Shelf life of kits?

[Geronimo]

I'm thinking of buying 2 more kits that I won't make until next summer. Is there reason for concern about the shelf life of the kits? My LHBS's both turn stock over so fast that I know they always receive new stock, but obviously it's been in packaging since the last harvest (at least). So I'm guessing it doesn't matter? Any thoughts?

 

[Putterrr]

One year wont cause any problems but I would store it in a cool place. My brew store seems to mark things down up to 2 years old.

I just started an old kit for someone else that says Selection Limited Edition 2008 on the lables. Changed out the yeast and away it went.

Cheers

 

[andy123]

I've got some experience with Sale Item kits. I would not make any white wine that has a date code older than one year. Manufacturers seem to have some magic storage ability in between harvest and packaging, but once packaged a year is tops in my thinking.

 

[TonyP]

There's a date code on each kit that varies by brand and I suggest becoming familiar with the one you're purchasing.

Regarding your specific question, I have two points. First, the issue on kit shelf life has to do primarily with yeast rather than juice or concentrate. Yeast often has a life of only one year and I'd be mindful of that when considering your kit's date code.

Second, there is little relationship between kit life or shelf life and harvest. Most kits contain juice or concentrate, which could be harvested well before the kit is assembled. (Do you worry about harvest time when buying grape jelly?) In fact many kits, particularly lower cost kits could have blends of grapes from several regions, even hemispheres, making harvest of minimal consequence.

Having said all that, it would be smart to store the kits in a cool location.

Tony P.

 

[Runningwolf]

Something I just learned the other day. The larger the kit (higher quality) the shorter the shelf life. Don't be confused, this is the box shelf life before fermenting it out. Once fermented the shelf life is mch longer then a less expensive kit.

 

[cpfan]

First, the issue on kit shelf life has to do primarily with yeast rather than juice or concentrate. Yeast often has a life of only one year and I'd be mindful of that when considering your kit's date code.

Tony...

Sorry I can't agree with you. In my experience, the yeast has a lot longer date than one year, and the yeast has a longer shelf life than a kit.

Just grabbed some info, more or less at random. A Vineco kit made on day 298 of 2011 (ie October 25, 2011). Two years shelf life (which is too long IMO for this white kit) would be Oct 2013. The yeast was EC-1118 with an expiry date of 04-2014.

Perhaps it depends which kit manufacturer, but I sold Vineco and RJ Spagnols kits from 2001 to 2007, and I think that the above sample is typical.

Something I just learned the other day. The larger the kit (higher quality) the shorter the shelf life.

Kit shelf life is something that depends on a lot of factors. But the lower end kits have a lot of concentrate in them, which probably extends their life quite a bit.

Steve

 

[Dugger]

The suggested shelf life I received from Spagnols a few years ago was, as I recall, a year for the premeium kits (15-16 liters), 18 months for the mid line kits (10-12 liters) and 2 years for the smaller kits (7-8 liters).
The larger kits have more juice as a ratio to juice concentrate and thus are more perishable.

 

[TonyP]

Tony...

Sorry I can't agree with you. In my experience, the yeast has a lot longer date than one year, and the yeast has a longer shelf life than a kit.

Just grabbed some info, more or less at random. A Vineco kit made on day 298 of 2011 (ie October 25, 2011). Two years shelf life (which is too long IMO for this white kit) would be Oct 2013. The yeast was EC-1118 with an expiry date of 04-2014.

Perhaps it depends which kit manufacturer, but I sold Vineco and RJ Spagnols kits from 2001 to 2007, and I think that the above sample is typical.


Kit shelf life is something that depends on a lot of factors. But the lower end kits have a lot of concentrate in them, which probably extends their life quite a bit.

Steve

Steve, thanks for the info. You're obviously more experienced than I am as my yeast review has only been for my personal wine making. I haven't studied it, but my understanding of yeast shelf life was from a 1999 edition of WineMaker Magazine, which said,

Using yeast that is more than six to eight months old greatly enhances your chances for encountering such problems as stuck fermentations and off-odors down the road. So it's recommended that winemakers purchase their yeast from a reputable source (a home winemaking store with high turnover, or from a winemaking supply laboratory like Scott Laboratories Inc.) before every harvest. If you use kits, make sure that the yeast that is included hasn't been sitting on a shelf for more than six to eight months. If it has, then you might want to buy a fresh packet just to be sure.

I've also seen that yeasts often have only a 1 year or less warranty. Obviously I'm missing something so please provide a little more information.

Thanks,

Tony P.

 

[cpfan]

Tony:

I'm a kit guy, and nearly 100% of my usage has been the little packets of Lalvin yeast. Each Lalvin packet comes stamped with a date. Thats where I got the 04-2014 expiry date in my earlier comment. If there is a warranty on that yeast packet, I would guess that it expired 04-2014.

As I typed the above, I recalled that some people buy the larger packets (500g?) of yeast. Perhaps the Winemaker article was referring to opened packets of yeast. But then they say that kit yeast expires in 6 to 8 months. Sorry but I don't believe that last statement.

I know that when I ran the store that I made a number of kits that were older than 6 to 8 months in age. Although I know that I did have the (very) occasional batch ferment slowly, I don't believe that it was related to yeast age.

I recall making two batches of the same kit for one customer, and one batch definitely fermented slower than the other. I think they were from the same batch from the manufacturer, but it is too long ago for me to be positive.

Steve

 

[Geronimo]

Slow fermentations are usually the result of a lack of viable yeast. When you pour the juice into the fermenter, do it in such a way that it foams up like crazy. You see, yeast immediately goes into a growth phase which lasts until all the available O2 is depleted. Starting with 2 billion cells helps, but remember.... the growth phase continues until all the O2 is gone. That means either the yeast has consumed it (in propagation) or the O2 has naturally diminished (oxidation and stagnation). Obviously pitching more yeast helps with the final number in the fermenter... which means as the dry yeast ages more and more of them go from "viable" to "decomposed". If you suspect the kit is over 6 months old, I'd get another new yeast packet to boost those numbers. The only other thing you can do is to introduce O2 into the must for the first day or so which will boost the yeast propagation a lot. A slow fermentation will usually yield a different end product unless you leave the primary sit for 3+ weeks (which I do).

Grapes make juice, yeast makes wine. You want them both to be as fresh as possible.