Aging beer

[TimCA]

I am thinking about doing some beers that either require aging or just to store. At what temp do you all store at. I here Paxton and others refer to beers there trying that are 1 2 or 3 years old. Do they have walk in cooler in there houses? For those of you brewing large quantity or aged beers where and how do you store it i.e temp. My kegorator only holds 5 kegs... And then what would be the ideal scenario?

Thanks
Tim

[mbird]

I will be in Mexico for 5 months so when I put 4 cornys in my kegerator at 45f. for the duration. One is a strong wheat beer and the other is a lager (schwartz bier). I also have a corny of Imperial Stout that is on the floor and is about 10%abv. The higher gravity beer I think will be o.k. setting in the storage unit without temp control, the others I felt needed to be in a chilled environment because they are not that alcoholic. Just what I did.
mark
www.backyardbrewer.blogspot.com
www.thebackyardbrewer.com

[brewinhard]

You definitely want to age your beer as cold as you can. My basement typically runs anywhere from 50 degrees in winter (perfect for aging temps) all the way to mid 60's in the summer (not so great). Obviously big beers (8% and up) are better choices for aging. Sour beers are great for aging as their pH levels are so acidic that they age nicely. I recommend only aging strong beers and sour beers. Anything else, and drink it up when it is at its peak, cuz as soon as that beer oxidizes you will taste it and wish you had put it in your belly before that point!

[TimCA]

Yes this will be for bigger beers, loggers and overstock. So you say the colder the better but then you say

50 degrees in winter (perfect for aging temps)

. I guess that ultimately is my question, Is it better / worth the cost to invest in a refrigerator to store / age beer or will 50F (my basement in winter) be just fine? I have always herd the as cold as you can keep it flowed by the 50 F thing.

Thanks
Tim

[Sent From My iPhone]

If you can keep the beer at a consistent 50F they should be fine for quite a while.

[Mylo]

I think I remember Jamil saying that every 10 degrees halfs the life of beer. So a beer stored at 40 that normally would last 2 years will last 1 at 50, 6 mos. at 60, etc.

Take that with a grain of salt, it's just a guideline. I think you want to AGE beer (ie. condition) beer as warm as you need to in order to get it ready for you when you want (within reason - ie. don't age anything above 78). A big, alcoholic beer will take forever to age at serving temps.

That being said, once it is fully conditioned, you want to STORE it as cold as possible (without freezing) if you want it to last a long time. And Sheen is right, consistent temps matter.

Once my beer is cold, I like to keep it that way. Things that last 2-3 years here are in VERY limited quantity. My "cellar" is another fridge, as anything not in a fridge becomes 80 degrees in AZ.


Mylo