How long do lagers last?

Generally about two minutes...it seems that many German beers are supposed to hold up for a year.

 

Actually had this happen to me about 2 months ago with the last 6 pack of Victory's Prima Pils I purchased so it seems the issue may not be exclusive to smaller breweries.

After purchasing I noticed that 1 of the 6 cans seemed 80% lighter than the others, and upon opening it I was at least curious to sample whether it was simply underfilled or oxidized as well. Unfortunately it was both. There were no visible dents or anything that would have indicated that the can was mishandled or had leaked in transit.

I was surprised that this occurred with a brewery as large and well established as Victory but at the time just chalked it up to poor luck of the draw.

 

Euro beers are subject to a lot of travel conditions that domestic beers are not. Lagers in particular suffer as a result. So bear in mind that comparing domestic lagers to imported lagers is an unfair fight. European beers are D.O.A. or in the very least on life support.

• The beer is loaded onto a truck and heads out to the warehouse.
• Then it goes into a shipping container and sits.
• Shipping container makes it to the dock, and waits to be loaded.
• A few weeks at sea.
• Unloaded and sits on a dock. Customs.
• Travels to the brewers domestic distributor. May sit until orders come in.
• Small volumes loaded onto a truck for local delivery or may be shipped to another distro, where it sits again.
• The next small volume, from the original large shipment, waits for the next local order. The large stockpile is that much older.
• Maybe, along the way, the weather cooperated and the beer was not baked in a hot truck or container.
• Then, you get a great imported European lager.

Suffice it to say, domestic beer does not have these logistics.

And, in addition, European kegs (and potentially bottles) are pasteurized while domestic kegs are not. So the domestic keg must be kept cold brewery to consumer and the Euro keg is pre-cooked to withstand the travel.

Which is why you must travel to Europe to enjoy a fresh lager. I am not kidding. Anyone who has done it will tell you that the difference is substantial.

Cheers

 

That's some quick spoilage!

"Honey, you don't understand, if I don't finish this 6 pack in the next 120 seconds it's going to go bad!!"

 

the one from the picture I sent owns their own canning line. I had bought two different 4-packs from that brewery at the retail store that day. One NE IPA and the Other a hoppy pale but not NE style. The hoppy pale was perfect while the NE IPA was way off.

The second brewery which I did not send a picture of does not own their own canning line but their NE IPA had the same exact issues as the beer pictured above. Muted brown in color as well.

So the common denominator between the two breweries was that both issues happened with their NE style beers. I dont have any issues for other NON NEIPAs beers from this brewery either.

 

... and amazingly still manage to be preferable* over the American brews for the most part. Talk about an unfair fight.

* Which naturally says more about my taste preferences than the general quality of American brewing. I buy my meat DOA too, even though others will tell me that there's no comparison to fresh stuff. Life has its compromises.

 

Not too surprising since Hazy/Juicy IPAs are more susceptible to oxidation.

A brewer should shoot for less than 100 ppb for TPO. Ideally they should achieve something less than 50 ppb TPO. A can of Juicy/Hazy IPA with 100 ppb TPO will show effects of oxidation (e.g., darkening of color, noticeable hop fade, etc.) fairly quickly (e.g., a month or less from canning) while a non-Hazy/Juicy IPA that is 100 ppb will be less affected at a month after canning.

Breweries that are producing Juicy/Hazy IPAs really need 'top shelf' canning lines and those that use mobile canning lines will more readily be impacted here.

This past weekend in NBW I discussed Tired Hands DDH Weedeater DIPA. On the side of that can (as for other Tired Hands beers) it lists (with emphasis in bold by me):

"The beer in this can is hyper fresh, unfiltered and fragile. KEEP COLD. Enjoy the contents ASAP for a beautiful and befudding organoleptic experience. Oh yeah."

I obtained this can on the day it was canned (2/25/21) and I immediately put that beer in my refrigerator (to honor the "KEEP COLD" direction). I did not follow the ASAP direction but by keeping this beer cold it was still drinking beautifully last Saturday (4/3/21). See photo below.

Cheers!

 

Ewwww, looks like apple cider, and that looks like a mess is what it is.

 

The question was... "How long do lagers last?"

I was going to reply similarly to RG, "In my house? Not long at all."

 

I bought a 6pack of Anchor Steam back in December that was around 2 months old. I bought another last week, same canning date, and I will say that it is just as good. Shrugs.

 

I have one of those Coors Light baseball bat bottles, unopened. I believe 2021 is the silver anniversary year of this bottle release. Maybe I'll crack this one for WBAYDN some time. Coors Light with 25 years on it? What could possibly go wrong?

 

The easy answer to this is: depends on filling technique.
Filling lines are rightly among the most expensive equipment in breweries and there is a gulf of operational and technical quality differences out there that only enhance the awareness and care of aging processes taken upstream. So the answer is the same regarding IPA: some breweries IPA I still cherish after 10-12 month in decent storage conditions, others I wouldn't touch at 6 weeks. And low quality canning seams often increase that difference (assume good storage conditions)

 

See, I'll take the opposing view - "They last forever." *

Depending on alcohol content, of course, but after a few weeks to several months, they start to taste kind lifeless and dull. They get cloudy, the hops fade and they'll start to taste sweet, they'll develop sediment and often will become darker. The main point is they are not fresh nor what the brewmaster intended (the marketing guy, the financial guy, the CEO and stockholders often differ).

*(Well, some of the old steel cans, supposedly, would even rust enough at the seam and split, but it took decades and I've got a perfectly fine can of Schlitz circa 1955 IIRC. Speaking of which...)

Next "Online Tasting"?

Lousy photo - several phones ago.

L-R, a Manhattan Brewery anniversary ale (triangular bottle), Ballantine IPA (Cranston), Miller Ale, Ballantine Brown Stout, Rolling Rock, Schlitz, Hoboken Ale, Ballantine XXX Ale (Newark), Neuweiler Porter.

All bought at flea markets for a buck or so, so past "shipping and storage conditions" are unknown. And, hmmm, I guess mostly OT since only the Schlitz and Rolling Rock are lagers...

Ah, but have you tried 6-18 month old US-brewed all-malt pilsners/light lagers, that have experienced higher than preferable temperatures and otherwise abused during long periods of shipping and storage? It could be (and you gotta know I hate to even type this phrase) "just your palate"...

 

No wonder why you prefer Communist European beer.
I'm not believing any of this socialist bull shit until you post a chart in degrees Fahrenheit, like God and Country intended!

 

LOL!

For the interested student: “Invented in 1742 by the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius”.

Sweden is not Communist by my reckoning but…

Cheers!

 

If you find yourself needing to quickly convert Celsius to Fahrenheit, here is a simple trick you can use: multiply the temperature in degrees Celsius by 2, and then add 30 to get the (estimated) temperature in degrees Fahrenheit.

 

Fahrenheit was from Gdansk, so he is listed as Polish-Lithuanian.

 

Heck, even Jethro could do that. He learned his 'gazintas' in school!



Cheers!

 

Um. Gdansk was German at one time... Danzig. But I guess that's getting into politics.

 

Yes it was Prussian. After Faherheits time.