Craftbrewer/Morebeer

[Ally Mcg]

Bit of a newbie question here, but I've trawled the vaults and can't find anything concrete. Is it okay to get hops and yeast from craftbrewer/morebeer? Has anyone done this or has anyone had any problems with MAF/customs/some other regulatory types? I've got my eye on a bunch of american hops from CB but want to make sure they aren't going to head into the importation abyss rather than into my beer.

[Sparky]

Have ordered (American) hops and (Dry & Liquid) yeast from (Ross) Craftbrewer in Oz.

All arrived in good condition. MAF had inspected the main package with no problems.

Packs came vacuum sealed & I would guess that Ross has registered or is known to MAF/Customs.

If in doubt call Ross and check with him.

Cheers

WayneO

[denimglen]

I ordered hops from craftbrewer, Ross even commented on the receipt inside the package that it was legal to import hops to NZ. My package got picked up by MAF but they didn't open any of the hops.

On a seperate order I brought over dry yeast from craftbrewer, the double packages he has listed, one of each was opened by MAF, I emailed them a complaint and they basically told me 'tough shit'.

I brought over WhiteLabs yeast from MoreBeer and it was untouched. I don't even think MAF picked it up. Before ordering I emailed MAF and they said there shouldn't be any problems as long as it's professionally packaged, I was lucky the guy that received my email was a homebrewer and understood the situation. He gave me a section of their guidelines to quote but I can't remember it, although it is on their website.

Hope that helps.

[Martin Bridges]

How much did the White Labs yeast cost to bring in?

I recently emailed White Labs to ask about importing and they quoted me astronomical rates for shipping. However, they did say that The Brew Shed in Glen Eden was a reseller. I've never heard of this place - anyone?

In the meantime, I've been pretty happy with Wyeast from Craftbrewer.

Martin

[denimglen]

I did it when the exchange rate was better and can't remember exact figures.

I just added an ice pack per vial, and brought over five strains, they worked out at something like $15 each I think.

[Stu McKinlay]

Hops and yeast are fine. Grain is not.

I've got an account with White Labs. They will only ship express, which I totally understand. They don't want their yeast sitting around ni poor conditions.

It was US$90 for one vial but only about US$120 for 50 vials and US$140 for 100 vials. Obviously you need to order loads to make it economically viable. Morebeer appears to remain the best bet for White Labs now, though Craftbrewer might not be so far behind.

Part of the reason I flagged looking into it further was that Luke and Tony (Nicholford) do a good job with Wyeast. If we were to split liquid yeast across two sellers it may actually make it unviable for either of us. I've just purchased some Wyeast through them and would encourage other readers here to buy through them too. Its super fresh when it arrives at your door.

[nzbrewer]

Cut off for next Wyeast order deadline is next Friday 23rd January. (catalog here)

Orders are placed every 2 months usually the 3rd Friday of that month.

This gives us the chance to consolidate all orders so that we can ship the freshest yeast from the lab to the brewer. From order dates it is usually 7 to 10 days before you get your yeast, but it is lab fresh. Most times you will get it within a week of it come out of the lab.

It is airfreight direct from Mt Hood, Oregon to Auckland, via Fedex, chilled in an insulated box, with cold gel packs. It is picked up from Fedex and sort for shipping to each customer.

You will be amazed at the viability and vigour of this yeast when used this fresh.

We have been the agent for Wyeast in New Zealand since 1997 (doesn't time fly) and started importing it specifically for myself when I started originally brewing for the Cock & Bull when it was just a little brewpub.

Recently there has been talk about White Labs coming into this market and competing with Wyeast because of the price (due to exchange rate). A few months ago when the exchange rate was strong it looked like that would make sense. Now it is a bit tougher.

Over the last 10 or so years we have only put the price up once. We hold the price of the yeast so that you know how much it is going to cost. We take the exchange rate risk, both in the good times and in the bad. I still have a vivid memory of the dollar down at 0.38 - 0.40 against the US$, back around 2000.

We hope that the service we provide and the amazing freshness of the yeast, justifies the price we charge.

As Stu highlights if the volume was split to two suppliers in this country it would be unviable. At best this is a service to the brewing community we love and participate in.

[Glynn Foster]

I'm thinking about going the liquid yeast route, given that I've nothing left of my current dry stock. Advice from those using Wyeast at home, in terms of making the order stretch further - activator or propagator? I have what's needed to make a yeast starter, so was thinking propagator (does it just need a single or double stage propagation?), and then washing the yeast (using the instructions at http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f13/yeast-washing-illustrated-41768/) to make it stretch for future batches or is yeast freezing from http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f13/guide-making-frozen-yeast-bank-35891/ (and discussed in this forum) the way to go here?

[denimglen]

I'd go activator over propagator, you can get up to the same cell count with the propagator but requires another step-up.

I go the freezing route, I believe the yeast will last longer.

Three other good reads are here, here and here.

[Ally Mcg]

Cool, thanks for the information guys. I'll put through an order for some hops next week. I'm feeling a lot more confident about it now. Cheers.

[Tony]

I have ordered liquid yeast (Wyeast) from Craftbrewer, no problem and it's cheaper.

[James P]

Also send an email to [e-mail] (Doreen will help you out).

They have NZ and some imported hops available.

[Craig]

I recently brought in Malt and cone Hops from CraftBrewer. MAF withheld the hops because they were in cone form, saying I could only bring in Pellets. They said I could pay $15 to have them heat treated if I wanted. For 90gms of hops it ain't worth it. Guts of matter, make sure you order Pellets.

Cheers
Craig.