How long can you store beer?

• i have a glass bottle of magic hat beer, it had been refrigerated for an unknown amount of time (>1 month), and i put it in my attic for about two weeks where it isn't cold but not hot either. is it still okay to drink?

• Answer:

  Magic hat isn't high in alcohol nor is it bottle fermented which makes this a tough question to answer. It should be fine to drink, possibly a little flat but nothing bad. Standard macrobrews (miller, bud etc.) are usually best when consumed within 3-6 months. No more than a year. Some micro and imports are bottle fermented and can last years. I have a 15 year old bottle of Thomas Hardy's Ale I'm saving for Thanksgiving this year. A few weeks ago I had a series of 2 year old Bell's products and all were amazing. Unfortunately, even though it is a microbrew it still falls in the best within 3-6 months category. EDIT: Some peoples answers amaze me.. even the lady with the links. Where do people get this stuff from. "Next, you'll need to buy at least two of each beer. One of the beers you'll want to drink immediately so you'll have a comparison in which to judge the aged one - taking some notes if you want. The other beer should be cellared for at least a year." Notice the "at least" in the above? "Cool. Now that you have an idea as to what to cellar and how, what can you expect a year or more down the road when you've patiently waiting to crack open your aging beers? The answer = who knows? There are way too many variables that come to play, on top of the variations within the different styles. Some beers age very well, others don't. Some beers need only a year, while others can age for 25+ years. And, many breweries have no idea what their beer will taste like years down the road, while others can make pretty damn good predictions. It's all part of the fun." See the "25+" in this one? Here is a link from one of the leading beer magazines in the US. Enjoy, your beer.