"Born on" or "Best before"

Agreed. Tell me the bottling date, and if you have a guideline for optimal freshness, feel free to tell me that, too. And preferably in a clear format (something like "Bottled on: 01/15/2013 — Best by: 05/15/2013") with legible, durable ink.

 

Yes - that is true. The rules vary with the different products and how they are packaged and stored prior to sale - lots of regulations and red tape. It just all adds to the confusion where there isn't one consistent system across the board - for producers and consumers alike.

 

I was referring to this...

http://www.bellsbeer.com/brands/availability1/

 

That's exactly what I was thinking!
I still think that Bottled / Canned on dating is best.
Best by dating doesn't necessarily mean anything when it comes to freshness, just that it's "best by" this date which is the last day it's any good. Stone has an interesting concept with their IPA, but it's specifically brewed and marketed that way, kind of hard to miss that on the label.
How long has that beer been sitting on the shelf at the store, out of refrigeration, unprotected from the light? Might be a little easier to determine how fresh that beer is with a visible, readable bottled/canned on date and make your decision making on what you're willing to pay a little different, or not.
I also dislike the Julian dating used by some brewers as well.
IMO.

 

The date it was put into a container.

 

Ommegang uses both. Unibroue has a best buy on the back of the bottle and a code on the front indicating when it was bottled.

 

This is why the poll feature exists.

Also pretty apparent that bottled on is preferable.

 

Best after

 

yes I know what you were referring to... but you said

If I don't already the info from Bell's website, i don't see how I would be led to believe that a beer is fresh by it's "best by" date because a Bell's beer does not have a "best by" date it. If it is in fact 5 1/2 months old, it will be quite obvious, because in fact the bottling date is printed right on the bottle. It is in fact quite obvious to anyone regardless of what they know about Bells website exactly how old the beer they are buying is...

 

One is incomplete with out the other. Bottling date lead to uninformed people complaining about "old and out of date" beer being on shelves when they are still very much within an appropriate date range. Best by dates do not always paint a true picture of age.

Bottle dating in no way should be mandatory, there really is no reason for it. If consumers provided the breweries enough incentive, not buying beer, they would all date their bottles. Breweries keep selling and moving their product, there is zero reason for them to change their process.

 

Bell's does put a Best By code on their beers however. A,B and C. Six month, Twelve months and Unlimited shelf life.

 

I was born on November 24th, 1958

I don't want to know what my expires on date is...

my vote is for born on (bottled on)!

 

As does Weyerbacher.

 

I like the way Samuel Adams does it. I always check for freshness, because I am paying a good price for these beers. If I were buying swill, I would not give a hoot about a born on date.

 

if Zombie Dust had either on its label I'd be a happy man.

 

While packaging dates do seem somewhat better, I don't really have a preference as long as the date is labeled as either "packaged-on" or "best-by." If the brewery is already going through the trouble of bottle-dating, I'd like to know whether that beer I have my eye on was bottled two weeks ago or is two weeks past its 'expiration.'

 

yes but this code would not trick the unsuspecting buyer into thinking they were buying a fresh beer, as the bottling date is still there.

 

lol... zombie dust lasts 5 minutes. I don't think you have to worry about old zombie dust, any time in the near future.

 

IMO best before dates are bull shit for IPA's. I have a few Chinnookies that the best before date is 3/13, and it's tastes like an old stale IPA. This same Online store also sent me "fresh" Jai Alai that was canned on 11/2/12, that shit is 10 weeks old right now and it tastes like it. I sent him an Email so we'll see how he responds, if not I'll out him so others won't have to waste money on stale beer.

 

I emailed them last October and got this info which i pulled from my site:

Uses a best before date and a bottled on date. From the brewer: We have a "bottled on" date on our master cartons and packaged on dates on our 12 pack. Our 22 ounce bottles will continue to have a vintage bottling date on the bottom left side of the label that is notched.

With the 12-pack container though, makes it kind of hard. Hopefully he can answer you about length between "bottled" & "best by".