Denny and Drew were in the loop on this one merely because we were exchanging PMs on a different subject while I was taking part in this adventure. For those who do not know, Lallemand has owned majority share in the Siebel Institute of Technology since 2000. I have mentioned this connection before when discussing Lallemand BRY 97, which is Siebel BRY 97.
Anyway, I ordered two Siebel cultures that have been on my acquisition list since the mid-nineties. White Labs has taken over Siebel’s analytical unit; therefore, I am assuming that they are also propagating Siebel’s cultures in liquid form for breweries. However, Lallemand is clearly propagating Siebel’s cultures on slant because the cultures that I ordered shipped from Lallemand’s facility in Montreal, Quebec.
With that said, even though the U.S. has a free trade agreement with Canada, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) still has oversight over live biological organisms that are imported into the United States from Canada. The FDA clearly gets a little skittish when a live biological organism is being shipped over the border, even if that organism is just plain old brewer’s yeast (I guess that it does not help that Lallemand’s Biotechnology Research Institute shares the same address).
FDA Notice (names and numbers have been removed to protect the innocent)
It is almost comical now, but I did not have a clue as to what to do when a DHL agent contacted me on behalf of the FDA. I had visions of agents knocking down my door when all that the FDA wanted was the name and address of the manufacturer and a confirmation of what was in the shipment. It appears that brewers in the United States are not the only people who do not know that a Canadian firm holds controlling interest in America’s oldest brewing school (I know that I was more than a little upset when Lallemand acquired majority share in 2000). The FDA clearly did not know it until I showed them the connection.
Anyway, the cultures are safe and sound in my bank. I have to say that Lallemand is truly a class act. Their representatives were very professional. They are also the only curator from whom I have received slants in true-blue screw cap borosilicate glass culture tubes. The cultures that I have received from other collections have arrived in Falcon round-bottom tubes, universal tubes, or deep-skirted screw cap non-borosilicate glass vials. Siebel cultures on slant are not cheap, but they send two slants per culture. Every other culture collection with whom I have dealt only sends one slant per culture. Even with the hassle of dealing with the FDA, I would order yeast from the Siebel collection on slant again without reservation.
