Expired beer is so enjoyable

Which means expired

Before you that beer try, you should always know that the date on the bottles is not an expiration date, but a best-before date (best before date). The indication of the best before date is mandatory in the EU. That doesn't mean one Food is automatically bad and inedible exactly on the day the date expires.

The manufacturer guarantees perfect and optimal quality up to this day. After the expiry date, a poor quality is to be expected, but not inedible or harmful products.

You have to expect that with "old" beer

Basically, if the best before date is exceeded by a few weeks, you do not have to worry about your health or the quality of the expired beer. A beer brewed according to the German purity law can even be enjoyed for several months. A rule of thumb is that beer tastes good for up to six months after the best-before date.

But it lacks freshness. Some exotic species can be kept for years and even get better over time. A Pilsner or Alto loses more and more of its freshness. A sign of less freshness, for example, is a lack of foam. You can tell by the lack of foam when you pour the beer into a glass.

In addition, ingredients such as hops and malt can ferment after a certain period of time. Just let your personal taste decide whether you want to drink the beer or not. Just look for signs of whether the beer has spoiled. You shouldn't drink this anymore.

Recognize spoiled beer

1. Hissing when opened. Listen for a hiss when you open the bottle. In the closed bottle there must be an overpressure due to the carbon dioxide contained in the beer. If it doesn't hiss, there is something wrong with the drink.

   

2. Smell of beer. Smell the opened bottle. A sour, musty or pungent odor indicates that the beer has chemically or biologically decomposed. Better to throw it away.

   

3. No foam. Beer without foam does not taste good, but it does not harm your health.

   

4. Cloudy beer. Look in the bottle to see if there is a green coating in it. When the beer looks fine in the bottle, pour it into a glass. A cloudy broth shows Mould or a yeast infestation. This is also a sign of spoiled beer. Exception: naturally cloudy yeast wheat is always cloudy.

   

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Should you now find a beer in your cellar that has expired a few days, weeks or a few months, you can drink it with a clear conscience. The taste may have suffered, but it is drinkable. By the way: If stored too warm or with frequent temperature fluctuations, beer sometimes does not taste good, although the best-before date has not yet been reached.

Shelf life of beer

Basically, the date of manufacture is more important than the expiration date. However, most breweries do not state the day of brewing.

durability of beers from the bottling day
Type of beer	durability
Beer in the keg	70 days
Beer in the barrel	35 days
Bottled beer (craft production)	30 days
Bottled beer (stabilized)	6 months
Canned beer (pasteurized)	1 year