how long does nugget nectar last?

OK, I'll bite. Not very long. Great beer. Easy to drink. They disappear in no time!

 

I actually was able to buy a case of this wonderful brew this year. I do not plan on holding this brew. It will be shared and consumed...... I do have 1 mad elf ale left from this Christmas. And since it is 10% I. Thinking of holding it a few months just to see how it tastes.

 

Cans won't be around that long anyway, they've already flown off shelves here and any more deliveries will do the same. You certainly don't want a juicy, hopped up beer sitting in your fridge too long. Drink em if you got em.

 

My half growler lasted about 2 hours last night.

Based on what I tasted, it might be OK for a little while (a couple months) but I think it would get sweeter and smoother with age, and it doesn't need that. I would drink it fresh.

 

Your Mad Elf can easily be held for a year and maybe more. Those I had this last Christmas season were from the prior year. With out a blind side-by-side to be sure, its my feeling that the cherry recedes a bit but otherwise the beer is just fine with a bit of age.

 

definitely a preference thing. for me, it fades too fast, but remains a quality beer (like bell's two-hearted). but i can see how for some, the beer post-"fading too fast" is actually "just right, ready to drink."

if you've not had it, don't wait, it's a great beer.

 

As with any hoppy beer, you probably want to drink it fairly quick - within a couple months at the outside.
That said, last year, I found a six-pack from the previous year (a 2013 found in early 2014) that had somehow made it into the cellar instead of the drink soon area.
It was actually really good. Of course the hoppy aromas and flavors had faded out, leaving a nice malt character, with still a touch of the bittering hops. (IME those additions last a long long time)
Closer to a barleywine than the IPA (hoppy amber) it started out with, but still very drinkable.

 

By pure chance I was at a beer bar when they had a Troegs event; I spoke to a guy who worked for Troegs for 15-20 minutes and had an interesting conversation.

As part of the event they had fresh, 1 year old, 2 year old and 3 year old Mad Elf on tap and you could purchase them in 6 ounce glasses. I purchased the fresh and 1 and 2 year old versions. Mad Elf does indeed age well. Your observation on the cherry flavor diminishing over time was spot on. I was most intrigued by the age related flavor development; the older version had more complexity of flavors with one of the age related flavors being sherry flavors.

Cheers!

 

Agreed, I grabbed the cans thinking the same thing. Personally, I've had good luck with canned IPAs that are refridgerated holding up for quite some time (at least a few months). Sixpoint's research and development work is interesting in this regard, in which they stated after the first week there is no change in taste up to a year if their canned hoppy offerings are kept cold.

What you and @drtth expressed as 2 - 6 weeks is encouraging, my can is dated 1/27. I'll sit on this for a week. Thanks for the information!

 

Mad Elf reminds me too much of Robitussin when fresh. After 1-2 years that definitely recedes into something more drinkable (and delicious).

 

I'm drinking one now that was bottled on 1/21/15. It seems to have fallen off quite a bit which is unfortunate as I still have 6+ left. It becomes less hoppy and more malty in taste. It still is good, but definitely drops down quite a few points.