I have taken a few timid steps toward cellaring some of my beer. Last January I had some Brooklyn Monster Ale and very specifically put aside a bottle to have…oh, about now.
It’s been an awful temptation to see it back for just about all of 2009. This is a bottle from 2008.
Very pretty caramel color and clear. What little head it has falls fairly quickly. There’s some vanilla in the aroma, plus a bit of floral, but mostly it’s significantly malty/bready. It’s thick. Not syrupy, but obviously very high gravity. Big malty flavor with a little bit of heat from the alcohol.
Question is: Is it better than it was a year ago?
I say yes. Most of the “harshness” I found in it last January has certainly mellowed. It’s warm and complex. It’s good. Should I cellar it for longer? I don’t know, but it would be hard to leave it alone for that long.
Just got my first couple of bottles of Monster today. Glad to know that it’s turned out well after some time in the cellar.
.-= Ray’s latest: Anheuser-Busch InBev Layoffs =-.
Alright, I’ll ask the obvious newb questions here, and hopefully one of you amazingly knowledgeable gentlemen can assist me.
1) Are there certain types of beers that are best to cellar, and ones that under no circumstances should ever be cellared?
2) Temperature/humidity: Are these important, or is a warm(ish) cellar just as good as a cool one?
Thanks in advance!
The Brew Basement is a blog specifically on this topic. There are a couple of good articles about cellaring there. Hurry, though, as he hasn’t posted since last March. It’s likely abandoned and might disappear any minute.
I just keep mine in a spare fridge in my storeroom. Light, obviously, is bad, and I’d say to avoid large temperature fluctuations. Best is that familiar “cool dry place”.
As for types for cellaring, you’re looking for high-gravity, high-alcohol beers. Barley wines, imperial stouts, etc. Light lagers and pale ales are generally not good candidates. (Ironic, since lagers are traditionally stored for six months or so before selling.)