IPAs not refrigerated??

That is a myth. Cycling temperatures like cold to warm to cold does no damage to beer per se; it is warm (really hot) temperature that damages beer. So, if you purchase beer cold and then store it in a warm/hot garage and then place it in the refrigerator for consumption it is not the cycling that damaged the beer, it was the warm/hot storage that damaged the beer.

Cheers!

 

Not true, warm/hot storage leads to faster staling than cold storage. Storing a hoppy beer like an IPA warm/hot will have quicker staling reactions that manifest themselves as hop fade.

Cold storage is always better.

Cheers!

 

But since no self respecting BA would dare open an IPA more than 15 minutes after bottling, I guess we'll never know!

 

If I buy a beer that has been out on the shelf at room temp I will just put it in my fridge and then leave it for 24 hours. Quick chilling beer, that's another topic for another day.

 

People who won't buy cold beer because it will get skunked if it is going to get warm again crack me up. Beer distributors obviously have warehouses the size of many football fields, and the whole thing is a walk in cooler. Of course the store has huge walk ins too, where they store the backstock.

'These people' must have never paid the electric bill on a house with 2+ refrigerators.

 

I think the temp can be a factor, but so can a few other things. Unless you really believe in the integrity of the supply chain, I do think a lot of people are fooling themselves. Traders? E-bay *****s? How do y'all sleep at night? Are is all y'all's stuff shipped on dry ice?

 

Proteins will drop out when beers warms up, had it happen with a lagunitas censored ale. They sent me a free t shirt and said, "don't tell anybody". Beer is best stored between 32f-38f. Any higher it degrades and is served as not intended. Period. They beat this in your head in any type of beer class/program.

 

I come from the school that IPA's should be refrigerated from the get-go. transported cold and kept cold right to my fridge.

 

Do the world a favor. Get right over to that Costco, today.
DP all of those warm IPA's. Oh the humanity...

 

The Hardwick Book is correct. As a retailer, this is the type of training all staff that handles or receives beer should have. A business contract with the vendors will include a proper handling and storage agreement including temperature for both sides to adhere to.

 

Its just another factor to consider, but freshness is always the first thing that I look for. Unless I am a regular customer to a store, whether or not beer is stored in the cooler does not factor into my decision. In fact I'm often more wary of buying from the cooler in stores where the majority of their stock is kept on the floor. How do I know that the beer in the cooler has actually been stored there since they got it? Can't tell you how many times I've seen a six month IPA rotting on a floor display moved into the cooler and suddenly it flies out the store.

And this gets to a bigger point. The majority of customers do not buy from the cooler because they believe the product is kept fresher, they buy from the cooler for convenience. They want to go home and pop open a six pack right now. The ratio of what I'd call "educated on beer" customers to so-called "ignorant on beer" customers is way out there. So the store fridge space, often a precious commodity, can be better used to sell the BMC and flush away some shelf turds.

As a side note light is also a big problem for hops as far as I understand. Beer straight from the case is always a nice go, and canned IPAs are god.

 

Is there a school of thought that supports warm IPA transportation and storage?

 

This. And then keeping it in the fridge once home. That is all anyone can do.

Per other posts, many stores do not keep their entire IPA inventory in the fridge - nor would it even be possible to do so.

 

It makes a difference, but not a huge one.

 

People need to relax a bit when it comes down to IPA’s.

Most IPA’s in the store aren’t going to be younger than 1 – 2 weeks, IPA’s do not change that much in the 2 – 6 week period. If they are refrigerated or not for one week of their life, it won’t mater that much. Unless if you put them in the sun for a couple days, I doubt that you will even notice the difference.

 

not at my school. lol

 

My local beer store (a retail beer distributor) has plenty of IPAs sitting on the floor (unrefrigerated). The typical age of those IPAs are in months vs. weeks.

Cheers!

 

I like all my beer warm at room temp aside from Pilsners and Lagers

 

I don’t buy IPA’s that old whether they are refrigerated or not, problem solved. Unless if your IPA is just a hoppy barleywine (aka Struise Eliot) or a hoppy Belgian, I don’t buy them older than 3 months even if they were refrigerated all of the time. I have tried 5 – 36 months old IPA’s that were refrigerated all of the time, nope, just totally faded.

 

And IPA's. I would never drink a cold RIS or the like if I could help it. Can't taste anything.