How fast does the coffee fall off in BCBCS?

The coffee in batch 2 seems to be hanging around longer than batch 1, but I would plan on drinking it sooner rather than later.

 

Drink it relatively quickly.

A 2012 bottle shared with me by largadeer in early February was phenomenal, so much that I set up a trade for another one (2011 Rittenhouse Rye Eclipse for BCBCS, straight trade). I received a separate bottle of BCBCS and drank it 10 days later; the coffee had faded noticeably (to my palate) and the bottle was a bit hotter. Having noticed this pattern in the 2010 batch of BCBCS, I canceled the trade.

I imagine most of the coffee loss occurred six months ago, so at this point you're not making it a whole lot worse by waiting a week or two. But fresher is better on that one.

 

Falls off dramatically after you trade your last one

 

Treat coffee like hops. Would you expect much hop punch in an 8 month old IPA? It doesn't mean the beer isn't still drinkable - it is because there is usually a lot more to coffee stouts than just the coffee - but the strong coffee element that makes the beer unique doesn't stick around long.

 

This post makes me wonder....I found a WnB in the back of my fridge from 2010....I have never tried it fresh, but the 2010 was still very very much coffee forward. Does that mean that when fresh it would be that much more potent/intense or does this brew just react differently to age?

I know refrigerator temps slows the "falling off", but there has to be some other factor.

 

I think of coffee/hops like a half life. It never completely goes away. Let's say its half life is 6 months. At 6 months it is 50% as potent as fresh, at 12 months 25%, at 18 months it is 12.5%, etc, etc. So - sure - maybe the 2010 you had still had 35% of its coffee punch still hanging around. If you compared it side-by-side with a fresh WnB though, you'd certainly notice a difference.

 

I've had 6-7 bottles of BCBCS since it came out. The only one I noticed had fallen off significantly I received via trade. All of the others were properly cellered at 53 degrees in my posession or in a basement cellar in a bar. Coffee fades, no doubt. I think a lot of people set these beers in a 75 degree closet and are confused when the coffee fades. I've also just about consumed 3 cases of FBS over the last 8 monthsand I keep hearing how it must be consumed fresh. I honestly like it better now and I would say it has 75% of the coffee flavor of fresh. That's just my palate, but, if you store these beers properly they don't fall off as drastically as is often suggested. Just my $.02.

 

Right around the 2 minute mark til the end of clip brewers recommend drinking fresh.

 

Different beer but in topic. FBS's stored in a refridge seem to stay very coffee forward. I have had a '10 and a number of '11's that were excellent. I suspect there is something to your idea regarding the preservation of flavor

 

I had some of the most recent BCBCS about 1-2 months ago, and I was disappointed in how little coffee flavor/aroma there was. It had kind of a hot sauce aroma, and the flavor was pretty similar to regular BCBS with maybe a little more roastiness (not coffee). That being said, it was delicious and I would consider it to be among the best stouts I've had.

If you're looking for coffee in your BCBCS, I think the time has passed and you may as well wait until then ext batch comes out.

 

One more piece of BS anecdotal evidence...

I drank one the day I bought it and the coffee was amazing. It was fresh and fruity and bourbony. By far the best coffee beer I have ever had, and one of the best beers I have ever had. Opened my next one about a month later and the coffee had noticeably changed; and the beer did not have the same amazing coffee character. It was still great, but not as mindfuckingly good as the first bottle.

I hate when people say things like this and I usually assume that a time frame that short is bullshit, but that's what I experienced with this beer.