Good Beers Gone Bad?
“Drink Fresh”, they plead. These delicate, hazy “New England” IPAs – we want them at their best, and the people who brew them say we need to drink ’em now or forever hold our peace. But how much difference does time really make? Is this a marketing ploy to get us to drink fast and buy young?
We aged five of the most popular hazy, hoppy IPAs from the East Coast of the USA – and two from the UK in the name of misguided patriotism – for between three and four months, and then drank them alongside fresh versions under one month old. While scientific this was not, we feel it gives an accurately approximate overview of how these beers mature, so let’s see if we should really be showing a little more respect to our elders…
Beer One: Focal Banger, The Alchemist
The heir to Heady Topper’s grandparent of New England IPAs, Focal Banger is considered in some circles to be superior to its predecessor, with more balance and the same “drink from the can” moniker worked into the awesome artwork.
How long after “canned on” date did we drink it? 3 1/2 months.
Appearance: It says “drink from the can” in CAPS so we did because we’re conformist obedient lemmings, but we snuck a little bit out like the rebels we strive to be. A pale yellow, it’s still hazy, though not even close to being opaque.
Aroma: Slapped in the face with the hops. As potent as it ever needs to be.
Taste: The hop flavour is there, it’s punchy, though there is an element of fade – the brightness is gone, replaced by more bitterness, and actually towards the end it became a tiny bit of a slog.
Verdict: On first impressions this is just as good as it was fresh, but halfway through the can you can feel the difference. If 10/10 is the beer at its best, this is around a 5.
Beer Two: Crucial Taunt, The Veil
A hype brewery for good reason, you can only really find The Veil cans at The Veil. Luckily, we passed by Richmond, Virginia last summer and stocked up. Crucial Taunt is their flagship IPA, an 8% beast focused on Citra hops.
How long after “canned on” date did we drink it? 4 months.
Appearance: A darker opaque haze, full sunset vibes, which is the same as when fresh.
Aroma: Pungent citrus, without being overwhelming.
Taste: It’s different. While still obviously a big ol’ IPA, the hop flavour has faded just that little bit too much, which gives the beer a bitter, heavy feel. It was only just drinkable, not the poppin’ hazy juice that we loved when fresh.
Verdict: This clearly dropped off from the age – the fruity citrus had all but disappeared, leaving mostly bitterness and a bit of malt flavour coming through. If 10/10 is the beer at it’s best, this is a 3.
Beer Three: Strata+Motueka / Space Dream, Other Half
This is a double whammy of two very different genres of IPA for the top rated brewery on UnTappd last year (which obviously means everything), so it warrants a double comparison. This is a brewery full of creativity and wonderful people, which owes success as much to great beers as to its attitude. Conversations with staff at their various taprooms make it abundantly clear that they love working there and the commitment to the brand is authentic and ego-less. Does this mean their beer has the retention level of their people?
How long after “canned on” date did we drink it? 3 1/2 months for both.
Appearance: Strata+Motueka was a deep haze with orange coming though, while Space Dream was total opaque yellowness – both akin to their fresh versions.
Aroma: Both beers gave off a level of hop scent that you would not be disappointed with.
Taste: Here lies the difference. Strata+Motueka simply did not work after this much time. The hop nuances from these most delicate of flowers had faded to the point that the beer was too rich and bitter, with the alcohol notes storming in like an uninvited Ex at a birthday party.
Space Dream, on the other hand, was silky smooth, with abundant hop juice brought out by the secret ingredient in the Other Half “dream” series: lactose. While we tend to dislike lactose in beer, due to implied sweetness and heaviness, might it be the solution when it comes to longevity? Especially in the face of this extremely scientific experiment…
Verdict: Strata+Motueka does not work well over time and probably drops to a 2/10; Space Dream very much does work, a truly dreamy 9/10 compared to its best, so no need to rush it kids!
Beer Four: Double Orange Starfish, Aslin Brewing
Perched on the edge of Washington D.C., Aslin is a Capitol A for rich, hazy IPAs. Double Orange Starfish is their flagship, which we first tried over five years ago. Luckily, this one wasn’t aged quite That long.
How long after “canned on” date did we drink it? 4 months.
Appearance: Light orange haze, not opaque at all, which is what it’s meant to be.
Aroma: Oranges. That is all. Light, though. Maybe more like a satsuma.
Taste: Oranges. That is all. Ha, just kidding, though this definitely feels like a “this reminds me of OJ” beer. It is not complex at this age, a little yeasty with a nice orange peel bitterness coming through.
Verdict: Freshly squeezed, this beer is all juice. Four months on, it’s all oranges but the yeasty backdrop comes through too strongly. Still a great drink and very easy to consume – even at 8.3% there is no sense of a booze vibe. We’d give this a 6/10 compared to its best.
Beer Five: King Julius, Treehouse Brewing
Mythical in name and nature, Treehouse requires a visit to the absolute middle of nowhere to procure their beer, with King Julius the top rated hazy IPA in the land. You aren’t going all that way not to bring home a tonne of it, which means unless you are a) really damn thirsty or b) generous enough to give it to all your friends, some of this is going to be drank later on.
How long after “canned on” date did we drink it? 3 months.
Appearance: As hazy as it ever was. Opaque juice.
Aroma: Hits hard, hits well, it’s all pineapples and tropics with no real difference to the day we first met the King.
Taste: At first, as with the aroma, there was no noticeable change. Saturated tropical juice with almost no hint of bitterness. Towards the end it was a little heavy, but that’s big beer for ya.
Verdict: We’d heard the hype train can fall off the tracks if not consumed super fresh, but three months on from the canning date this still hit nearly as good. Perhaps the drop off comes soon after? I don’t know, this was our last can. We’d give it an 8/10 compared to its best.
Beer Six: 20W Moon, Verdant Brewing
On to the UK and Verdant are the market leaders in New England style beers. Being from Cornwall, some say the reason for their success is that they benefit from an optimal water profile for the New England style by comparison to the rest of the UK. It could also be that Cornwall is a few miles closer to the USA, who knows.
How long after “canned on” date did we drink it? 3 months
Appearance: Yellow haze, not as opaque as some of the above, as intended.
Aroma: Bursting in with papaya and mango, this hasn’t changed a bit.
Taste: While no alcohol vibe is evident, the hops don’t shine Quite as brightly – the same flavour is there, just less of it.
Verdict: Perceptible difference from fresh but not really an issue as no off-flavours come through. This ranks in at a 7/10 compared to its best.
Beer Seven: Into The Haze, DEYA
Our last beer is from the crew up in Cheltenham. DEYA came out of nowhere in 2018 to join Verdant at the top of the hazy IPA tree and continue to pour out releases, always with the mantra “drink now to preserve the flavour profile intended”. Poetry.
How long after “canned on” date did we drink it? 3 1/2 months.
Appearance: This is one of DEYA’s flagship beers and it pours, as expected, a pale yellow haze that is somewhere in the middle of the pack here when it comes to transparency (or lack thereof).
Aroma: It’s hoppy though a little muted compared to the freshest pour – we had to stick our noses in further than usual to get a real hit.
Taste: Aligning with the aroma, it is similar to what it was when fresh, just quieter. No alcohol coming through in a 6.2% is to be expected.
Verdict: Given their insistence on drinking now, we can say the flavour profile was all there, it was just a sort of blurry version. This ranks in at 7/10 compared to the freshest – a good bit of consistency for the UK offerings.
The TL;DR of the Matter: Unlike a fine wine or a Belgian brewed delicacy, it seems that drinking the murky stuff sooner to the canned date does pay off a bit. However, the decrease in quality is not nearly severe enough to feel forced to smash several of these 6-9% beasts in one night just in case they taste marginally inferior the next day. Three months appears to be a fair limit and the drop off after that is probably more problematic, who knows, someone else will have to do that test, we need a break from hoppy beers now.
Our Parting Advice: Sip at your leisure, respect the process and if you find a banger that’s a few months old, go for it – the worst case scenario is that you just give it to a less discerning friend as a gift, and it’s a win-win.