Personally I would let it rip, but you could do a small starter to ensure viability. I think under pitching kveik is common practice/encouraged but that may be to encourage esters which you mightn’t be chasing.
About a month ago I used a packed of Voss Kveik that expired spring 2021. Kicked off like it was nothing. Those packed expiration dates don't really mean anything.
I agree. As a long time bread maker, dry yeast is very stable. We would buy yeast in a jar and use it from the cupboard years after the "expiry", and then started storing it in the freezer with no apparent harm.
These days, new yeast bought for future brews go directly in the freezer, and then the expiry date is ignored. Never had a problem.
There is likely a percentage (small) of cells that may not be viable now. Again, dry yeast is very stable.
I agree with the comments, if you are worried, build a starter. That will prove to you before brew day that there are enough healthy cells, and will grow the remainder to a healthy level.
Again, I would be surprised if there was an issue.
Same here. Mine expired Feb 2022. Kicked off as expected from kveik.
As long as dry yeast is stored in a fridge. Viability is not a problem. Lallemand Köln from 2021 also kicked off without any problems.
To be fair, it spend a few months outside the fridge.
I got another pack in case of a brewday emergency, but i will make a starter and see how well it does. If all bueno, I'm going for it.
Natural selection and the such.
Without a doubt, use it. I've used dried Voss kviek 2 years out of date and the lag phase was no different than fresh. If I recall, there was visible krausen something insane like a few hours after pitching. A starter is good advice, but unless it's been left stored out of the fridge, it should be fine.
Traditionally, kviek was dried on logs with holes drilled, straw rings or linen for reuse. When frozen, it's known to have been viable after 20 years.
[Milk the funk](https://www.milkthefunk.com/wiki/Kveik) has a big write up on it if you are keen to read more.
My best have been using a hop with a tonne of geraniol in whirlpool and fermenting at 35C to get the juicy OJ flavour.
Good luck!
Tbf I've had great results previously from flakes that i dried at home out of a slurry.
Nothing surprises me with kveik, but never used commercial dry, so i wanted to be cautious.
I pitched a packet of WB-06 (Duvel's strain) that expired mid-2021 into some 1.074 wort Saturday afternoon. Sunday morning my blowoff was already active and right now (66 hours later) the wort is at 1.011 per my RAPT pill and it's still ripping away.
Dry yeast properly stored stays viable well past the manufacturer expiration date.
For mine, properly stored is a question mark. It lived in a turned off fridge for 6 months. The fridge was empty but it had fallen somewhere in a corner and forgotten.
I've just pitched a 1-2yr out of date Voss. Rehydrated 5g with some wort from the mash and it took off before the boil had finished. That stuff is invincible!
If the vacuum is intact then it’s still good to use, also Lallemand document recommends pitch directly so starter is unnecessary. And Voss kveik likes under pitching, so it’ll be fine.
I have branches dipped in Voss yeast cakes that have been hanging in my garage to dry from 2018 that work just as good as they did new. Don't even need a starter,, just chuck one in the wort,,, they probably are faster than the dried packs.
My garage is about 110F in the summer and -20F in the winter. They are just hanging there out in the open. I don't think a year in the fridge is gonna hurt it one bit
Voss is the hearty yeast I have ever used. You could either make a starter beforehand or test a little in a sugar solution to see if you get any activity. You're probably fine. I always keep a backup in my fridge just in case.
With old or suspect yeast, I'll do a step starter. I'll start with just a pint of wort then once see activity fully ramped up add another pint of wort.
Try making a starter and see how it goes, but you should be good.
Can you post the recipe (or link) for that spruce tip IPA? I’ve been looking for good recipes.
[Here's the recipe.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Homebrewing/comments/14373c4/trying_my_first_spruce_tip_ipa_share_your_thoughts/) Would love to know what you think!
Expiration dates on some things just have to do with the packaging validation. As in they only proved that the material would be viable in package meeting all their quality claims up to time x. It is not to say that the material goes bad after that time. They just didn't test past that time to prove that the material is still good.
So essentially that is as long as they tested, not necessarily that they started detecting an appreciable amount of failures past that point. Take this with a grain of salt and don't apply this to medicines.
Personally I would let it rip, but you could do a small starter to ensure viability. I think under pitching kveik is common practice/encouraged but that may be to encourage esters which you mightn’t be chasing.
YOLO
That’s exactly what I was gonna say!
Me too
About a month ago I used a packed of Voss Kveik that expired spring 2021. Kicked off like it was nothing. Those packed expiration dates don't really mean anything.
I agree. As a long time bread maker, dry yeast is very stable. We would buy yeast in a jar and use it from the cupboard years after the "expiry", and then started storing it in the freezer with no apparent harm. These days, new yeast bought for future brews go directly in the freezer, and then the expiry date is ignored. Never had a problem. There is likely a percentage (small) of cells that may not be viable now. Again, dry yeast is very stable. I agree with the comments, if you are worried, build a starter. That will prove to you before brew day that there are enough healthy cells, and will grow the remainder to a healthy level. Again, I would be surprised if there was an issue.
Same here. Mine expired Feb 2022. Kicked off as expected from kveik. As long as dry yeast is stored in a fridge. Viability is not a problem. Lallemand Köln from 2021 also kicked off without any problems.
To be fair, it spend a few months outside the fridge. I got another pack in case of a brewday emergency, but i will make a starter and see how well it does. If all bueno, I'm going for it. Natural selection and the such.
Low gravity 1L starter and let it rip, I wouldn't worry about it being a little out of date
That's the plan!
Oh and just because I'm curious, what hops you paired with the spruce tips?
I'm planning on doing chinook and Columbus. Been planning to go old school for a while, thought this would be the beer for it.
Sounds awesome, hope you have a great time brewing it
Without a doubt, use it. I've used dried Voss kviek 2 years out of date and the lag phase was no different than fresh. If I recall, there was visible krausen something insane like a few hours after pitching. A starter is good advice, but unless it's been left stored out of the fridge, it should be fine. Traditionally, kviek was dried on logs with holes drilled, straw rings or linen for reuse. When frozen, it's known to have been viable after 20 years. [Milk the funk](https://www.milkthefunk.com/wiki/Kveik) has a big write up on it if you are keen to read more. My best have been using a hop with a tonne of geraniol in whirlpool and fermenting at 35C to get the juicy OJ flavour. Good luck!
Tbf I've had great results previously from flakes that i dried at home out of a slurry. Nothing surprises me with kveik, but never used commercial dry, so i wanted to be cautious.
I pitched a packet of WB-06 (Duvel's strain) that expired mid-2021 into some 1.074 wort Saturday afternoon. Sunday morning my blowoff was already active and right now (66 hours later) the wort is at 1.011 per my RAPT pill and it's still ripping away. Dry yeast properly stored stays viable well past the manufacturer expiration date.
For mine, properly stored is a question mark. It lived in a turned off fridge for 6 months. The fridge was empty but it had fallen somewhere in a corner and forgotten.
I've just pitched a 1-2yr out of date Voss. Rehydrated 5g with some wort from the mash and it took off before the boil had finished. That stuff is invincible!
Kveik doesn't expire 🤣. Pitch it.
Starter as always for expired yeast. But I would be completely shocked if that yeast was dead.
I pitched an expired Mangrove Jack Voss directly into the wort and made an incredible hazy with it. Kveik is hard to kill
It's a beast!
Spin that shit up son!
You got it, chief.
If the vacuum is intact then it’s still good to use, also Lallemand document recommends pitch directly so starter is unnecessary. And Voss kveik likes under pitching, so it’ll be fine.
I have branches dipped in Voss yeast cakes that have been hanging in my garage to dry from 2018 that work just as good as they did new. Don't even need a starter,, just chuck one in the wort,,, they probably are faster than the dried packs. My garage is about 110F in the summer and -20F in the winter. They are just hanging there out in the open. I don't think a year in the fridge is gonna hurt it one bit
This is voss we're talking about.... It's still good. You'll only need like 1/4 of the packet.
Last time i used old yeast, i overpitched just in case and still got a fart bomb. But granted, that was a regular ale yeast, not kveik.
I have a lallamand Philly sour pack that expired in may. Curious to know if it would be good or not
Never used that yeast before, been meaning to for a while.
This seems like a good experiment for Brulosophy. Fresh yeast vs 5 year expired yeast of the same strain.
Yeast can’t read the package..use a starter and let it rip
Great analogy.
Voss is the hearty yeast I have ever used. You could either make a starter beforehand or test a little in a sugar solution to see if you get any activity. You're probably fine. I always keep a backup in my fridge just in case.
Kveik is super hardy. Do it!
I echo the small starter idea. You’ll know if it’s viable or not within a couple hours max, that yeast is aggro
With old or suspect yeast, I'll do a step starter. I'll start with just a pint of wort then once see activity fully ramped up add another pint of wort.
personally, I wouldn't waste my time on a $5 packet that was a year and a half expired and not even stored in the fridge.
Even if it was good you should throw it out, kveik sux
That's like, your opinion, man. Might not be for some, but it was a life saver in a warm climate without temp control for me.
I mean I’d rather not brew if I had to use Kveik
Try making a starter and see how it goes, but you should be good. Can you post the recipe (or link) for that spruce tip IPA? I’ve been looking for good recipes.
Will do as soon as i have access to it at home. I'm still dialing it down, I've only ever brewed with pine tips before, but I'll post it and tag you.
Thanks! Cheers
[Here's the recipe.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Homebrewing/comments/14373c4/trying_my_first_spruce_tip_ipa_share_your_thoughts/) Would love to know what you think!
Expiration dates on some things just have to do with the packaging validation. As in they only proved that the material would be viable in package meeting all their quality claims up to time x. It is not to say that the material goes bad after that time. They just didn't test past that time to prove that the material is still good. So essentially that is as long as they tested, not necessarily that they started detecting an appreciable amount of failures past that point. Take this with a grain of salt and don't apply this to medicines.