[scotts87]

Hello!

I am brand new to all this, and for Xmas I got my wish, and Santa brought me a full home-brew kit, along with a relatively easy first kit of American Amber ale. My concern is the condition of the yeast. Its probably been under the tree for about 3 weeks at room temp, and who knows how long before that. The directions on the label say to store "41-50F". Now I could toss this into the fridge, but my fridge is a frosty 33-34F like most typical fridges.

So my question is, am I better off leaving it my room temperature of 69-71F, or storing it at the colder 34F? Its a bit of a moot point, since it's probably going to be brewed up here in a few days. But I was just checking out of curiosity, and for future reference. Oh by the way, the expiration date is 2-2016, so it seems to me that this is a pretty fresh pack. Thanks!

[dmtaylor]

It will turn out fine.  Best to store your yeast in the fridge, even if just a few days, but if you do plan to brew in a few days then it really barely matters at all.  No worries.  Go make some homebrew!

[S. cerevisiae]

Dry yeast can be stored in one's freezer without harming the culture.

[scotts87]

Thanks for the responses, I will chill my yeast until I am ready. I think I need a few more pieces of my kit before getting started, so I will probably tackle next week.

[theDarkSide]

All my dry is stored in the fridge.  If you still need to pick up some supplies, consider picking up a couple packets of Nottingham and maybe some US-05 to keep on hand.  I usually have those and a couple others always on hand for emergencies, last minutes brews, my forgetfulness, etc. 

Welcome to the hobby!!

[erockrph]

Dry yeast can be stored in one's freezer without harming the culture.

Thanks for the tip. I always suspected that, since I keep my cheese cultures there, but never knew for sure.