Help Center

A: You can ship them or you can drop them off at the University of Southern Maine. It’s your choice, just make sure your samples are clearly labeled with your brewery’s name, product ID, and test requested. 

Drop off: A sample drop off fridge is located outside the science building on USM’s Portland campus (70 Falmouth St). The horseshoe driveway can be used to quickly park and drop off your samples. Make sure email us at usm.qc2lab@maine.edu to let us know samples have been delivered. Please note: the fridge is secured by a padlock. The combination is MALT. The freezer compartment combination is BEER

Shipping: Please ship to the address below.

    University of Southern Maine - QC2 

    70 Falmouth St. 

    Science Building | Room 394C

    Portland, ME 04103

A. Every test is so different that there isn’t one volume that fits every test! For some of our more popular tests like ABV and IBU we need at least 200 mL. Some of our packages need even more because of all of the tests we have to perform. Please refer to the testing service product page to make sure you are sending in the correct volume of sample. AND it’s always great if you can send in duplicates of your samples. Every once in a while we need to rerun a sample and it saves a lot of time if we’ve already got that duplicate sample in the lab. 

A: Don’t have time to stop by the lab, no worries, you can ship your samples to us! Carefully package shipping containers to reduce the risk of damage during transit. We’ve seen samples wrapped in newspaper, bubble wrap, and my favorite, brewery t-shirts! It’s best to ship either packaged products or samples in containers with a twist-on lid. If possible, use parafilm to secure the lid and prevent loosening in transit. You don’t want it to leak on it’s way to us. Make sure to ship them to this address: 

University of Southern Maine - QC2 

    70 Falmouth St. 

    Science Building | Room 394C

    Portland, ME 04103

A. We’ve seen samples come in all sorts of containers. Mason jars, carboys, water bottles, take-out containers...if it holds a liquid it might work! We don't require a specific sample container, but the container you choose should be appropriate for the test ordered. For our analytical tests you really want to make sure you use a container that is airtight and that you can fill as close to the top as possible. If the test is for microbial detection, the container needs to be sterile. You don’t want to get a false positive microbial test because you put a sample in a contaminated container.

If you are close to USM, or drive into Portland once in a while, you can save on shipping costs and drop your samples off at the lab. A sample drop off cooler is located outside the science building on USM’s Portland campus (70 Falmouth St). The horseshoe driveway can be used to quickly park and drop off your samples. Make sure email us at usm.qc2lab@maine.edu to let us know samples have been delivered. If dropping off after hours (Monday - Friday, 9:00 - 5:00 pm), please use the sample drop off box located outside the QC2 lab (Third floor, Room 394, C wing).