How Long does a homebrew last?

[Justus]

I've been trying to perfect an American Pale Ale for a year now. I finally have come up with a recipe that is truly worthy... How long will a home brew last in the bottle before going bad?

 

[JoeMama]

Indefinitely... (I hate to say it) But this has been discussed PLENTY of times before.

A homebrew will last as long as it remains untouched. (Which is normally not long in my house)
-Me

 

[Chello]

The same length a time a commercially brewed beer takes to go bad.

I'd venture "bad" is a person specific notion. I don't think i'v ever had an undrinkable beer due to age. So i'd say several years, but i'm sure you'll get multiple different answers.

 

[Revvy]

In the Dec 07 Zymurgy Charlie Papazian reviewed bottles of homebrew going back to the first AHC competition that he had stored, and none of them went bad, some had not held up but most of them he felt were awesome...We're talking over 20 years worth of beers.

It's going to really depend on the style and the recipe...Barleywines may not even come into their own for years and if properly stored may be good for decades.

A hefe on the other hand should be drunk really young..

I've tasted year old bottles of beer, and none of them had gone downhill either.

 

[MikeFlynn74]

How the hell does anyone have anything left after 3 weeks?

 

[beerthirty]

How the hell does anyone have anything left after 3 weeks?

You have to brew faster or bigger batches.

 

[billy_awesome]

don't leave the bottles in the sun LOL

 

[zimmzala]

Brew more so they last longer. The more you have to "sample" the longer they live!

 

[Edcculus]

I'll add in that it depends on your attention to detail. Good cleaning, sanitation and cutting down on aeration on the cold side will all help your beer keep in the bottle.

 

[Bopper]

I have some barley wine and coffee stout bottles left from 2006 - they're still good. The barley wine is still getting better.

 

[zoebisch01]

I disagree with indefinitely. It is highly recipe dependent. Good in terms of, it won't make you sick, etc....but good in terms of flavor is a different story. Some beers just lose all character when they sit too long. The general rule of thumb is the more complex the recipe and higher the starting gravity the more it is a candidate for the long run. I discovered that my DunkelWeizen does not do well past the 4 month mark, it just tastes nothing like what it does in its prime and isn't very good at that point. Which is really kind of another point. Some recipes will just morph through many 'good' phases, each one being its own unique state. Others will hit 'the magic mile' or seemingly a week where they change over into their peak of flavor, and after that it is down hill. So, knowing that the beer has passed its prime really adds another layer to the judgment of the flavor. I have a friend who received comments from several judges on a NutBrown that stated they thought the beer had passed its prime.

 

[smokysalsa]

1 batch, about 1 month

 

[Revvy]

1 batch, about 1 month

But you're talking about DRINKING it, not having it go bad or anything....

That's a totally different story...

 

[Runyanka]

In the Dec 07 Zymurgy Charlie Papazian reviewed bottles of homebrew going back to the first AHC competition that he had stored, and none of them went bad, some had not held up but most of them he felt were awesome...We're talking over 20 years worth of beers.

It's going to really depend on the style and the recipe...Barleywines may not even come into their own for years and if properly stored may be good for decades.

A hefe on the other hand should be drunk really young..

I've tasted year old bottles of beer, and none of them had gone downhill either.

Ah yes, the "sipping through yesteryears" article. A great read!

 

[Revvy]

Ah yes, the "sipping through yesteryears" article. A great read!

Yep....I wish it were available online as a point or reference...This question seems to be suddenly getting asked a lot...I think this is the 4th time in a month someone's asked how long HB can be stored.

 

[Runyanka]

Yep....I wish it were available online as a point or reference...This question seems to be suddenly getting asked a lot...I think this is the 4th time in a month someone's asked how long HB can be stored.

That happens to be one of my favorite issues. I think its still in my thinking room (toilet closet). Maybe I can scan some pages in and upload them.