Horizontal vs. Vertical

I prefer upright so the beer only comes into contact with the inert glass.

 

There are experienced and well-educated cellarists who store their beer on their side. It's generally accepted that storing upright is preferred, but only based on everything else being equal. The main concern with storing them on their side is the buildup of sediment on the side of the bottle - hardly a concern if you pour carefully. Lambics are typically stored on their side at the brewery.

If storing them on their side is more convenient for you, every bit of evidence I have says it will be pretty darn fine to do so.

Here is some inspiration: http://bruery.blogspot.ca/2013/12/andrew-bell-beer-cellar.html

 

I'd be fine with the sediment catching on one side - just be careful when opening it, then pouring with that side up, to get as little sediment into the glass as possible.

 

FYI if you haven't come across this: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/101/store

 

I thought this was going to be a thread about horizontal and vertical tastings.


With the exception of my whopping five bottles of sour/lambic, I age everything upright. I suspect the "lambics should always be aged horizontally" rule has a fair bit of bullshit behind it, but they are expensive and people have been aging lambic like that for decades with good results. Since I already know it works fine that way I'm not going to risk all that money trying to reinvent the wheel, as it where.

Your mileage may vary.

 

In my experience, brews with a cork are laying down next to my wine bottles. Others are upright.

 

Storing beer upright minimizes oxidation from the cap.