Best Before Dates

[beerhunter]

Hi I have a craft range citra sitting in the box. It has a best before (maybe even use by) of Apr 2015. I don't have the time/space to use the kit at the moment, it will be a month or more before I get to it.
How seriously should I take the dates? Will the kit be useless in a month's time? Whats goes off, the powdered yeast?

[Drzava]

I have two out of date kits (bought recently) ready to go - one 6 months out, one two months. My understanding is that the LME in the tins / bags may become somewhat darker with time, but the BB date mainly refers to the yeast. However, a sachet of billions of yeast cells is not going to suddenly 'die'. There will be a gradual loss of numbers from the day it is produced. I'm not sure how they estimate the BBD, but I'd hazard a guess it's the date they estimate that half (or something) of the yeast cells become inactive. However, there is still active yeast there - but there may be a longer lag phase prior to vigorous reproduction. My plan is to rehydrate the yeast in some fresh wort for half an hour or so prior to pitching, and I have a sachet of 'general' yeast ready in case fermentation doesn't get started.

[LordEoin]

It'll probably be still fine to brew but you might have just lost some freshness, yeast viability and some hop potency, although it's a very hoppy kit anyway so you should be ok.

If you bought it out of date thinking it was fresh, then you should poke the seller and let them know. Those kits aren't cheap and you'd expect them to be at least in date.

You can contact most homebrew shops through their stickies here:
http://www.nationalhomebrewclub.com/forum/index.php/board,10.0.html

[irish_goat]

Does the Craft Range Citra come with dryhops? I'd be worried they'll have lost a lot of their freshness if they've not been stored in cold conditions.

[dcalnan]

Yeah it's 60g of hops, I have the same kit. Need to put it on soon, I always take the yeast and hops out to store them properly. The hops are in a sealed vacuum pack .

[beerhunter]

Thanks for the replies. I've had this lying about for a while, so its my fault not the shop. Will redouble my efforts to get this one the go asap.

[arse..biscuits]

I found an old kit, a few years past it's best before date, I got a new packet of yeast and threw it together today for the craic. I'll let you know how it goes.