57: 2009 Christmas Ale

I put this beer in the fridge sometime before the start of the new year, and confess, I didn’t think about aging this at all. In fact, I barely glanced at the label before putting it in the fridge, thinking only that it might be a fun one to enjoy over the holidays. I never got to it, but it’s been taunting me ever since I put it in cold storage.

Most beers I age I tend to take down to the basement, file in the appropriate box (I sort by brewer), and forget about it. Occasionally I go down there and pick something out, but my beer deposit to withdrawal ratio tends to be less Bernie Madoff, more Warren Buffett. If there’s one common element to the collection, it’s alcohol content. Almost everything down there is 7% or higher abv, and a significant majority falls into the 10% and higher club.

But according to the label, Goose Island intends this 5.7%* beer to be aged for up to five years. Everything I’ve ever read suggests that would be unwise. Most people recommend aging only high-octane stuff, as time tends to smooth the sharp edges common to booze bombs, making them more complex over time. That’s the point of aging beer – to see how it develops. But in my understanding, the high alcohol content acts as a preservative. So what would happen to a low alcohol beer left to linger? Anyone have any first-hand experience with an old, low-alcohol beer?

Beer Name: 2009 Christmas Ale
Brewer: Goose Island
Price: N/A
Sampled: February 26, 2010
Rating: 3/5
Notes: Drinking this a bit early – bottled 10/09/09, but label says it’ll develop over 5 years! Must be alcoholic, but pretty smooth – good for cold, rainy night.
ABV: N/A
IBU: N/A
OG N/A
TG N/A
Serving Type: Bottle.

* I cheated and looked up the stats on beeradvocate.com.