5 replies to this topic

[BrianBrewerKS]

It's been waaaaay too long since I last brewed...14 months to be exact. I also have a 14 month old son, hmmmm....think that may have something to do with the skid in brewing.Anyways, I ordered ingredients (crushed grain and hops) back in October of '08 because I was planning on brewing something. Well, obviously I didn't get around to it...so now I still have a good amount of crushed grain (still in the bags they came in) and 2 ounces of hops still in their sealed packages and in a refrigerator. I know the hops should be okay...just maybe a lil lighter on the IBUs than they used to be...but what about the grains? Now, I don;'t plan on throwing them out, I'm going to brew with them, but will they provide less sugars being this 'old'?

[ncbeerbrewer]

Since the grains are crushed I don't believe that the sugar will be depleted due to lag time. I think the freshness/flavor might be effected but not ruined. I think that would change due to the age and having been crushed. I say brew with it and see how it turns out. I would bet you will get beer and it will still be good. Welcome back. I know how kids can effect brewing plans with two of my own. Good Luck.

[jayb151]

I agree. If they were uncrushed, I would have no problem brewing with them, but I think crushed grains may affect the perceved "freshness" of the beer. It will still taste like good, homemade beer though!

[Big Nake]

I have all of my grains precrushed when I buy them (no mill) so I get this from time to time. I will say that most of my base malt is used pretty quickly... within a month or 2... then I order more. But some of my specialties sit around awhile and I still brew with them. I have no idea how old some of my specialty grains have been when I brewed with them, but some of the less popular ones (brown malt, chocolate, victory, melanoidin, biscuit, special b, honey malt, etc), could easily be a year or more old. I don't think I've ever had a batch turn out bad because of bad/old grains. My grains sit in my cool, dry, dark basement and they're sealed up well. Give it a try and please report your findings. Hey... if I could make a batch of beer that had grain beetles in it, you can make beer with old grains! Cheers!

[BrianBrewerKS]

Thanks guys, I'll report back with how it works out. Oh, and FWIW Ken, I'm planning on brewing a pumpkin ale (will prolly be too late for Halloween, but oh well) and your recipe is one that I've been looking at. I had a really nice recipe that I got from somewhere...brewed it once and had it in my beersmith program, but then my computer crapped the bed and I lost the file. Your recipe looks fairly similar to the one I had, but with just a little more spice than my old one. I think I'll give it a try. Got any advice for it?

[Big Nake]

Brian: Rice hulls in the MT so you avoid a stuck runoff. I like to add some spice to the brewpot, but some of that gets scrubbed out so then I add more to the secondary. It seems like beers with added spice take a little longer to mellow so this may be on your Thanksgiving table as opposed to on your Halloween candy table. I had a few leftover from last year and I plan to make due with those... I have been distracted by some other beers. Cheers & good luck!