Storing Grains

[daveyk]

Hi, Been brewing kits for a while, just getting into extract brewing with a view to moving to AG.

I'm not particularly wanting to invest in a grain mill at this stage due to cost, (there are plenty of other things to buy at present), so intend to purchase grains already milled. I see all of the reputable sites advertising that the grains are milled to order to preserve freshness so this leads me on to think for someone such as myself brewing in small quantity....

1) how long is too long to keep milled grains.
2) how is best to keep them..... fridge?

Many thanks.

Dave

[awalker]

I buy 25kilos of crushed malt every time as its a lot cheaper and its always there when I need it.
Its kept in airtight containers, normally takes me between 6 months and a year to use it.
The wheat malt I bought last year might be *cough* 18months old, it still seems fine.

I am not in any doubt that uncrushed probably keeps longer and is fresher, but until I win the lottery....
Crushed malt will be bought in quantity and use as quickly as possible.

But keep in mind I am tight and hate wasting things

[pdc]

Hi, I've kept my crushed grain, in the bag they are supplied, on the rafters of my garage loft. Some I've had for 9 months with no problems and still making quality beer.

PDC

[daveyk]

As I thought and just the answers I was after. Ta.

[Hawkinspm]

I keep mine in the garage as well, sealed in bags and kept in a bin. Some of the speciality grains have certainly made 9 - 12 months old and there has been no problems.

[Jolum]

I keep mine in the garage as well, sealed in bags and kept in a bin. Some of the speciality grains have certainly made 9 - 12 months old and there has been no problems.

Same here. I store in a brand new metal bin in the garage. All contents inside are sealed in airtight plastic bags and the lid is weighed down with a couple of very large metal g-clamps. Been using it for over a year (I used to keep all my grains indoors before) and (touch wood) no rodent\bug problems to date. But when the brewshed is ready I'm looking for large metal containers with airtight lids but I need them big enough to hold around 50kg of grain. If anyone sees anything suitable please le me know

[boingy]

Keep it dry and safe from pests and rodents and crushed grain will easily keep for 6 to 12 months, maybe longer. I tend to worry more about the shelf life of the base malt (usually pale MO) rather than the adjuncts. I've kept some of the heavily roasted grains like roast barley, choc malts and the like for several years in the past with no discernible deterioration (probably due to the robust flavour and small quantities in each recipe).

[lancsSteve]

I was given some VEERY old crushed crystal malt (2 years?) wasn't sure so tested it... by chewing a little and comparing to some fresher grain and it tasted pretty stale. THat was in a sack in plastic linking in a shed for 2 years so guess there's an indication of limits...

[raiderman]

the key here is airtight because if the stuff is sealed it only degrades slowly. I buy enough to get free delivery and never have problems over freshness by the time I've brewed it out - say 4-5 months.. Rodents are another thing. The wife got a couple of cats to make up for kids leaving home and furry killing machines they aint - we now have half dead rodents left all around the house and setting up home under the floor boards. I didn't need my last delivery of malt when it arrived and when I got round to opening I found something had gnawed into the box and been into all the bags - some being 25% eaten. All my grain lives in natty heavy duty plastic containers from the moment it arrives now!