Caps vs Corks

I have read all sorts of research on both sides and I'm sure people here will have their arguments for each. Both packaging methods have examples that have stood the test of time.

 

In many cases, it seems that the quality of the cork or the seal of the cap play the biggest role.

 

As others have said, it's going to be hard to find a solid, for-sure answer. Corks probably have a higher susceptibility to allowing air inside the container, and may impart flavors if the bottle is stored on it's side. If you age a corked bottle for several or more years, it may also dry if not kept humidified. This will cause the cork to crack and possibly crumble into the beer you are opening.
However, capped bottle have their own drawbacks. They can rust and the inner seal can wear away with time. To help with these issues, I know some people wax their capped bottles - don't know if this really helps or not, but it's something to look into.

I think alot of the drawbacks have to do with the quality of the cork or cap, the amount of time you are aging them, and the environment you are storing them in.

 

I believe that larger format bottles are thought to age better, so that would cover a lot of the capped/corked possibilities since generally one size isn't available in both formats. My experience with old corked beers (65 years and on) is that they are great. My experience with capped beers in that range has been a bit more hit and miss but still generally good.

 

I have been considering buying some bottle wax to take care of all my capped bottles.

 

Just a quick question: what is your expected time window you are looking at with the beer you are keeping?

 

My advice: don't over think things. Buy/acquire beers you like, keep detailed inventory, take tasting notes. Stick with the very general storage best practices (keep out of direct light, keep someplace where there isn't high temperature fluctuations) and you really can't go wrong. Don't worry about minutia like caps/corks/cans/horizontal storage; it is really hard to mess this stuff up. The beer may not improve to your tastes in the window you are working in, but it isn't going to be because any of those things I just mentioned.

 

What other cans are there with aging potential besides Ten Fidy? I can't think of many ... maybe that Sun King barleywine. In any case, I wouldn't hesitate to age Ten Fidy. I think you would find plenty of people that had positive results with it.

Cans have a plastic liner inside, so aluminum exposure isn't an issue. I suppose the liner could deteriorate, but I don't think it would be common in your usual fresh - 3/4 year aging window.

 

Given that the quality and reliability of corks is finally beginning to show improvement its really hard to say. My head says continue to play it safe with crown caps but the romantic in me says all consumable liquids should be closed with cork.

 

Please don't age Heady Topper. IPAs are meant to be drank fresh. The hops will fade away and you'll have nothing left of what the beer was fresh.

Have you read through the cellaring guide thread? http://beeradvocate.com/beer/101/store

 

You should probably wax your cans. Just drop the whole can into the wax pot and fish it out with a ladle or something.

 

The pros can their cans in these:

 

I'm pretty sure if you really want to age your cans, you are supposed to encase them in epoxy in the shape of a surfboard:



Admittedly, this guy has some pretty poor taste regarding what to age... but his theory is sound. ^_^

 

I personally don't like cans for several unrelated reasons, but I had an '09 and a 2012 Ten Fidy side by side about a month ago. I could swear I tasted a bit of a metallicness to it with the first 1/3 of the beer (the '09), but after that I wasn't able to pick up on it. Side by side the '09 was quite a bit more complex than the 2012.