When Craft Beer Goes Bad

[SkinsFanLarry]

This is a great read my BOTL'ers!


When Craft Beer Goes Bad: A Guide to Refusing a Beer

Common Ways Beer is Mistreated

•Was your beer stored at improper temperatures? It is suggested that beer kegs be stored below 40°F. Above this temperature, beer spoiling factors increase, resulting in oxidative flavors like wet cardboard.

•Was your beer served with no glass/dirty glass/wrong glass? Have you ever ordered wine and had the server just place the bottle in front of you? Your beer experience is improved when served in proper glassware. This includes beer free from foreign matter (from a dirty glass) that may hurt the appearance, flavor, aroma or general experience that comes with enjoying beer.

•Was your beer served at an improper temperature? No one likes warm beer, that’s a given, but extremely cold beer hinders the development of volatile compounds that make up the complex aroma and flavor of your beer. Beer glasses can be room temperature or chilled, but frosted glasses are not suggested to appreciate craft beer.

•Was your beer served from contaminated draught lines: A properly poured draught beer is quite special and many believe is the closest example of the brewer's intentions. Unfortunately, if a draught system is not properly serviced, beer spoiling bacteria can contaminate the beer corrupting the entire experience. "Whichever it may be, the management needs to know so they can cease the serving of this beer, check their side of the equation and inform the wholesaler and brewer." says Simpson. "Consider it a public service."

 

[cvm4]

I can't stand places that don't clean out their draught lines!

And I don't think temperature has that big of an impact on beer. You figure in a beers lifetime it has went through numerous high/low temps. As long as it's not prolonged exposure.

 

[SkinsFanLarry]

Cliff, I have discovered that alot of breweries ship there beer in refrigerated trucks now to help prevent temperture changes and that's also why alot of beers are now in the refrigerated section of bottle shops. IPA's are the most common beer to be shipped in refrigertaed trucks!

 

[sean]

And I don't think temperature has that big of an impact on beer. You figure in a beers lifetime it has went through numerous high/low temps. As long as it's not prolonged exposure.

Multiple temp swings can result in "burning" the beer... it gives it that stale, overly-foul-dank flavor. Have you ever had a beer leftover from a BBQ where the ice melted and the beer didn't see the inside of a fridge until the next afternoon?

 

[smokinghole]

I think dirty taps is a VERY common problem. If you get a beer that is "craft" category at a bar not known for that sort of beer I shy away from the tap. Who knows when the line was last cleaned and how long they had the beer sitting there. If they have a Pediococcus bacteria or a Lactobacillus in the lines you can get buttery tasting/sour beer. It's quite disgusting to drink a beer that tastes like kettle corn trust me. I judged a homebrew comp and had quite a few of beers I wouldn't even tasted based on their butter aroma alone. The same thing can happen over night in a dirty line. If you get a very buttery beer send it back and refuse a repour. Get something else or get your money back.

 

[SkinsFanLarry]

I think dirty taps is a VERY common problem. If you get a beer that is "craft" category at a bar not known for that sort of beer I shy away from the tap. Who knows when the line was last cleaned and how long they had the beer sitting there. If they have a Pediococcus bacteria or a Lactobacillus in the lines you can get buttery tasting/sour beer. It's quite disgusting to drink a beer that tastes like kettle corn trust me. I judged a homebrew comp and had quite a few of beers I wouldn't even tasted based on their butter aroma alone. The same thing can happen over night in a dirty line. If you get a very buttery beer send it back and refuse a repour. Get something else or get your money back.

Amen to that Adam! :thumbsup:

 

[cvm4]

Multiple temp swings can result in "burning" the beer... it gives it that stale, overly-foul-dank flavor. Have you ever had a beer leftover from a BBQ where the ice melted and the beer didn't see the inside of a fridge until the next afternoon?

Oh well yea I agree with this as it seems like prolonged exposure to heat. I was mainly talking about when I'd go on beer runs over the summer and put everything in the back of the trunk on a hot day. It'd stay for a couple hours and be good. But, I agree with Larry that IPA's and the like are more susceptible to this, IMO.