Should I put ingredients in the fridge?

[mhochman]

I ordered a recipe/ingredients kit from AHS on Saturday thinking I'd be able to brew this Saturday. Unfortunately, my plans have changed and I don't know how quickly I'm getting to this brew day. I'm curious what to do with the ingredients.

The liquid yeast is already in the fridge. What about the hop pellet packs? The LME, which is in a plastic jar? The crushed grains I know are fine at room temp, as is the priming sugar.The LME is labeled as "perishable, use soon."

Thanks.

 

[jkreuze]

Refrigeration won't hurt any of that stuff, may as well do it for peace of mind.

I wouldn't bother refrigerating sugar, though.

There is such a thing as overkill.

 

[hamiltont]

Yeast in the Fridge. Hops in the Freezer. The rest at room temp, and low humidity for the crushed grains. Cheers!!!

 

[73Drvr]

LME is best kept in the fridge also.

 

[TipsyDragon]

LME is best kept in the fridge also.

i disagree. if that where the case then why do LHBS keep their extract out in the open on shelves. after its open then yes i would keep it in the fridge. unopened the only things that need to be in the fridge are the yeast and hops.

 

[mhochman]

Alright, so yeast and hops in fridge. I have the rest in a room temp spot. Still undecided about the LME.

 

[hamiltont]

There is no reason to refrigerate the LME unless you opened it. Otherwise put it with the rest of your stuff at room temp. Out of direct sunlight too BTW... In the closet or something like that. Cheers!!!

 

[jkreuze]

i disagree. if that where the case then why do LHBS keep their extract out in the open on shelves. after its open then yes i would keep it in the fridge. unopened the only things that need to be in the fridge are the yeast and hops.

They likely would rather not waste refrigeration space and expense for something they can keep on the shelves with little loss of quality.

Will it keep longer under refrigeration, though? Yes.

 

[pkincaid]

Once it's been opened, stash it in the fridge and forget about it. LME lasts forever! **damn near** Yeasts go night night in the fridge, and hops stay delightful in the freezer. That's what I stick too. I bought a 5 gal bucket from Home Depot and I store my grain in it, with a lid of course, out in the garage. That's only cause I bought 55lbs of 2 row. Room temp for everything else ok

 

[73Drvr]

I agree most of us don't keep LME in the fridge. But, Bob Hanson, the owner of Briess did several interviews on BBR. He said that they have done long term testing on their LME. Their results indicated that the "extract twang" and "wort darkening" that most extract brewers complain about is a result of stale LME and that LME will go stale much faster at room temp but last a very long time at refrigerator temps.

It's not a matter of going "bad." It's a matter of fresh vs. stale. If you don't have fridge space don't worry about it. But, if you do, why not keep it as fresh as possible.

 

[TipsyDragon]

They likely would rather not waste refrigeration space and expense for something they can keep on the shelves with little loss of quality.

Will it keep longer under refrigeration, though? Yes.

I agree most of us don't keep LME in the fridge. But, Bob Hanson, the owner of Briess did several interviews on BBR. He said that they have done long term testing on their LME. Their results indicated that the "extract twang" and "wort darkening" that most extract brewers complain about is a result of stale LME and that LME will go stale much faster at room temp but last a very long time at refrigerator temps.

It's not a matter of going "bad." It's a matter of fresh vs. stale. If you don't have fridge space don't worry about it. But, if you do, why not keep it as fresh as possible.

the original poster was asking about keeping his ingredients for a week or two not several months

 

[Walker]

the original poster was asking about keeping his ingredients for a week or two not several months

But the point is still valid. Fridge is better.

A few weeks of room temp for hops isn't going to do much either, but it was still suggested to put them in the freezer, right?

 

[mhochman]

Thanks for all of the advice. The good news is that brew day has been rescheduled for Wednesday.

Pliny the Elder clone!