaf should be of current year. Do not buy old leaf hops, stick to current year. Store vacuum packed in freezer and use within a year. Leaf hops deteriorate quicker than pellets. Pellets: Most places store at cold temps either vacuum packed or in an inert gas. I'll buy year old hops. Again, need to store in freezer. Once opened, re-pack in vacuum sealed packs and store in fridge. I've used hops that are a few years old with no perceived issues. I usually add 10% to accommodate loss of potency. If you do not vacuum seal or store in freezer, you will lose hop presence. There is a hop stability index which says how much hop oils (IBUs) are lost with the hops at 70 F and open to the air. That is usually between 25 and 50% over 6 months.

- Yeast is a gamble. I thin dry would survive hot transport temps, but liquid will not. Dry will survive freezing temps. liquid will not. Store liquid in fridge - it will last a couple of years, but will require a starter if left that long. You should use a starter anyway with liquid yeast. Dry yeast will lose ~2% viability a year at fridge temps.

 

[beerd]

Thank you! this is a really helpful summary.

For the grain - if you have a pound or two leftover and restock - do you just mix in the new or keep the older separated? I'm guessing it doesn't make a difference particularly if you're going through it a a decent clip. My understanding is that even fairly old (well stored) grain doesn't really give a strong flavor, just might have a slightly lower conversion and could taste a little stale if the whole lot is really old?

 

[Deadalus]

You can have your liquid yeast packed with ice packs, costs more usually, but in the heat of summer I try to avoid needing liquid yeast shipped. Depends on the weather and the shipping time and route. If the ice pack is warm when you get it then the yeast may have gotten hot.

 

[beerd]

Yea, ordering liquid yeast in summer seems like one of those "it can be done, but there was almost definitely a better option" kind of things. I admit I haven't even tried using liquid yeast (extra work for the starter, fear of contamination, etc). To derail my own post: if anyone squarely in the liquid yeast camp has a surefire side-by-side I suggestion could do / what converted you - please shoot me a note.

One other question on hops shipping: (thanks again @Calder for the pointer to the hop stability index!). Google then pointed me to the Hop Age calculator in BeerSmith that seems really handy for calculating the adjusted alpha acids based on the hop variety, time and temp in storage. That said, it doesn't really allow you to account for "1 year vacuum sealed in mylar at 5 degrees....with 3 days at 110"...is it safe to ignore those 3 days as insignificant overall when shipping vacuum sealed pellet hops, or is there something when you get to a certain temp that they degrade exponentially more quickly?