Homebrew Storage

[Eikselo]

I just finished brewing my first kit. My question is, when it comes time to bottle, im aware i need to leave the bottles at room temp for a few weeks to allow to carb. After carb, what are my options for storage? I currently do not have a secondary fridge and my wife will ultimately only allow me to keep maybe 12 beers in the our fridge. My unfinished basement runs as low as 55 f in the winter and up to 65 in the summer. Shelf life in home brewing has me confused. Ive read many conflicting opinions. Any help appreciative.

Thanks

 

[beergolf]

You are good. Keep it warm for a few weeks to get it fully carbed up and then you can store it in the basement.

If you made a good brew, sanitized very well, beer can have a very long shelf life. Some styles are better drank young but they will not really spoil if kept for a long time. For example in an IPA the hop flavor and aroma will fade with time. Wheat beers are better young. Other styles actually like some age. Dark beers like stouts actually are better with age. Higher gravity beers are good to age. Belgians do best with more time aging. I recently drank a bottle of a BDSA that was over 5 years old. When I handed my glass to my wife to taste, I almost did not get it back. It was fantastic.

jUst hang out here and ask questions and you will learn a ton. There are a lot of very knowledgable and helpful people on this forum. When I first started I spent so much time here my wife called it my beer porn.

Welcome to the addiction,,,,, errr I mean hobby.

 

[Sailingeric]

My bottled beer goes in the garage. I have cracked open a couple that are pushing a year old and they probably even better than when they were just a month old.

 

[unionrdr]

The important thing here, I think, is keeping them in the dark. I keep them in 12 & 24 pack boxes to keep the light off them, regardless of where they're stored.

 

[jojacques]

I too have a question.

Is it better to store filled bottles vertically or they can be stored horizontally as well?

I am asking because I can fit more in my beer fridge when I lay them down horizontally, but I am afraid the sediments will transfer from the bottom to the side, making it very hard to transfer to a glass without the trumbs.

 

[beergolf]

Store them upright so the yeast can settle to the bottom of the bottle.

 

[pshankstar]

I keep my beers that are bottled in the basement in old 12 or 24 boxes. When I am running low I grab a few and place them in the fridge as needed. As the others have said, some age better than others. But by doing this and keeping them out of the sunlight you are good to go! Congrats on your first brew!!!

 

[Aristotelian]

Your basement sounds fine, as long as it doesn't freeze or get too hot.

My biggest concern about long term storage is the remote chance of bottle bombs. So far it has never happened, but I put mine in old 24 cases lined with a heavy trash bag just in case.

 

[NickTheGreat]

Dark, in your basement (55-65) sounds like almost perfect conditions to store beer in.

I'd remember putting them in the cardboard boxes and maybe a towel over the top. That's what I did, anyway.

 

[Eikselo]

Thanks so much for the advice. Im sure this wont be my last question!!

 

[Bert_T]

You are good. Keep it warm for a few weeks to get it fully carbed up and then you can store it in the basement.

If you made a good brew, sanitized very well, beer can have a very long shelf life. Some styles are better drank young but they will not really spoil if kept for a long time. For example in an IPA the hop flavor and aroma will fade with time. Wheat beers are better young. Other styles actually like some age. Dark beers like stouts actually are better with age. Higher gravity beers are good to age. Belgians do best with more time aging. I recently drank a bottle of a BDSA that was over 5 years old. When I handed my glass to my wife to taste, I almost did not get it back. It was fantastic.

jUst hang out here and ask questions and you will learn a ton. There are a lot of very knowledgable and helpful people on this forum. When I first started I spent so much time here my wife called it my beer porn.

Welcome to the addiction,,,,, errr I mean hobby.

Lol. My LHBS welcomed me to The Rabbit Hole.