Homebrew bottle expiration date?

[Stratcat26]

Just opened a couple bottles I brewed about 4-5 months ago and they taste horrible!!

Is there a reason/something I'm not doing properly to make this happen??

Specifically a pale ale and an IPA

 

[skiingimpy]

Were the earlier bottles good? How long ago did you have a bottle from this batch that was 'good'? How warm were the bottles stored? What kind of beer? What kind of process?

 

[Stratcat26]

Earlier bottles were great.
Last time I tried the beer was about a month after brewing.
Bottles were stored in my garage (in Florida) without any temperature control.
All grain brew.

 

[Bobcatbrewing42]

Are you really careful about keeping oxygen out when you bottle? That is probably the number one reason for early spoilage. What about light? Does it taste skunky? I just had a chocolate stout that was in the back of my fridge for 3 years and it was still good. The yeast at the bottom was probably starting to autolyze though.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

I've stored beers at room temperature for over 18 months and only tasted better for it. The only reasons I could think for the turn would be infected bottles, higher than normal temperatures, failed cap (seal), light spoilage, or mistook your homebrew for Coors or PBR.

 

[skiingimpy]

Yeah I'm assuming back of the garage in florida is like 1877487 degrees most of the year? My general 'take' on aging is warmer=faster. And any flaws be it in sanitation, oxygen etc. (those are the big two) will just take off when things are warm.

I would think 3-4 months would really start to make beer go bad. Especially if it's really warm.

In the future be really careful about oxygen (if you bottle condition the additional fermentation should tale care of loose O2 in bottles) but if they got really warm and had dramatic swings in temp will really 'age' beer and turn it. Try to keep them at least 'cool' if going to store for long periods. Finally, if there are any issues with sanitation time and temp only gives an opportunity for bad things to 'eat' your beer. So drink fresher?

 

[Qhrumphf]

Pale Ale and IPA shouldn't taste "bad" when old. Just "dull" as they lose all their hop luster.

As already mentioned, warm storage speeds up off flavors. If your cold side process isn't good and you oxidized your beer, a few months in unregulated temperatures that go hot will definitely speed up the staling. However, if your cleaning and sanitizing aren't up to snuff, time plus warm plus infection equals problems.

I've stored beers in reasonable stable room temp (65ish year round) for 4+ years without a problem. And I've had beers that are 15 years old (gifted, I didn't do the aging), stored at room temp, that were delicious.

 

[lowtones84]

Yup, all about process and how they're stored. Not only is a garage in Florida likely pretty warm, but the temperature is also likely very inconsistent. Large, quick temp swings surely aren't good, which is why aging is typically done in a cellar where earth is a natural insulator, making temp changes very gradual.

As others said, beers heavy on the hops "lose their luster" a little more easily as well, but shouldn't taste particularly bad. Some of my best homebrews have been a random bottle that somehow hid from me for a few years! Not all of them hold up to the age, though.

 

[dbillingsby]

I recently drank a couple different beers I bottled over a year ago. Some were stored at a constant temp, some in the fridge, and a few were just sitting on the garage floor. Went through all seasons and they all tasted just as good if not better than when they were a couple months old.

 

[beergolf]

If your process is good and they are stored properly then brews will last a very long time. Some brews will,taste better young. IPA's for example will loose the hop flavor and aroma. They will still be very drinkable, just not hoppy like an IPA should be.

At 4-5 months they should not taste terrible . I am going to guess it was your storage conditions.

I had a bottle of a 4 year old BDSA last night and it was delicious.

 

[Stratcat26]

Thanks for the responses!!