aging vs. drink it now!

[charliefoxtrot]

Again, 'sour beer' is an issue with something YOU did. It's not an inevitable conclusion to all beers. Properly brewed, fermented, bottled, stored, and such won't produce negative flavors. There are big beers that age for extended periods without having such flavors. Try a well made big barleywine for instance. There are bottles of several year old batches that are continuing to age without going sour.

Yes. But take a low ABV, low hop beer and try aging it in my slightly above room temperature laundry room for a year, and see how it tastes. We're talking apples and oranges, here.

 

[Golddiggie]

Yes. But take a low ABV, low hop beer and try aging it in my slightly above room temperature laundry room for a year, and see how it tastes. We're talking apples and oranges, here.

No, that's just [to be perfectly blunt/honest] being stupid. Low ABV, low hop beer is made to be consumed while younger than a higher ABV (any hop level) beer. We're talking beer, you're talking crazy.

 

[charliefoxtrot]

No, that's just [to be perfectly blunt/honest] being stupid. Low ABV, low hop beer is made to be consumed while younger than a higher ABV (any hop level) beer. We're talking beer, you're talking crazy.

That's my whole point. Every beer has a lifespan, whether it's six months or twenty years, and every beer has a peek moment when it tastes the best. And whether it's a miniscule contamination at bottling or the degradation of the alpha acids, all beer eventually will taste like crap. You can buy 100 year old wine (if you've got the cash), but there's a reason you never see 100 year old beer.

 

[Golddiggie]

That's my whole point. Every beer has a lifespan, whether it's six months or twenty years, and every beer has a peek moment when it tastes the best. And whether it's a miniscule contamination at bottling or the degradation of the alpha acids, all beer eventually will taste like crap. You can buy 100 year old wine (if you've got the cash), but there's a reason you never see 100 year old beer.

Most people are smart enough to drink a beer when it's best. Putting some away for later where it's too warm for such storage is just throwing beer away. IMO, that's just being unwise (being extremely kind here). It's like taking a great cut of beef, cooking it up right, then putting half the leftovers in the fridge and leaving the rest out in that warm room to 'see what happens'... :smack:

 

[charliefoxtrot]

Most people are smart enough to drink a beer when it's best. Putting some away for later where it's too warm for such storage is just throwing beer away. IMO, that's just being unwise (being extremely kind here). It's like taking a great cut of beef, cooking it up right, then putting half the leftovers in the fridge and leaving the rest out in that warm room to 'see what happens'... :smack:

I never lose more than a bottle or two of my own beer (which, being extremely kind here, I made and I can do whatever the hell I want with). I've had beers which I thought peaked that actually got better with time. If it's a beer I've never made before, whose recipe came out of my own head, how can I possibly know it's a genuine peak until the last bottle has gone as far as it could go?

You're really picking nits, now.

 

[JLem]

That's my whole point. Every beer has a lifespan, whether it's six months or twenty years, and every beer has a peek moment when it tastes the best. And whether it's a miniscule contamination at bottling or the degradation of the alpha acids, all beer eventually will taste like crap. You can buy 100 year old wine (if you've got the cash), but there's a reason you never see 100 year old beer.

This I agree with, which is why I prefaced my question with whether or not I understood your post. I do not agree that every beer will eventually turn sour, but, yes, every beer will turn south in terms of flavor/enjoyment after some time.

 

[charliefoxtrot]

This I agree with, which is why I prefaced my question with whether or not I understood your post. I do not agree that every beer will eventually turn sour, but, yes, every beer will turn south in terms of flavor/enjoyment after some time.

I'm talking on the scale of decades/centuries for properly handled bottles, but no bottle is flawless. The eventual degradation of the plastic on a crown cap, for example, provides an avenue for infection. The point is purely academic, but all beer will eventually fall to the bugs.