Beer Q&A: How long can you keep a brew?

July 26, 2018 6 AM PT

Q. How long can you keep beer?

A. While this is a surprisingly complicated question, a simple rule of thumb can be applied to most beers:

Drink within 90 days of when it was bottled or canned. (The date should be printed on the label.)

For hop-forward beers — IPAs and some pales ales, say — even earlier would be better. Aim for 60 days or fewer.

Finally, barrel-aged beers with high alcohol content — 8% by volume or higher — can be aged for months, even years. Make sure they are cellared in a cool and dark place.

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Peter Rowe

Peter is a freelance writer who writes about beer in his bimonthly column Brewery Rowe for the San Diego Union-Tribune. He worked as a reporter and columnist for the San Diego Union-Tribune from 1984 to 2020. A native Californian who grew up in Encinitas, Rowe is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Northwestern University. He is past president of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and a former Fulbright scholar. He has won a few journalism awards, but would trade them all for a chance to avenge his 1994 “Jeopardy!” loss. Married to a terrific woman who has saved him from errors in writing and in life, he has three sons.