Serving Temperature

[Megary]

Does anyone give it a second thought…

It occurred to me that my beer seems to get better as it warms a bit and it also occurred to me that I never really noted the temperature of the frig that holds my kegs. “Cold” seemed to meet my requirements. Like a Pelican-head (thanks @Trialben, that bit of abuse gets regular use for me now ) I have been just ramming my kegs in there, regardless of style, sometimes maybe an English Porter and a Cream Ale at the same time, at the same temperature.

So I pulled another Irish Red and checked the temp. A bit blurry, but 40.8 F, 5 C.

According to this site, an Irish Red should be served between 45-55 F.
https://www.craftbeer.com/styles/irish-style-red

We all need to balance what’s best for the beer, what our preferences are and what’s practical given our individual breweries. But…does anyone give temperature strong consideration when serving their beers? And how do you balance that if you have multiple beers in the same frig/keezer that might be best served at different temperatures?

 

[Ward Chillington]

Maybe play with the glass temperature unless that quick change would mess with things?

 

[Minbari]

I tried to put my kegerator at 45F, a better temp for the beer, also meant that dispensing it was mostly foam, lol.
So 38F it is! Then just let it warm up

 

[Josh Hughes]

Not any help to this but my garage is hanging in the low 50s so set my kegs out there. We’ll see on an English porter and ESB how it changes it for me.

 

[Herm brews]

I don’t deal with kegs, but we all put our beers in glass, right? I serve my beers into room temperature glass, never chilled glass. As I understand it, chilled/frozen glass actually detracts from the flavor of the beer. So that frozen mug might work great on a hot summer day for Brand X Bland Beer, but for craft beer serve in unchilled glass.

 

[Josh Hughes]

I don’t deal with kegs, but we all put our beers in glass, right? I serve my beers into room temperature glass, never chilled glass. As I understand it, chilled/frozen glass actually detracts from the flavor of the beer. So that frozen mug might work great on a hot summer day for Brand X Bland Beer, but for craft beer serve in unchilled glass.

Yep never chilled glass for me. I gave a bomber of Dunkel to a friend and the pic of he pour was in a chilled glass. I regretted letting 22 ounces go after seeing it

 

[The Brew Mentor]

A glass the same temp of the beer is fine and I actually prefer it. I can wait for it to warm.

A frozen glass causes excessive foaming and actually causes a lot of the CO2 to come out of solution making a "flatter" beer.

I serve beer at the shop at about 43° in a room temperature glass and it's well received.

Cheers

 

[Ward Chillington]

+1 on the frozen mug...I'll do my porters and stouts at 50 to 60° in the winter, thet almost seem like a whole other brew when I do that.

 

[Steve SPF]

I recall reading something from Brewdog on serving temps. Their take was that the beer retains its flavours and aromas if it's kept cold and those flavours and aromas are released as the beer warms in the glass.

For us over here serving cask beer that's generally at 12 degrees and if it's much colder it can be awful, just kills any flavour.

An interesting subject for sure.

 

[sbaclimber]

Agree with a lot of opinions here...
...and I have to think back on some "assumptions" I have heard.
For example, in the US, that the Germans drink their beer warm. And in Germany, that the English drink their beer warm (and flat).
Relatively speaking, the assumptions aren't all that incorrect, but also not as extreme as they seem.
Anywho...back on track, yes, anything below 10°C IMO kills any sort of taste and aroma. Desirable if the beer is terrible to begin with, but otherwise a waste of good beer.
My basement varies between 7° and 15°, so most of the time "cellar cool" is just about right. Any other time, if I have a lager fermenting (~10°C), I will also have a couple of bottles in the fermentation chamber.

 

[Megary]

Lots of good stuff…

If (a big IF, because Joe BeerDrinker may not care a lick) beer temperature affects the quality and enjoyment of a beer, then why don’t we all pay as much attention to it as say our dry hops or our grain bill? It seems such a simple thing to control, but in practice, probably not so simple.

I’m assuming that most everyone serves beer - regardless of style - at what their breweries allow? This has been my practice forever. And this is essentially the practice of every bar I have ever had the pleasure.

Or is anyone specifically serving their German Pils at 40F / 4C and their Belgian Double at 55F / 13C?

(And for the record, frosted mugs are despicable. )

 

[Herm brews]

My beers, bottled or canned, chill in my refrigerator which is currently set at 37F. I have never given much thought to this. For the sake of “best practices” I might try to enjoy my beers at recommended serving temps, which I guess would be achieved by letting them sit on the counter for a short while before opening and pouring into room temperature glass. I just checked my amber ale that I’m sipping, and it is at 49.5F in the glass, smelling and tasting good. Ambient air temp in my home right now is about 74F.

 

[Donoroto]

I store kegs cold (37f) and let the beer warm a bit in the pitcher. Darker and heavier beers get into the 50s, others in the 40s.

 

[Sunfire96]

I used to frequent a bar that kept their glasses in a freezer. A small ice cube of beer would form right after they set down your mug. It was wonderful after a hot day working outside in the summer, but I always wondered why that particular beer tasted best at that particular bar. Turns out I wasn't a huge fan of that beer and the near freezing temperature muted a lot of the flavor.

 

[BarbarianBrewer]

The rule of thumb I use is that the darker or stronger the beer the warmer it should be. This helps you taste all the extra flavors & aromas in the beer. I usually leave my reds & browns on the counter for 15 minutes before pouring them into a room temperature class. Light lagers I usually drink right out of the fridge but, something like a Wee Heavy I'll wait until it warms to about 55°F (13°C) before drinking it.

 

[Over The Cliff Brewing]

Subjective indeed. I have not thought about serving temps. My kegerator is at 38F and I don't freeze glasses (anymore). I also don't swill the beer so it does warm up a touch while enjoying it.

 

[GFHomebrew]

My keezer is set to 4.5 c I agree darker beers taste better then longer they are in the glass.

 

[Dornbox]

My kegerator is stays around 36-37°f but I probably only do 6oz pours which warm up a few degrees nearly instantly. I’m probably enjoying my beers around 40°.

I’m with @Sunfire96 though, on a hot summer day a Narragansett, PBR, or Tecate in a frozen mug is wonderfully refreshing! Never a solid beer though.

 

[The Brew Mentor]

My kegerator is stays around 36-37°f but I probably only do 6oz pours which warm up a few degrees nearly instantly. I’m probably enjoying my beers around 40°.

I’m with @Sunfire96 though, on a hot summer day a Narragansett, PBR, or Tecate in a frozen mug is wonderfully refreshing! Never a solid beer though.

6 oz pours?
I don't understand.
Maybe you meant 16, yeah, that's it!

 

[soccerdad]

One of my friends only likes American Adjunct Shite Lagers. And when he samples a brew from my generator (usually about 38 degrees (f), he immediately declares it's not cold enough. Fuggle that guy, right?
I agree with those who say, "beer will warm in the glass", so my concern at this time is more with a secondary regulator so that I can have the chance to serve two kegs at two different pressures.