Drinking in the sun technique

Hello I was just wondering if you guys worry about skunking your beer when you drink outside? How do yall keep the beer from getting skunked? I've actually started drinking from a lidded stein to protect my beer while in the sun. Is it really worth going as far as using a stein or should i not even worry about it, lol. Just wondering if anyone else approches outdoor drinking with the though of skunking their beer.

drink faster

sjvicker said:

drink faster

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Pretty much. I think you'd have to drink pretty slow to recognize any difference. The beer will get warm before it gets skunked.

drink faster, hell yea. It was kind of a stupid question I just wanted to know how yall approched it.

Patio umbrella, maybe? I sit under an overhang on the porch so there is no direct sun.

I have a labatt's blue pint glass which is I got for free when I bought a 6 pack a long time ago. It seems to help when I'm drinking a beer while grilling in the sun.

Used to look like this, now all the paint has worn off

Actually, I had a Hefe skunk in under 10 minutes in the bright sunlight once. Never forget it . Yeah drink faster!

Seiously?

I have to worry about the beer that I am consuming at that specific moment in time going bad? And it can happen that fast? In the time it takes to drink one beer? Then I am all but screwed when it comes to producing a non-skunked beer.

I would bet my carboy is uncovered and exposed to light, in total, the time it takes to drink one beer. From the time I transfer from boil kettle to the time it goes into the kettle or bottles, I am sure it is exposed to light for at least that long.

If I have worry about the currently-being-consumed beer going bad then I have way too much to worry about. I better go get my blood pressure presription upped...

MNBugeater said:

If I have worry about the currently-being-consumed beer going bad then I have way too much to worry about. I better go get my blood pressure presription upped...

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It depends on if you have a clear glass and have it directly in the sun. And it also depends on how sensitive you are to the skunking. I noticed it right away, and couldn't believe it. It seems to happen with the lighter colored beers much easier. I suppose that makes sense.

It may be the high altitude with the hotter sun, but a hoppy beer, in a clear glass with the full sun can be noticably skunked in just a minute or two here.

Yep I've had several IPAs skunk on me in the sunlight when I ventured out to the patio with them to man the grill.

My solution has been to leave the beer in the shade. Pretty low tech.

cmgray said:

It may be the high altitude with the hotter sun, but a hoppy beer, in a clear glass with the full sun can be noticably skunked in just a minute or two here.

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I've noticed it pretty quickly in NM. I would imagine higher elevation has an effect since there are stronger UV rays at a mile above sea-level. Typically with a hoppy, light-colored beer in a clear glass, it starts smelling like Heineken within a couple minutes of direct sunlight exposure.

I use the tried and true shade method as well. I'll even hold the glass in the shade of my body if I'm standing around in the sun drinking a beer.

This whole skunking thing is over-exagerated. It is a boogey man that beer snobs have largely invented to scare small children. There, I said it.

Skunking is a documented chemical reaction between certain hop components and UV radiation. It begins immediately, but how fast you notice it depends on several things.

The amount of hops in the beer.
The type of hops in the beer.
The color of the beer.
The intensity of the UV radiation.

You don't need to be too careful with a RIS as there are so many other things absorbing the UV rays.
Heineken, on the other hand, is crystal clear, uses noble hops, is packaged in green glass, and is usually around for quite a while before consumption.
If Laughing_Gnome can't taste the difference between a Heineken from a bottle and one from a can or draft, then I would guess he's eaten way too much spicy food in his life

Oh yeah, back to the OP. I think drinking from a lidded stein is just cool! Stay out of the sun to protect your skin, though.

Hefe skunking in 10 mins? A low hopped beer in 10 minutes. I have my doubts there.

Germey said:

If Laughing_Gnome can't taste the difference between a Heineken from a bottle and one from a can or draft, then I would guess he's eaten way too much spicy food in his life

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I havn't had a Heineken since I was about 18.
I never said skunking is fiction, I just said that it is over hyped. That's all. If I thought that a beer was going off while I was sitting in a beer garden, and was rancid before I finished it, then I would only drink in a darkened room.

Germey said:

can't taste the difference between a Heineken from a bottle and one from a can.

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got offered a free beer on a recent flight after airline screwup #839, and the best they had was Heineken, in a can. I haven't had a heineken in a while, and don't think I had ever had one in a can, but that damn beer tasted GREAT!

I felt a little hypocritical, drinking a heiny while reading extreme brewing, but free is free .

there's nothing to be ashamed of! I have a 6 pack (well, 3 pack now) in the fridge. The move back to packaging that doesn't ruin the product is great! I just paid $5 for one on Jet Blue.
It is us the consumers that are largely to blame for many of the inefficiencies and atrocities in the consumer chain. Traditional Corks in wine guarantee that a certain percent will be foul for the end consumer (a fraction of that will say anything out of line with what they paid). Carrying in your own bag for shopping only feels weird because it has not been done in this part of the world traditionally. Cans denote a lesser quality only because it was the efficient means of delivery for **** beer for so long.
Heineken on draft or from the cans is a great beer. I enjoy it without shame.
Over hyped or otherwise, I taste skunk when I drink some beers and would not leave certain beers in the sun if I can avoid it. Otherwise it is more like "hey I detected some skunk in that! Bring me another so I can drink it faster... facing the other way."
Hey, Gnome-who-I-think-used-to-be-a-different-name. I mean no disrespect. I was trying at humor. But I was stressed out at work...
of course, I'm now entirely too drunk, so I better shut up before I get overly amorous.

EDIT; it is not the consumption of 3 cans of Heineken that has me drunk. I just got back from a huge turnout at the local club meeting. Sour beers was the topic. That's one of the club's specialties. Between the club brews, commercial examples, random homebrews, and orders from the Stone bar, I am one happy camper.