With all my travels to Quebec (on which I do promise to post soon – there has just been so much else to catch up on) and other life busy-ness, it slipped past me that the latest Beer 101 column was published a couple weeks ago. It is the last of the series on beer aging and staling. Appropriately, I finish with a discussion on which kinds of beer are best suited for putting aside.
It is no secret, as I mention in earlier parts of the series, that most beer is best consumed fresh. However, certain styles are best sampled after they have had some time to blend and mellow. There are a few beer that can even be kept for many decades without losing their beer goodness.
When I offer that piece of information to people it is often met with incredulity. They can’t really get their heads around the idea of a beer that ages like a fine red wine. Such is the narrowness of the modern beer industry. But it is true, my friends (and I know many, if not most, of you already know this). The article walks through what qualities make a beer a candidate for aging and HOW you should cellar it. One of the column’s better features, I think, is its recognition that there are two kinds of cellar beer – medium-aged and long term-aged. No one talks about this much, but I think it is important to acknowledge. Some beer, like Double IPAs, Scotch Ales and such, do well with a few months in the bottle. But they are not meant for many years of storage. However, barley wines, imperial stouts and many Belgian beer are ideally suited for many years of aging.
At any rate, I will let you read the whole thing for yourself, if you so choose. Read the whole article here.
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