Good long term brew?

And by long term i mean something I can put into a closet for a loooong time, years if need be, and forget about. But that will be out of this world good.

Lambics maybe?

Any sour ale's take a loong time although i dont have much experience there. I dont drink often so i have a large porter and russian imperial stout in the works. I also have a belgian i let sit for almost 8 mos. The porter and stout are going to age in years, especially the stout

I second scinerd. I've got a 10% RIS that has been sitting, biding time. I'm pretty sure it has a bit of the devil in it. For one, it is the blackest black I've ever seen. Second, I wake up some nights hearing it whispering, calling me to the dark back corner of the basement where it waits. One day I'll open one, but I'm pretty sure I'll be fcuked then.

Don't forget barleywines! My last one is just passing the year mark. Just keeps getting better and better.

anything over 7% should age nicley. Wee Heavy is another good one to brew if you like scottish ales

Barleywines are great and then you can make fun traditions like brewing on your birthday and drinking one each year.

Barleywine eh? I never thought of that, nor have I ever tasted onr. What am I in for as far as taste, style, etc?

And is there a special aging process for these? Is a 5g carboy a good ager or is bottled best?

Shwagger said:

Barleywine eh? I never thought of that, nor have I ever tasted onr. What am I in for as far as taste, style, etc?

And is there a special aging process for these? Is a 5g carboy a good ager or is bottled best?

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There's English and American Barleywines, English BW's being more Maltly & Sweet and American BW's being aggressively hopped. I would try some examples before brewing one, Stone Old Guardian is my favorite one so far, I'm not really sure where it stands though, I have yet to have a BW that is clearly defined as English. Sierra Nevada Bigfoot is a good example of an American BW. I hear North Coast Old Stock is very tasty, i think it's more along the lines of an English.

I have yet to brew one, but here are some of the specifics from Designing Great Beers..

OG 1.090-1.120
Bitterness 50-100 IBU's
Color 14-22 SRM
ABV 8.4-12%
Grain options =Pale Malt base,Carmel,Munich,Vienna,Carapils,Wheat,Chocolate

+1 on barleywines. There are some great ones out there, I always aim to try one out when I'm at a new brewpub. They're big beers, something you have about 8-10oz of and call it a night. Very sweet and hoppy for the American style barleywines (which are the ones I'm familiar with). The sweetness is hidden underneath the rather forward alcohol aroma and bite, so you'll risk diabetes if you have too much too often!

If you do one, you're much better off to bottle, rather than leaving in a carboy. The bottling allows you to savor one every now and then for years, rather than have to risk infection by using a thief every time you want a hit!

Temperture is your enemy in cases like this. Do you have temperture control?

boo boo said:

Temperture is your enemy in cases like this. Do you have temperture control?

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if its cold temperature control, then yes. I have a full size kegerator. If it's room temperature, that is different. In florida, it gets bloody hot inside a house and bloody cold when you crank on the AC.

What temps should I look for?

Put it in your kegerator for long term storage. One of our club members
just started drinking a porter he made 2 years ago. Your mileage may vary.

ok cool
is porter a good one to do? porter is my fav beer style and it was going to be one of next ones. but if its good for a couple years, i may start today and stash it.