This is why you clean out your fridge...

cook with it...

 

I was thinking in another direction, but that's a great idea, too. I'd rather play with something than toss it- and it's even better if you make something work with two beers. It really does depend on what other beers kind of need a boost and are 'expendable'. But something lemony, or even graprfruity, would go really well.

 

I love old Hopslam

 

I had to make room for my haul of this year's BCBS and came across 2 bottles of 2013 Bigfoot and last year's Pipeworks Santa vs. Unicorn... Barleywines age alright I suppose, right?

 

I just gave a friend a 2005 Bigfoot. Your barleys are just fine.

 

Sell it! Go read some of the reviews. I think it would be crazy to drink it.

 

Drink up! You've got 28 days left!

 

I will vote present by posting in this thread.
What someone else said. It's strutting around at 10%abv with a crap ton of hops in its bill. Honey keeps pretty much indefinitely, and hops in the kind of quantity per barrel being used for Hopslam are going to act as preservatives when you do actually allow them to be used as breweries historically used them.
That (historically) before Americans decided to turn it up to 11 is full on Barleywine territory.
That DIPA you hoped to have as a freshie is now just a barleywine; nbd.
Drink it and enjoy it for what it NOW is. Or keep it and do a vertical when they release Hopslam next time.

 

Which is exactly why he has to drink it! Everyone needs to try one of the world's worst beers at least once! Consider it research on reference points.

 

i had this self-control problem; i just started buying so many whalezbro i couldn't drink 'em all. I also wrapped everything in brown paper bags in the my beer fridge so i can't really tell what's in there. I know it's a bunch of gueze's, imperial stouts/porters, barleywines and other ageable beers. but the bags give the appearance of being hidden. okay, i'm a hobo.

To OP, i'm with others that think this would age decently given the higher ABV. if you're really motivated, you could probably put together a vertical with the '12 as the anchor. wasn't bell's bottle dating, you don't see a date on the back label?

 

I would at least try it. I recently stumbled across a celebration from 2012 that I had left in my friends fridge. Popped it open and drank it. Tasted great

 

You have a point! Everything will likely taste transcendently amazing after that!

 

"had"? A lot of the first paragraph is past tense. Did you find a more permanent solution to the hobo technique? If so I'm all ears

 

Purposely aged a Hopslam to try with this past year's fresh Hopslam release. Year old Hopslam tasted a lot like Blue Moon (try it and you'll be surprised). That being said, you can always borrow "Randall" from Dogfish Head.

http://www.dogfish.com/company/tangents/randall-the-enamel-animal.htm

 

@gopens44 There's a bar in my town that sold vintage bottles of Hopslam. I didn't buy any, but I asked them about it and they said it does take on a very different character than when it's fresh, much like an aged barleywine, which totally makes sense, because the only difference between Hopslam and many american barleywines is the use of pale malts. It sounds like the bottle was stored properly so I wouldn't be afraid to drink it. I voted to save it for the 2015 release and do a side-by-side. The worst that could happen is it has gone bad and then you dump it... no big deal.

 

haha, well, i guess i still have the self-control problem. i just solved it by purchasing more beers than i could ever reasonably drink and then backfilling with IPA's that "had" to be drank in the nearer term leaving the whalezbro behind.

what the hobo method may look like, no hopslam in there

 

Love how the Bomb! and KBS are unbagged - I guess you're conscious of the adjuncts fading in those? hahaha

 

Drink it!

 

i go bareback on the 12oz, unbagged

overall, there's so little light in there and no natural sunlight. the bagging isn't for lightstriking purposes.