How long can you really keep beer?

[Pete Nice]

So I ask this b/c twice a year I buy the Sam Adams seasonal variety pack case. There are some beers in there that I really like, the Winter Ale and Summer Ale come to mind, but there are also some that are ehhh. I do not buy this case with the intention of finishing it quickly, I like to enjoy Sam Adams products and will usually have no more than 2 in a sitting. Buy the ones I am not really huge fans of can sit in the frig for up to a year. I think shit beer, like Bud products, Coors products and Miller products go bad fast, but maybe good/real beer lasts a little longer?

[Derick]

i've heard 180 days

[Joe]

Last year I bought may cases of Miller lite for a BBQ I had. A year later they still tasted the same. They've been in my fridge though.

[Pete Nice]

i've heard 180 days

Again, I think good beer has a longer shelf life. If you want to drink watered down piss, like Bud and Coors, of course that shit goes bad after 180 days.

[Derick]

i've heard 180 days

Again, I think good beer has a longer shelf life. If you want to drink watered down piss, like Bud and Coors, of course that shit goes bad after 180 days.

i dont think its a beer quality issue, i think its more related to the amount of time they can keep the CO2 in solution

[Pete Nice]

Joe might be on to something with keeping it in the frig also. I always keep beer in the frig and it never tastes bad, even after 10 months.

[Joe]

I heard some beer expert say that it had a lot to do with sun hitting it. I think it was more about the exposure to light than it was the heat.

[LeNeve]

I have never had beer around long enough to find out. I do know that if it's cold, then gets warm, then gets cold again, it tastes like shit.

[Lou Scunt]

anything longer than 2 months is asking for trouble, beer's not going to get better

the beer you love, may be crappy in time

[Pokes28]

You guys have hit on the biggies as far as beer is concerned.

If you want a beer to last and taste good for a longer period of time.

1. Avoid light (especially sunlight) as when light hits beer, it provides the fuel needed to start a reaction that transforms the iso-alpha-acids into 3-methyl-2-butene-1-thiol. The “thiol” part means that there is sulfur. That is how you end up with skunky beer. - This is why it is absolutely stupid for any brewer to ever use colorless or green bottles. I've gone so far as to remove the light bulb from my beer fridge.

2. Keep refrigerated. Just like all the other foods in your house you slow down the decaying process by keeping it cold.

3. Bottles over cans. Cans will ultimately leach into the beer and change the flavor of it. Bottles won't.

As for how long a beer can be good. Consider that most European import beer that we get is at least 180 days old and you can see that it can last a good long while under the right conditions. I've had a beer that was over 3 years old and it was still very good without any sense of skunkiness.

[Pete Nice]

good shit pokes. My frig now will be my beer fridge in garage come February. I am gonna take the lights out.

[jotaka20]

Also be aware refrigeration is not always needed, just a consistent temperature. Beer skunks when it undergoes vast temperature changes multiple times. Be aware that usually by the time you buy your beer at the store it may have actually already changed between refrigerated temperatures and room temperature about 3 times. You can still do it a few more times but the older the beer the more likely it might turn.

[the keifer]

I was at the Yuingling Brewery in Pottsville Pa three days ago doing the tour. They said that their beers stay good for around six months if stored properly.

[Pete Nice]

I would like to visit that brewery

[the keifer]

Yeah, the tour was free. I recommend it.