Cellaring

[TomWaggle]

So I've always been interested in cellaring beers but the beers I buy or brew never really last that long. Eventually I want to start cellaring some of them. I know Barley Wines are a popular cellared beer but what are some other kinds. I just bought Delirium Tremens, would that be one you want to cellar as well?

 

[DarthCitra]

High alcohol content beers. Imperial stouts are my favorites with a year or two on them. Sours are amazing with some age on them. Tripel's & Quads are awesome as well. Just remember anything with a lot of hops will lose the hop profile. Also, anything that has been re-fermented in the bottle will also age and develop. What i did was start buying 2 or 3 bottles of the same and try one after a year and then keep the last one for around 5.

 

[Billy-Klubb]

if you're gonna do it, do it right.

 

[zmanzorro]

I try to hide them in the back of my kegerator. Out of sight, out of mind.

 

[sandyeggoxj]

I just picked up a 40-bottle wine fridge for my budding beer collection. It sits at 54ºF. Nice.

 

[Zekk]

I have a few sours that I'm planning on cellaring for at least a year. I've heard sours age very well. I have heard Belgian triples and quads age well.

 

[Calichusetts]

Doesn't always have to be high ABV, as long as its yeast-based in style (belgian, sour, etc) they can really change over the years. I've had beers under 7% aged for several years that were amazing and so different. Also entirely changed from a fresh one. Though I do love aging barley wines, strong ales, scotch ales, and high ABV ones

I've been cellaring for 5 years and its so worth it. Tons of verticals every year and since I love big beers, really fun to pull out a 5, even 8 year old beer. Also, consider really sharp beers like bourbon barrel aged. You might find them to strong at first but after a few years they are far more mellow.

My final suggestion is to start getting a few gift cards to really nice bottle shops for your birthday or something. I find it hard to stomach a $20-50 beer run (often way more than that) and I can't have any. Having the "free" money allows you the freedom and you might even buy something you wouldn't if it were "your money."

 

[Broham1]

This book really got me interested and opened my eyes to what could cellar, how to think about a beers possible peak age, and the setup. It's a great, quick read.

Vintage Beer: A Taster's Guide to Brews That Improve over Time by Patrick Dawson http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ESCVNU2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[myerstyson]

@TomWaggle, I have some doppelbocks and stouts that I've put aside. I also have a 2007 Samiclaus that I'm going to open next Christmas.

Check out Homebrew Media forum, in which we're discussing the Vintage Beer book.

Good luck! Cellaring is fun.

 

[Curtis2010]

Im getting interested in cellaring, but not just for beer. I would like to build a proper cellar for beer, wine, vinegar, cheese, mead, etc. Maybe with several zones so temp/humidity could be controlled specific to what is being cellared in that zone. Ive been looking at software for cellaring, but most of it is wine specific. I think I will just set up spreadsheet with type and sub-type columns for each item being cellared.

 

[Aelwyffe]

This Christmas my father surprised me with his "stash" - 8 or 9 homebrews - the oldest from 2008-9. I got to compare two pale ales with the same recipe but brewed a year apart and a three-year-old trippel styled after Chimay. The pale ales were a bit low on carbonation and the hops had mellowed considerably. The trippel also matured - the grains definitely came into their own!

Has anyone else had such luck?

 

[bobeer]

I brew a strong ale every year that i bottle and cellar. You can cellar pretty much anything thats not hop heavy. Hop flavor and aroma fade away if aged for too long.

 

[Curtis2010]

Haven't tried cellaring beers much, but usually set aside a few bottles of mead/braggot from each batch and they definately change with age.