How Old Is Your Oldest Beer?

[lagerman]

I started brewing in January 1983. Many years of Coopers with a kilo of sugar (until I saw the light). I made a batch of stubbies of Coopers Draught with a kilo of sugar for my 40th Birthday which was December 1988. I kept 2 of those stubbies in the fridge for 10 years and cracked them on my 50th Birthday in 1998. For a sugar brew they were bloody nice. Still plenty of flavour, a great head and a very drinkable beer for a kit made with sugar.
I have in my possession a long neck of "Macquarie Bitter Draught" from the original "Terry's Brewery" in Lithgow. The guy who gave it to me purchased it in March 1965. I am just waiting for the right opportunity to open it. I am guessing it will be off after nearly 42 years in the bottle.
I would think that homebrew stored in the correct conditions would last for years and years. With no preservatives and chemicals to stuff it up I think homebrew shelf life would be indefinate.
Cheers
The Bigfella

 

[Katherine]

Gosh I thought I was lucky when I found my last chilli and kaffir lime leaf beer hiding... it was only 4 months old LOL!

 

[floppinab]

Similar experience to some of the above.
Back when I was young and active and doing KK's I'd do water skiing at a mates shack every summer. By the end of the summer I'd inevitably leave a few brews in his fridge. By the time we got back to them the following season they'd gone from quite average to very drinkable.
A rule of thumb I'd say the lighter beers respond very well to long term sub 5 deg storage if you're looking to smooth the rough edges off, although expect dimished hop presence in hoppy beers. I'd suspect anything more than that and they head off in the other direction!!!!
Darker, more alco beers are probably OK sub 20 degs and should go a lot longer.

 

[pcmfisher]

I had some yesterday that was at LEAST 3 weeks old.

I need more bottles, or a keg or drink less :icon_cheers:

 

[Mercs Own]

I made a 10% stout that was drinking beautifully a year after I made it (it was a k&k) so good I drank the lot!

I still have a six pack of my peach ale that I brewed in Feb 05 that is drinking just fine.

Many years ago I stored some long necks of Coopers Best Extra and Sparkling Ale under the stairs at home. Opened them five years later and they were bloody Beautiful. Gave a bottle of each to Glenn Cooper to sample and not long after (within a year) Coopers Aged Stout hit the market! Mind you it was only aged 6 months and had nothing to do with my samples...but it is nice to think maybe....

 

[tipsy]

I always kept a bottle from each batch for 1 year.
I don't now because the majority didn't age that well.

I've had some Morgans Yukon Smoked Ale for probably 2 years, anyone want some? :icon_vomit:

 

[glennheinzel]

My oldest unopened beer is a can of Duff that I bought in 1996. I doubt that I'll actually drink it.

The oldest homebrew that I've tasted was a mates 2yo Coopers K+K and it was pretty good.

 

[danbeer]

The oldest beers I have are from my very second batch - a 2 can coopers stout made in about 1996!

They were given to my dad as an xmas present the year I made them. He stuck them in a cupboard and forgot about them.

last time I tried one (2 years ago) they were bloody fantastic!

 

[Cracka]

what time is it now ?
they don't last very long around here........

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Same here. My oldest was probably only 6 months

 

[tk75]

Many years ago I stored some long necks of Coopers Best Extra and Sparkling Ale under the stairs at home. Opened them five years later and they were bloody Beautiful. Gave a bottle of each to Glenn Cooper to sample and not long after (within a year) Coopers Aged Stout hit the market! Mind you it was only aged 6 months and had nothing to do with my samples...but it is nice to think maybe....

I found some Coopers Best Extra with a best after date of...03/06(I think that was the date, I did record it somewhere, hmm were are those notes... :unsure: , crap...can't find them.) Anyway when I drunk them they were a year and a half old and really, really good!! :icon_drool2:

 

[Fourstar]

Oldest i have is still sitting in my wardrobe at my parents place. A K&K of muntons mexican cerveza (i think) Dated Feb 2003! 1 Slab of it left. Tastes like cider and a MASSIVE HEAD!!!

They days when i thought brewing with as much Dex as i can grab and yeild mega Alc. Vol Beer with GREAT flavour. How wrong i was! <_<

I think i might send them all down the sink and reap the bottles for some quality AG!

 

[deebee]

I have a space under my floor boards for storing beer. I opened it up recently to store my xmas case entry and found a treasure trove I had forgotten about: a dozen mixed cleanskins I bought last year but couldnt bring myself to drink, a bottle of 2005 Thomas Hardys Ale my wife bought me for fathers day last year and three bottles of a big dark ale around 7.5% I brewed in June 2006. At 18 months old it is currently my oldest beer.

I tried one bottle and it was very good. Compared to my year-old tasting notes, it is basically a subdued version of the same beer, less bitterness, less aroma, smoother and better-incorporated flavours. It's probably just past its best, there is a touch of oxidation, but nothing disturbing. The remaining bottles will go down during the boxing day test.

The cleanskins are also slightly better than they were last year and it just goes to show that a $70 mixed dozen is not a bad investment if you have some room under your floor boards. The Thomas Hardy really deserves another year or two in the cellar.


DB

 

[PostModern]

I kegged a weizen yesterday. Pitched yeast last Tuesday, so the oldest is 7 days. Despite my best intentions, I never brew ahead of need.

 

[amita]

My oldest unopened beer is a can of Duff that I bought in 1996. I doubt that I'll actually drink it.

that can is probably worth a fortune!!!!!wasnt it allowed to be sold after the guys who own the rights to Homer Simpson got it banned from sale???

anyway hang on to it, might be a nice winner one day when you need it,

cheers amita :icon_cheers:

 

[sah]

Recently I found some bottles of K&K that I brewed in 2001 or 2002. They're drinkable but not flash.

Scott

 

[glennheinzel]

that can is probably worth a fortune!!!!!wasnt it allowed to be sold after the guys who own the rights to Homer Simpson got it banned from sale???

anyway hang on to it, might be a nice winner one day when you need it,

That's the one. I have to keep it at an offsite secret location.

 

[Fents]

I see a trend forming. K n K beers go aight after a couple of months / years it seems.

 

[bindi]

Sept 2004 partial, one bottle left, it was good fresh but not game to try it now :huh: bugger it, chill it and see/spew . :icon_vomit:
Also found a few bottles from a Grumpys kit I did about the same time.

 

[Simon W]

My oldest unopened beer is a can of Duff....

Snap!



My oldest brews are both Coopers stout, one from Dec04 which was K+K, 1 stubby remains.
The other from Oct05 which was a Can+DME+oatmeal mini-mash+S-04, 17 stubbies left. Two milestones, my first mash and my last kit.
Both are pretty good now.

 

[Belgrave Brewer]

I had some of my first kit beers hanging around for over a year. Put one of each in the fridge and had a crack. They were shitass!!!!! I tipped them all down the sink. :icon_vomit:

I now always save 2 stubbies of each of my AG brews. A few are coming up on a year now so I think I'll crack them and see how they compare to my notes. Hmmmm...maybe tonight. :icon_cheers:

BB