I don't have a cellar and have pretty limited fridge space, so when the weather is regularly 40-50 degrees F like it is right now, I often leave beers outside to store them cool. I usually just leave them in my car, but sometimes on the patio or a window sill if I expect that it won't be long before I get to them. Does anyone else do this? Are there any potential problems to this method? Any clever tips for outdoor storage? I'm in a safe neighborhood and have no worries about theft.
In the wintertime I'll toss a few upright in some snow for 45 minutes to chill them....kinda sucks when you forget them though. As far as chilling in a window sill, fine as long as it does not get light struck. Hey, whatever works....then again, noticing that you are in Ohio as am I (Cincy area) I would question temperatures; we just broke some records for bitter cold...like 10 below with wind chill last week!
Sounds like Chicago to me. I have a closet of my second floor balcony. I've been cellaring beer out there since May. I think the cinder block construction has been keeping the beer from getting too hot or too cold ... so far. We'll see what the rest of this winter brings.
A) Dig a hole, build a crate out of chipping pallets and put them in there. B) Dig a hole, cinder block the inside, make a door out of pallets, put them in there. C) I imagine you have a basement, quit being crazy and just put them in there. D) Put them in your fridge in your going to drink them soon. Don't put the beers by the window like you're waiting for them to grow, unless they're wrapped up. Light really sucks for beer, and the same goes for red wine.
I have a shelf in the garage where I keep mine in the winter..perfect for my stout obsession. Temperature fluctuates, but I try to drink the as fast as I can.
I'm no expert, but for aging purposes it seems to me the temperature fluctuations would not be ideal.
I'm in the same region, but I check the weather forecast everyday and accommodate for what's expected. I have yet to freeze a beer. I've left bottles in car overnight in 10 degree weather without freezing. All I did was wrap them in some blankets.
Same here in MI... freezing rain 2 days ago, 50s yesterday, and severe winds that knocked out our power today. To the point, however, I've never stored beer outside because of such fluctuations. And in my neighborhood, I would personally be worried about theft, because I'm pretty sure all my neighbors are alcoholics (though they'd prefer BMC). That said, I have seen relatives do this, but mainly just on holidays like Thanksgiving, when the fridge is already packed and the beer is expected to be consumed by the end of the day. Great idea in that situation (weather permitting), but wouldn't work for my household on a daily basis.
I'd expect you would have better results using an empty cooler to moderate the temps. On cool days open it up, warm days close it, freezing days keep it closed.
Comical, I'm from Avon....where I consider my second home to Cincy. Like the idea of a cooler from DougC123. Would protect against freezing and still nice cold brew. Cheers!
This sounds like an "Ohio thing"....haha.....I am in the Akron area and use my 3 season sunroom for winter beer "overflow"....keeps things nice and cold like a big frig.....the stuff I plan to drink pretty soon goes out in the cold / sunroom - otherwise it goes down in my cellar....I have too much freakin' beer! (how is that possible?)
I sometimes do this on my covered side porch, but I try to keep them in a large Igloo cooler. That way they're at least somewhat insulated from any major temperature fluctiations in the short term.
If you're not aging your beer storing it at room temperature for few weeks or even months isn't going to hurt the beer. It's no different than how most stores keep their beer until it's sold. But storing and moving your beer in and out of your car, patio, and window sills sounds like you're risking getting light-struck (skunked) beer. Further, monitoring the outside temperatures and moving beer around all the time sounds like a pain in the ass...I know I wouldn't deal with that. I would just store the beer inside in a dark corner or box, preferably a closet or cabinet or under your bed... It's what I did for years when I lived in a small single-bedroom apartment.
