Hi all! I'm new to the board, been brewing on and off (mostly off) since 1998. Which brings me to my story. I recently started brewing again with a Brewer's Best Kolsch kit. Almost 3 weeks in the bottle now, and I really like the results - very nice summer beer. So, last week I was taking stock of my equipment in the basement when I found another case of 16 oz bottles I had forgotten about. It was still packed with paper and taped shut from our last move, which was in 2005. I opened it up and discovered, to my surprise, two full bottles. My first instinct was to dump it - it CAN'T be good, right? It's at least 7 years old, and possibly older since I don't remember brewing anything at all in my previous house, which would put it in the one before that, or about 10 years ago.
Then I thought why not put it in the fridge overnight and open one up just for S&Gs? Couldn't dump it without a least a curious sniff. I did a search here too and found several references to old home brews being okay. Encouraged, I poured one into a 20-oz glass the next day, and I have to say, it's not bad! Not great by any means, and any hop flavor and nose has certainly faded, but very drinkable. It's a beautiful light amber color, and the clearest beer I've ever brewed, since it's had a few years to settle!
I'm thinking it's a cream ale, since that's a style I like and have brewed several times. But I never labeled my bottles, so that's just a guess.
Anyway, I have the other one in the fridge and will take a picture of the pour and post it this weekend. So nice to be back into this hobby and have the great information and support of the online community now! Next up a Northern Brewers Amber Ale kit, but I think I'll wait until the ridiculous heat breaks here in Virginia. Cheers!!
Then I thought why not put it in the fridge overnight and open one up just for S&Gs? Couldn't dump it without a least a curious sniff. I did a search here too and found several references to old home brews being okay. Encouraged, I poured one into a 20-oz glass the next day, and I have to say, it's not bad! Not great by any means, and any hop flavor and nose has certainly faded, but very drinkable. It's a beautiful light amber color, and the clearest beer I've ever brewed, since it's had a few years to settle!
I'm thinking it's a cream ale, since that's a style I like and have brewed several times. But I never labeled my bottles, so that's just a guess.Anyway, I have the other one in the fridge and will take a picture of the pour and post it this weekend. So nice to be back into this hobby and have the great information and support of the online community now! Next up a Northern Brewers Amber Ale kit, but I think I'll wait until the ridiculous heat breaks here in Virginia. Cheers!!
