CONTEXT: I currently have a fridge/freezer combo. Hops up top, kegs and bottles (and yeast) below. I have been having issues lately with the keg in the back of the fridge blowing, then having to move the front keg to get to it out, stirring up the yeast and sediment back into the beer. *I am trying to get more kegs so I can lager one down until cleared and then jumper into a new one leaving the yeast behind* I also have the difficulty of the glass shelf in the fridge not being able to actually hold all the kegs (fear it might break some day). I am thinking of buying a chest freezer instead of the fridge and using a temp controller, but then I lose the freezer space for my hops. QUESTION: Wondering how much faster hops degrade if kept in a fridge at say 42*F instead of in the freezer. They are all vacuum sealed. I package all of my hops (pounds of pellets included) in 2oz increments so I don't keep opening and closing them throughout usage. Thoughts?
http://brewerslog.appspot.com/HopAlphaCalc You could play around with something like this. Difference doesn't seem significant. My lhbs stores their hops in a regular fridge. I think every store I've been to does , as well
Below is a link of an article that was published in Brewing Techniques with an equation to calculate alpha acid loss over time. One of the factors in the equation is storage temperature; the equation utilizes a metric called Temperature Factor (TF). A typical home freezer has a temperature setting around 0°F; the TF for this value is about 0.173. You mentioned storing at 42°F. The TF for 44.6°F is 0.548. Maybe you could conduct some calculations for yourself and see what the impact is of a storage temperature in the low 40’s vs. freezer temperature (e.g., 0°F). Cheers! http://morebeer.com/brewingtechniques/library/backissues/issue2.1/garetz.html
From what I can tell the difference in 0F and 40F is significant. For jbakajust1, have you considered yanking the glass shelves and replacing with pressure-treated wood? Let the bottom shelf rest on the hump and make a couple of footers in front. Then alternate hi/lo shelves starting above the corny-keg height. I would fight hard to keep the freezer. Use some 2 x 6's and it would be strong enough to hold an NFL linebacker . . .
You need the chest freezer and the fridge (like you didn't already know this). I'd guesstimate that pellets age at least 3-4 times faster at 40F than at 0F.
Thanks. I am leaning more and more toward keeping the fridge/freezer combo. I have also asked on another popular HB forum about the possibility of splitting the power from a fridge and freezer on my ferm-fridge so I can use the the freezer and the fridge separate.
I have a normal fridge for food. I have a beer fridge. I have a ferm-fridge. No room for another appliance in the mix.
“I'd guesstimate that pellets age at least 3-4 times faster at 40F than at 0F.” That sounds about right. If you consider the TF values of 0.548 and 0.173: 0.548/0.173 = 3.17. Cheers!
I've talked with the guys at my LHBS. It's in a sliding fridge. They say they go through about a container a day with the hops on the shelves in the fridge. I trust them that they don't have the hops in the fridge for very long. They keep their bulk in the freezer in the back of the store.
My only issue with this would be... how are the bulk freezer hops packaged? I've seen setups where they are stored in an opened (and not re-sealed) bag-in-a-box. Basically open to the air. It's why I don't buy hops from LHBSs or any vendor who packages on an "as needed" basis.
I was thinking the same thing. I have seen the LHBS packaging hops in the back of the shop before. They have boxes of pellets that they roll up and tape as opposed to flushing & sealing or at least vacuum sealing. The leaf hops are from bricks that they re-cover after packaging. Even in a freezer, they are not in an O2 free environment.
I like to buy in bulk from niko brew then package individually once I have time and seal those in a mason jar I vacuum seal for good measure. Often times though I end up pouring the hops in the jar and sealing them so Im planning to get more small jars to limit the number of times I open them.
Not really answering your question, but I have found I have a lot more room in my kegerator since I pulled my CO2 bottles out and installed a manifold inside...moving kegs around is much easier. I also reinforced my glass shelf with a 2x4 cut to height dimension. Cheers
