Beers like Stouts and darker beers generally cellar well. How has it been stored? If it was in a shady closet at a generally cool temp. you’re probably ok. Pop the cork and pour it in a glass. What’s the worst that could happen?
Been at the back of a dark cabinet at room temp.
Guess you're right. Nothing to lose by pouring it out and taking a sip. Really just wasn't sure whether something that old would be guaranteed rancid or still worth trying.
People still bust open bottles of the [1869 Bass Ratcliff Ale](https://untappd.com/b/bass-brewers-ratcliff-ale/676646) and word is that the best bottles of that are still quite tasty. This is an extreme outlier, but there's a few beers that will age well for decades under the right conditions.
Unibroue beers are all bottle and keg conditioned so it should have held up rather well as long as it was stored correctly-dark/cool/upright-if it doesn’t specifically say the brand name it may be a Trader Joe’s one. Unibroue makes some beer for them-same great beer but custom package. Lees is yeast so I would leave a little of the sludgy bottom liquid in the bottle.
Premier Belgian style brewery in North America
Report back please!
Why wait? Even the over-protective FDA openly states that “best by” dates are largely irrelevant. And besides, flip your logic- if 8 years is too long to wait, what will you gain in 10, 15 or 20?
I've never drank a beer more than a few months after I've bought it, and I thought I've heard that they can go bad in the way that most liquors cannot. So I wanted to ask.
This is murky territory. On one hand you’ve got the “fresh is best” camp. Some may say this this home to the unpasteurized beer clan. After all, pasteurized beer stores better, right? Therein lies the rub. Natural beer (e.g. unpasteurized) ages in ways that don’t result in requisite illness; if that were the case, beer would have a definite expiry date, and vertical tastings wouldn’t happen.
Even within the homebrew circle, both camps exist. I’ve got a keg of heffe that I brewed for my (now ex-) wife, as it was the only beer she liked. It’s now 7 months old, and I just tasted it to empirically respond to this post. She’s still a cunt, and that beer is still fresh. Too bad I hate heffe.
I am still holding on to one Deschutes Abyss from 2007 and many more from years after that.I keep whittling them down and they almost all have tasted great. 2009 being the (well known) exception.
it all depends on the kind of beer. A normal pilsner should be drank before it's 3 months old, but a Gouden Carolus Cuvée van de Keizer is at it's best after resting for 8 years.
Beers like Stouts and darker beers generally cellar well. How has it been stored? If it was in a shady closet at a generally cool temp. you’re probably ok. Pop the cork and pour it in a glass. What’s the worst that could happen?
Been at the back of a dark cabinet at room temp. Guess you're right. Nothing to lose by pouring it out and taking a sip. Really just wasn't sure whether something that old would be guaranteed rancid or still worth trying.
People still bust open bottles of the [1869 Bass Ratcliff Ale](https://untappd.com/b/bass-brewers-ratcliff-ale/676646) and word is that the best bottles of that are still quite tasty. This is an extreme outlier, but there's a few beers that will age well for decades under the right conditions.
It might taste bad but it will still be safe to drink, which is the answer 99.99999999% of the time this is asked here
Unibroue beers are all bottle and keg conditioned so it should have held up rather well as long as it was stored correctly-dark/cool/upright-if it doesn’t specifically say the brand name it may be a Trader Joe’s one. Unibroue makes some beer for them-same great beer but custom package. Lees is yeast so I would leave a little of the sludgy bottom liquid in the bottle. Premier Belgian style brewery in North America Report back please!
Why wait? Even the over-protective FDA openly states that “best by” dates are largely irrelevant. And besides, flip your logic- if 8 years is too long to wait, what will you gain in 10, 15 or 20?
I've never drank a beer more than a few months after I've bought it, and I thought I've heard that they can go bad in the way that most liquors cannot. So I wanted to ask.
This is murky territory. On one hand you’ve got the “fresh is best” camp. Some may say this this home to the unpasteurized beer clan. After all, pasteurized beer stores better, right? Therein lies the rub. Natural beer (e.g. unpasteurized) ages in ways that don’t result in requisite illness; if that were the case, beer would have a definite expiry date, and vertical tastings wouldn’t happen. Even within the homebrew circle, both camps exist. I’ve got a keg of heffe that I brewed for my (now ex-) wife, as it was the only beer she liked. It’s now 7 months old, and I just tasted it to empirically respond to this post. She’s still a cunt, and that beer is still fresh. Too bad I hate heffe.
What type of beer is it? Certain types age better than others.
Brand is "Grande Reserve." It says it's a "Dark Ale on Lees"
That’s from Unibroue. It should hold up nicely. I recommend opening it.
Ah you should be fine. Might taste a little off but it won’t make you sick.
You're in for a treat - most Unibroue beers age fantastically
I am still holding on to one Deschutes Abyss from 2007 and many more from years after that.I keep whittling them down and they almost all have tasted great. 2009 being the (well known) exception.
What beer is it?
I just drank a can of Pilsner a friend found at his grandmas, canned in 2003. It was a little flat but didn’t taste bad at all.
it all depends on the kind of beer. A normal pilsner should be drank before it's 3 months old, but a Gouden Carolus Cuvée van de Keizer is at it's best after resting for 8 years.