drinking a beer over multiple nights with a wine stopper - odd question

Dude, you can't do that shit! Send all of your remaining Berserker to me.
Open, drink till empty....go to bed.

 

I don't know the answer to your question. I do know that I left half of a fresh Espresso Oak Aged Yeti uncorked in the fridge for 24 hours, and I thought it tasted considerably better the second day.

 

I've had a similar experience with a bomber but I thought the majority of the flavor changes were due to the reduced carbonation. I would think some of the bourbon aromatics would be lost due to the oxygen exposure leading you to feel like it has less bourbon presence. If you're going to do this again I would suggest you pour yourself two samples of the beer. The first one drink as-is and the other you can pour back and forth between two glasses a few times to really knock out the carbonation. Also, the agitation will provide some exposure to oxygen hopefully simulating your previous experience. If the wine guys can have fancy tools for this, we can use them too:

 

There is not a single real wine professional that uses those fancy gadgets - though they certainly look cool.

There is no way to replicate bottle aging. Most likely, changes in flavor perception from leaving a beer open over an expanded length of time are due to a reduction in carbonation. Less carbonation may lead to an increased sense of body and maltiness.

I often decant young Champagne to get a better sense of the base wine. I find it very helpful.

Have fun with your experiments!

 

I had the same experience with a lips of faith peach porch lounger. I attributed it to the lack of carbonation. Less "bubbles" mean more surface area on your tastebuds. Sounds good even if it isn't the right answer.

 

I agree, it must be due to the reduced carbonation. Since you put it back in the refrigerator night after night the cool temperature would tend to slow down the aging process.

 

Thanks to the OP for bringing this up...I'm really trying to trim down my cellar a bit to make room for more home-brewed goodies (I've finally started all-grain!) but on a, say, Tuesday, I don't want to necessarily knock out 22oz of 13% barleywine. I've considered drinking 5-8 oz, then recapping w/my homebrew capper, and finishing it over another night or two, maybe splitting w/my wife. I was afraid this would totally ruin the beer. From what I'm gathering here, this is not the case?

 

I would say you could get the same effect from not sealing a growler properly when drinking it over a period of days. I would also assume that certain beers would not wash drinking in this manner- which ones, I have no clue. But it is good to hear that it is possible to enjoy a beer the next day after opening, so I may need to try this on the next big beer I get that doesnt do it for me right off the bat instead of drain pouring it.

 

Accelerated aging, not likely. Oxidizing, yes. Loss of carbonation leading to fuller mouthfeel is possible. Loss of flavors and aromatics that you may mot have liked fresh is also possible.

 

I recap bombers quite often. Works with high abv beers that are not expected to have heavy carbonation - can't do it with an IPA, or lambic. Works quite well with imperial stouts and English style barleywines, which lucky for me is what I find in most of the bombers I have stashed away.

 

Fizz Whiz, baby. They are amazing. I used one on a bomber before I left for a trip - I drank about 6 oz, and told a house guest to kill it. He didn't, and when I got back 4 days later I took off the Fizz Whiz expecting it to be flat, and heard a loud POP. I was pleasantly surprised - it tasted great, had retained the carbonation. I use them all the time and they are wonderful!

 

I've noticed the same thing. I consistantly enjoy the 2nd half of a bomber the next evening. I've decided that I don't much care for too much carbonation.

 

Yeah when it comes to heavy stouts a lack of carbonation can be a good thing.
I know my uncarbonated homebrewed RIS is tasting fantastic as is.
I had a few dud bottles of my English Bitter....that style needs the carbonation.

Are there any types of beer that are purposely not carbonated?

 

When I read your post I thought you were recommending that someone use pop rocks to restore carbonation. After a quick search I now know what you were talking about.

 

Yes, they are called still. Cantillon makes one if I remember correctly and a few years ago Lost Abbey did a couple (not talking shit, I'm just pretty sure Tomme said that they were supposed to be that way).

 

Yeah, according to Jamil Z et al, traditional unblended Belgian lambics are just as appropriately drunk uncarbonated as carbonated....I'm not sure if I'd like that though, to be honest.

 

I often put a wine stopper in a large bottle of beer and enjoy it over consecutive nights. One beer that this works well with is St. Bernardus Abt 12. Don't get me wrong. It's wonderful to drink the moment the cork is popped, but as the carbonation leaves, many subtle flavors seem to come out. It's like a different beer the second night. Not necessarily better or worse, just different.

 

I wonder if people would say the same thing about a bottle of wine 'breathing' overnight? It seems just as inappropriate to not drink an entire bottle of wine, (sometimes with company), in an evening.

 

I home brew most of what I drink nowadays, and can say with no doubt that the level of carbonation has a big effect on flavor. Every beer when finished is still. The flavors on that extremely fresh, flat beer, are uniquely profound. More than once I have noticed a marked difference between the bottom of the bottling bucket and the carbed-up bottled version of the same batch of beer.

I believe your observations of the differences are mostly due to the decreasing level of carbonation with each succeeding night. This may also be why beers on cask are very popular with some people. The carbonation is more moderate relative to the bottled counterpart.