Use By Date On Yeast

[fergi]

what should be the average use by date on a safale dried yeast be from a HBS. i picked up a us 05 with 5 months left on it,it was the only one that they had. i made a starter from it and looks okay but im sure they should have more time on use by date than 5 months


cheers
fergi

 

[wambesi]

what should be the average use by date on a safale dried yeast be from a HBS. i picked up a us 05 with 5 months left on it,it was the only one that they had. i made a starter from it and looks okay but im sure they should have more time on use by date than 5 months


cheers
fergi

I have used US05 12 months after its use by date with no problems.
Starters are not usually needed for dried yeasts, although re-hydration is often recommended.

 

[Tony]

I found a pack of dried S-33 last year that was 3 years old and it went like a rocket.

It all depends on how its been stored. I keep mine in the fridge but if they have lived in your car in the sun..... its a different story.

cheers

 

[Spartan 117]

what should be the average use by date on a safale dried yeast be from a HBS. i picked up a us 05 with 5 months left on it,it was the only one that they had. i made a starter from it and looks okay but im sure they should have more time on use by date than 5 months


cheers
fergi

I was going to suggest making a starter and see how it goes, but since you've already made one I say if it looks good go for it

Aaron

 

[dr K]

Making a starter for dry yeast essentially uses up all the extra bits (trehalose, glycogen etc) that are added to help kick the yeast off in a 30 litre wort before you pitch it, you will still produce beer but most likely with a sheet load of unwanted characteristics as the yeast has gone bananas in the starter then run out of food, it will not starve but will behave differently when introduced to the mother wort, to your disadvantage.
Rehydrating for 15 -30 minutes (max) will certainly help but is not really required. If your dry yeast has not been exposed to oxygen for more than a few days it will be fine.
I primarily use liquid yeast, but have to admit that even the freshest (say 2 weeks from manufacture) will never kick off as fast as a 12 month old nitro pack of US56, direct pitched.
K

 

[fergi]

ok well i pitched the starter and within 30 minutes its already going strong, now to wait and see if it has the funky flavors that DRK suggested might happen
cheers

fergi

 

[katzke]

ok well i pitched the starter and within 30 minutes its already going strong, now to wait and see if it has the funky flavors that DRK suggested might happen
cheers

fergi

It all depends on if you made a starter or just let it show signs of life.

For the reasons given starters are not good with dry yeast like Fermentis. I would just do a proof if I were worried about the yeast. Problem is the wort is ready at that time so if the yeast did not proof you would be in a bad way if you had no back up plan. One reason why I have extra packs in the fridge.

 

[MHB]

I think the yeast packets have a Best Before date rather than a use by date.

There is a definition of the two available (Wiki for a start), but what it comes down to is that the number of live cells diminishes over time, the manufacturers recon the time where you still get the results you have paid under certain conditions.
In the case of Saf yeast its at 20 C out of direct sunlight, refrigerating dried yeast can easily double the shelf life, being significantly hotter than the 20 C recommended can shorten it dramatically.

MHB

 

[fergi]

i actually made a proper starter over about 3 days, a litre of water with about 100 grms of malt. i had substantially more yeast in the jar after 3 days.really wanted to make sure it was alive so as not to waste the 20 litres of wort.anyway i am not after an exact copy of anything except that its a pale ale . this is my favorite house beer though i have been using coopers pale ale yeast from the bottles, will be interesting to see what the difference is .
cheers
fergi

 

[Carbonator]

I think the yeast packets have a Best Before date rather than a use by date.

That would be correct. I have these 500gm packs of wine yeast and they are 2 years past and they work fine. They have been in my kitchen above the fridge for the first 2 years, then under my house for the last 3 years, now just went into a fridge;

i actually made a proper starter over about 3 days

It could be an excessive amount of time, but I might be wrong. Going on a yeast manufacturer's instructions, 30 mins (15 in water, then 15 more with Wert) is all that's needed, but again, may be specific to this strain;