Barbe Rouge Hops

Ingredients
1

I have recently found a couple beers that are using Barbe Rouge hops, so naturally wanting to use them I go to the internet and don’t really find much to buy from. SO I have two questions for my fellow homebrewers.

  1. My LHBS does not have them and never has, so when I went to find some, this is the best link I could find https://www.michiganhopalliance.com/products/french-barbe-rouge-pellet-hops-2017 has anybody bought from here before?

  2. I noticed two things on this page
        A. 5.5 lbs is the smallest I could buy.
        B. the url has 2017 at the end of it.
    A. Is there a good way to store hops? (About to go search for articles on this but more opinions couldn’t hurt)
    B. Does this mean that the hops could be two years old? If so, is this normal or could the hops have lost their freshness if not stored well?

Thanks!

2

A. Vacuum sealed,  preferably CO2 or nitrogen purged, in the freezer

B.  Yep, they could be.  Yes, they could lose freshness if not stored well.  OTOH, if they were stored well, they could be almost as good as fresh.  Pellets keep better than whole hops.

3

They sell primarily to breweries, but Some of their hops are available through Sicialianos Market in Grand Rapids MI, you might call them. Their website has no Homebrew ingredient list.

4

Gotcha, I don’t have a vacuum sealer but they aren’t overly expensive. Thanks!

5

I’ll give those a try. If they’re decent and fresh, and I can store them well, it won’t be that bad! Worst case I lose the price of a 5gal batch.