I just picked-up a Jolly Pumpkin Noel De Calabaza off the shelf. It has a November 2011 bottle date and a green cap. So it's been about 10 months since bottling for this guy. Has anyone had any experience with aging one of these? Does it tend to get more sour and/or do the spices fade-out? That would be my assumption, but I'd like to hear any first-hand experiences!
I had one of these last year that was about ten months old. It was definitely enjoyable. A really good off the shelf sour. From my somewhat limited recollection, there was a really pleasant funk and some nice tart cherry notes. I don't remember spices being that heavy, but I am not sure how they are in the base either as that was my first time having it. I would seek it out again at around a year old for sure.
Have had this a couple of time, mostly around the holiday season and I actually prefer it with one-two years on it.
The sourness and funk becomes more pronounced and definitely interacts with the spice in a different way - the carbonation also drops off a bit and its a smoother and more complex beer. If you have a couple I would definitely recommend aging one for a year or two.
Thanks for the info. The one I found on the shelf yesterday is already almost a year old. I'm assuming the store found a couple in the back room from last winter and put them on the shelf. I'll look forward to opening it in the upcoming months.
Picked one of these up in March or so of last year on clearance ($6 marked down from $16) and in retrospect wish I'd got one or two more at that price to try various agings with. Planning to open it in November when we do a sour tasting party for the unveiling of my friend's homebrewed Flanders red.
I prefer it between 1-2 years, as many above have said. The funk comes out a bit more, tart cherries and red fruit, which balances with the malt. It dries out a bit, so don't expect a big, caramelly quad-type winter beer, but it's definitely tasty. Fresh, the funk is much lighter, and that way, it was one of the very few wild/sour beers my wife actually really enjoyed.
I have one with the same bottling date right now, planning on opening it sometime this winter. Let me know what you think if you open yours before that.
This past i enjoyed a bottle that was roughy 5 years old(from the green bottle days). It was amazing. It's the only time i have tasted this beer so i cant comment on changes. I will say it reminded me a lot of a world class flemish sour red/brown.
