general shelf life for Saisons?

I got two bottles of Logsdon Seizoen Bretta (rated 95 here) from Rare Beer Club delivered yesterday - both bottles from same production run and a best by date of August 2018. Personally, I feel Saisons are more in the 1 1/2 - 2 year range, depending on ABV. Ommegang's Hennepin usually has a best by date of 2 years after bottling date.

 

I concur with the 1-2 years for a ‘typical’ Saison (most of the present day Saisons are of higher alcohol like 6% or greater).

I don’t know whether I would want to keep a table Saison (e.g., 5% ABV) for that long though.

Cheers

 

Agree with the 1-2 year range, I have been buy a good amount of year old Sofie off of the shelf and it has been great!

 

I just had a 1.5 year old homebrew saison that my buddy made yesterday, and it absolutely blew me the f*ck away.... age that shit.

 

I can definetly back this up. Had a Saison-Brett 09 that was absolutely awful. Fresh to 3 years max in my opinion.

 

really? I was planning on aging my saison-brett for about 4-5 years. no bueno

 

Yea don't do it, wasting good beer I'm afraid. At 2 years it's incredible tho!

 

I think this is an old style that has blown up lately. There are Saisons brewed with wild yeast and ones with controlled yeast. The ones with controlled yeast should obviously be consumed fresh. The wild strains are yet to be determined. I've heard people drinking Saison Brett 09 today and think it's better than fresh. I've also heard the exact opposite. Same with Sophie, and etc. I've had a Saision brett that was 2 years old it seemed to have got funkier but more soft/dull/mellow. You typically want a crisp and snappy dryness with saisons and that can get lost with age.
But it all comes down to what you like in a beer.

If it has controlled yeast, drink that bad boy as soon as possible.
If it has wild yeast, pick up 2 bottles, drink it fresh and put one away for a few years. It should hold up for a couple of years.
If you're unsure drink it as quick as possible.

I wouldn't hold on to either longer than 2 years unless you've had it fresh.