You walk into your favorite spot to buy beer, browse the selection, finally find what you want and then fret because all of the beer is chilled.
What are you supposed to do if you don’t plan on keeping the beer cold?
You ask if they have any warm or room temperature beer and the answer is no. Won’t that ruin the beer if it goes from cold to warm and then back to cold again?
Sound familiar? This is a situation and question I get asked all the time.
“I need that beer warm since I’m not going to keep it in the refrigerator.”
It’s a myth, an old wives’ tale and not true. I’m not sure where this belief started, but I have come to learn that a lot of people believe this misconception and I want to put an end to it.
The simple, quick answer is yes, beer can go through various temperature changes throughout its life and it won’t have any major noticeable effect on its flavor.
Most beer actually has gone from cold to room temperature a few times before you even purchase it, regardless of if you get it off of the floor or out of the cooler. Let me repeat:
It is perfectly OK to allow cold beer to slowly come to room temperature.
Now, it’s not to say we don’t want to take care of the beer and we definitely don’t want to expose the beer to warm temperatures for long periods of time.
Heat is the real enemy of beer. I commonly tell customers that it is OK to store beer outside of a refrigerator as long as it is kept cool, under 70 degrees.
The warmer the beer gets, the faster it starts to age, and then we start to see oxidation. This is when the beer begins to pick up more oxygen molecules, which can result in a wet cardboard flavor in the beer.
Beer is a food product and although it’s pretty shelf stable, it is not invincible.
Like most perishable food products, the colder something is kept, the longer it will last.
Leave cheese on the counter and it will only last a few days. Put it in the fridge and you may get a few weeks.
The same goes for beer, but with a slightly longer timeline.
That is one of the reasons why it is always best to buy your beer from a location that keeps it cold. They are helping to keep the beer as fresh as possible for as long as possible before you purchase it.
So, for the record, you can buy that beer out of the cold section. Don’t worry, the beer will be just fine. Just don’t leave it in your car trunk or on your front porch to soak up some afternoon sunshine.
Remember, beer likes to live in dark, cool places where the sun rarely shines.
Certified cicerone Tim Golden is part owner of Village Bottle Shop & Tasting Room. Follow him on Instagram (@beerinhawaii) and check him out as co-host of “The Art of Beer” podcast. Tim’s column appears every third Wednesday in Crave.
