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Does Beer Have To Be Kept Cold?
It isn’t necessary to keep beer in the refrigerator to preserve its quality. It wouldn’t go bad without being kept in the fridge but surely would lose its original flavor. However, for beers like craft and draft beer refrigeration is required for them to be fit for drinking.
The most commonly stated version of the myth about beer temperature is that if beer is chilled, then allowed to get hot, then chilled again, and so on, then spoiled, and unusable. The more commonly held misconception is that if a cold beer gets hot, then gets cool again, it will be skunky, but skunkiness comes from light strikes, not from temperature fluctuations. That is, the long-standing, widespread myth is that a cold beer, once warmed up to room temperature, is going to become skunky, or worse. Going from a cold condition to a room temperature one, then back, usually does not have any significant impact on beer flavor.
It is worse for a beer to go through rapid temperature changes, going from cool to hot. The longer that the beer in a bottle is exposed to that hotter temperature, the worse the effects. Temperatures above about 36-38 degrees will result in sudsy, malty-flavored beers. Beers kept at 60 degrees will retain their flavors much longer than those kept at 90 degrees.
Given the above, it stands to reason that keeping your beer cooler tends to extend its shelf life. Keeping your beer in a cooler, or out of sunlight, will keep it fresher for a longer period. If you want to keep beer fresh for longer, you are better off keeping it cool and keeping it in a cooler that is 40 degrees F. or cooler. Storing beer at too warm of temperature (above 90 degrees Fahrenheit) may cause certain chemical reactions in your beer which may harm its quality.
| Types | Shelf Life |
| Room Temp | 3 months |
| Fridge | 6 months |
| Freezer | 24-25 weeks |
Since beer does not like being heated, it generally will prefer to be kept cold, but will likely not get too bad if left sitting around at room temperature too long. As long as your beer is unopened, keeping it even at room temperature is not going to cause your beer to go bad. Proper beer storage is key to an awesome tasting experience, and proper storage temperatures will ensure that every beer tastes the best. While simply keeping beer at room temperature until you need to chill it down to drink is totally fine, particularly if you intend on using it up in one to two months, keeping beer in a cooler is usually a good idea.
Generally, beer properly stored at room temperature, and not opened, stays in the best condition for around 4-6 months, but it should still be good beyond that time. The longer most beers are stored correctly, the more they tend to taste like what the brewery intended. It simply means that, like every other product we consume, beer goes bad more quickly when it is not stored correctly.
Buying it at a store, kept refrigerated, then keeping it out of the refrigerator until needed is really not going to hurt beer. If you store your beer in a cool place or a refrigerator, it is going to retain the flavor much better. With this being said, it is OK to keep your beer stored and displayed in the warmer temperature, but you are best off keeping it in the colder temperature.
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Beer is best stored in a dark, cool place, but this does not mean that it goes bad right away if it is not stored in those conditions. For the most part, beer is best stored in the refrigerator – 35degF to 46degF. For beer to age, you are better off keeping it cellar temperatures, around 52degF to 55degF.
Like bottles, canned beer is best consumed within 6 months of storage at cool temperatures, 3 months at warmer temperatures. If kept in a cool, dark place, such as your refrigerator, canned beer can be kept for up to 6 months. Beer kept cool lasts a little longer, particularly if it is a hoppy beer, but you will not really do any harm to your beer by taking it out of the refrigerator, letting it warm up to room temperature, and chilling again.
Keeping all of your beers chilled at least 50 degrees or 55 degrees will allow them to keep fresh for a long time, but it is not necessarily optimal drinking temperature. In fact, any properly designed beer cooler will let you keep your temperatures within this range. Aging your beer requires a cool, stable temperature, and it needs to be kept out of direct light.
As a matter of fact, temperature swings have little effect on the freshness of your beer. There is no doubt that the beer flavors may suffer from being held at higher temperatures than usual for an extended time.
If the beer stays hot over a few days, that could be an issue. There is absolutely no problem drinking beer that is kept warm for too long, and unless it is kept too hot, this probably does not alter the flavor. Once expired beer is opened up and exposed to light and oxygen, it is very possible that beer does not remain fresh very long.
As shown by the red lines (left lines), beer degrades at higher temperatures far more quickly. As temperature increases, this causes beer to expand, or evaporate, more quickly. Cold temperatures can also eventually stunt the lifecycle of microbes living inside a craft beer, like the yeast used to make it.
Much like fine wine connoisseurs, experts on beer recommend extremely specific storage and serving temperatures in order to make sure that the final product is exactly what the brewer intended. Storing your beer at the correct temperature shows real dedication to quality, and gives you the reputation as an actual craft beer expert. If the brewery is able to store the beer at its coolest temperature possible as much as possible, then the shelf life of that beer is extended, so when it hits a retailers shelves, and eventually yours, that beer is going to have as close to the brewerys freshest flavor possible.
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Yes, 30o swings in 5 minutes definitely affects a beers shelf life, and yes, beers do prefer being kept refrigerated, and they should if they can. Hoppy beers are more susceptible to temperature swings, but 1 or 2 instances of refrigeration to return to room temperature does not affect the flavors as long as you plan on drinking your beer within the next 30-45 days. The only thing that can occur is a permanent haze of the cold, if the beer is exposed to repeated cold-to-warm temperature shifts.
How do you know if the beer has gone bad?
It tastes strange, kind of like sewage or cabbage. Although there are many strange flavors of beer, you should be able to tell if the flavor you are tasting is unintentional. Cooked cabbage, sewage, sulfur, or just an excessively sour taste are a few flavors that are frequently indicative of a terrible beer.
Does beer go bad if not refrigerated?
The majority of beers are still drinkable after their printed expiration date. Beer will typically keep for six to nine months after its use-by date when kept at room temperature. This time frame can be increased by refrigeration by up to two years it depend on storage condition.
Why does beer raise blood pressure?
Alcohol raises hormone levels in the blood, which shrinks the blood veins. This indicates that their diameter decreases. Renin also reduces the volume of fluid the body excretes in urine. Blood pressure rises as a result of both narrower blood vessels and increased blood pressure.