bought a Red Mountain cab while it was on sale. I would like to wait until Sept or so to start due to other activities during the summer months. George thought it should be fine. Questions are, how long have any of you stored a kit and how did you store it. I have a wine room in basement that I should be able to keep close to 65 degrees in the summer and it has no windows so I can keep it in the dark. Sound ok or do I need to do something more. Thanks for any imput, Ron.
hoding off making kit
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If it was mine, I would start it now. When you think about it, what takes the most time making a kit? WAITING
It takes like a half hour to get a kit going. Then it sits for about 5 days, rack it to a carboy and it sits for a couple weeks. Rack again and follow directions for clearing etc. Rack again and let it sit until fall. Total time involved- about 3 or 4 hours. Certainly you can find that much time. The busier you are this summer, the less time you will fret about the kit and the easier it will be to make it!
And yes, I started a kit last weekend that I have had sitting for 15 months now! It smelled great, tasted great and was fementing within a day. I even had to put it in the bathtub due to a vigorous ferment! Yeast still good? What do you think? (Clue, was fermenting within a day!)
DO IT NOW!
It takes like a half hour to get a kit going. Then it sits for about 5 days, rack it to a carboy and it sits for a couple weeks. Rack again and follow directions for clearing etc. Rack again and let it sit until fall. Total time involved- about 3 or 4 hours. Certainly you can find that much time. The busier you are this summer, the less time you will fret about the kit and the easier it will be to make it!
And yes, I started a kit last weekend that I have had sitting for 15 months now! It smelled great, tasted great and was fementing within a day. I even had to put it in the bathtub due to a vigorous ferment! Yeast still good? What do you think? (Clue, was fermenting within a day!)
DO IT NOW!
unaFORDable
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if you do decide that there's just not enough time to start it now, when you do start it, check the expiration date on the yeast. If you've got any doubts, just buy another yeast package from your local winery store.
tinalouise
tinalouise
To answer your question and not tempt you, I've had a handful of kits for a year or so and have brewed them without problems. The common thing that I've heard is that at a certain point, the concentrate will start to oxidize, but so far I haven't found any of mine with that problem. As for storage, if you've got a basement, that should be good. I've just kept mine in the dining room with all my other wine stuff, so it was in the 70-75 ballpark depending on the season.
After a bout with unemployment followed by a 700 mile move, I know that there are times when (gasp) brewing isn't a priority in life. I've had more than a few kits sit in a primary for more than a month because I simply forgot how long I'd been letting them sit there and other stuff came up. Nothing bad happened there either, so I guess that's another vote for just crank the kits out now, and if they sit in your primary or secondary longer than recommended, oh well.
After a bout with unemployment followed by a 700 mile move, I know that there are times when (gasp) brewing isn't a priority in life. I've had more than a few kits sit in a primary for more than a month because I simply forgot how long I'd been letting them sit there and other stuff came up. Nothing bad happened there either, so I guess that's another vote for just crank the kits out now, and if they sit in your primary or secondary longer than recommended, oh well.
