How long can beer stay in the freezer?
In this article, we will answer the question “How long can beer stay in the freezer?”, and what factors affect the shelf-life of beer?
How long can beer stay in the freezer?
Beer kept for one hour in the fridge will turn frosty. After 2 hours, It will start to freeze.
How to chill your beer?
Submerge the beer in ice water and salt
Keep the beer bottle submerged in a large pot or bucket filled with ice water and salt. The purpose of adding salt is to lower the freezing temperature of the water so that It melts quickly while chilling the beer in only 15 minutes.
Wrap your beer in a damp cloth
Wrap the beer bottle or can use a damp cloth or paper towel. Then place It in the freezer for about 15 minutes. The water in the cloth or paper towel evaporates carrying the what with it whilst cooling the beer quickly.
Use a SpinChill
A SpinChill device is attached to the top of the bottle or can which is placed in a pot filled with ice water and salt. The device spins after activation and speeds up the heat transfer due to the convection making the heat cold under 5 minutes.
Drill your beer
Fasten a long screw into the hole at the top of the thermos cap, created using a drill, using two bolts. Attach the screw to a power drill. Immerse the beer can in a pot filled with ice water and salt.
Place the thermos cap over the beer and activate the drill. The beer will rotate and heat transfer will speed up, chilling the beer under 5 minutes.
Chill your beer with compressed air
Flip a bottle of compressed air and hold it to spray the side of a beer bottle or can until frost forms. The can is held upside down so that the released air is crisp and cold.
Factors that affect the shelf-life of beer
Distance
Local beer will have a more fresh taste as compared to the beer that has traveled long distances within its distribution region.
During this traveling time, the beer ages and is agitated. Not only this, but beer is also exposed to heat, sunlight, or temperature fluctuations in general that affect its composition and shelf-life.
Popularity
If your favorite beer is popular and sells like hotcake, It means It does not have to sit for months on the shelves. Therefore, It will have a fresh taste and a longer shelf-life.
Packaging
Canned beer provides maximum protection against sunlight, contaminants, and oxygen. Brown glass bottles protect against UV rays. Green bottles also do a good job. Glass bottles provide the least protection and beer in these bottles is likely to go bad earlier than in the other bottles.
Temperature
How the beer bottles or cans were stored at the store affects the quality and shelf-life of beer. The beer that was refrigerated will last longer. Also, the beer that was placed upright instead of sideways will be good for longer by minimizing oxidation.
How to tell If beer is bad?
- If the beer is exposed to UV rays, It starts to give off a skunky odor. This problem is common with beer like Heineken, stored in colored bottles.
- If your beer tastes like popcorn, cooked cabbage, sewage, sulfur, or just a normal sour or stale taste, It has gone bad.
Why does beer freeze?
Beer freezes because alcohol present in it lowers the freezing point of the beverage but the sugar in beer performs synergistically. Sugar also lowers the freezing point and keeps pure water from freezing.
At what temperature does beer freeze? (with respect to the alcohol content)
Ethanol, which is the predominant alcohol used in most alcoholic drinks including beer, freezes at -114 degrees Celcius. This freezing temperature is much lower than that of pure water which is 0 degrees celsius.
But any alcoholic beverage including beer is diluted with distilled water,, this drops the freezing point of the beverage somewhere close to the temperatures of the household freezers. The degree to which this drop occurs is directly related to the degree of dilution.
The alcohol content of beer is in the range of 3-13% ABV(Alcohol By Volume). A lower alcohol content indicates a higher freezing temperature, closer to 0 degrees celsius. For example, a beer with 3% ABV will freeze at -1 degrees celsius compared to the one with 10% ethanol which freezes at -3.5 degrees celsius.
Other FAQs about Beer which you may be interested in.
How long does it take beer to get cold in the freezer?
How to get drunk with one beer?
How long does it take to chill beer?
Conclusion
In this article, we answered the question “How long can beer stay in the freezer?”, and what factors affect the shelf-life of beer?
