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By Lauren Lerch 17 Comments

Date Code Confusion

 

Fresh Beer = Better Beer

Yes, there are some delicious exceptions to the mantra, but most styles are best consumed fresh. Acquiring beer directly from the brewery is the best way to insure your pint is at its best. However, a stop at the brewery isn’t always a possibility. Alas! It’s the 21st century! No longer are we waddling down the street with steel pails of beer from the saloon, rushing the growler like a 19th century child so that one can enjoy draught beer at home. (You’ll have to read Rushing The Growler.) We have all the conveniences of modern technology that allow us to safely and efficiently bring home our favorite brew in cans and bottles. And how do we know the age of this packaged beer since it’s probably not straight from the saloon taps? Date codes!

If only it were so simple as a momentary glance at the side of the can or bottle to determine if the contents were fit for consumption. For some packaging, it IS that simple. But there are many more leaving my head cocked to the side and my mind twisted with calculations of barely legible letters and numbers. Some breweries forego listing a date code altogether. The ambiguity associated with date codes helps me realize that they truly are codes – perhaps meant for some to decipher, and others to brush off as an unimportant jumble of sloppy hieroglyphics. Finding fresh beer shouldn’t be so hard.

At the very least, we know this is best by or was canned sometime in 2018.

Beer is a perishable product, and as such, the producer should provide consumers with a legible, consistent means of understanding its freshness. If beer for purchase is sitting on a warm shelf for an unknown amount of days, months, or years and I have no means of instantly knowing when that beer was packaged or when the best by date is, there’s a very small chance I’d be willing to buy it. I’ve been stung too many times, going out on a limb for beer with a mystery date code, only to later lubricate my sink drain with its contents. No thanks!

Let’s assume a date code is present and legible (and you can actually find where and how on the package it’s printed) – confusion can still grip you like tomorrow’s hangover. Many breweries in America have adopted the Gregorian date code (11/11/18 = MM/DD/YY), which is easier to read than a digital clock. But some adventurous or simply devious breweries in the states have chosen to use a different system, either one they’ve created or the Julian date code (118 = 118th day of the year, 04/28).

This was either canned on, or is best by the 176th day of 2018 = June 25th, 2018.

The Julian date code, found most commonly on European imports, is typically used in conjunction with a letter that indicates the year. For 2018, the letter used would be R, which is the 18th letter of the alphabet. When I encounter a Julian date code in the store, I try to figure out the year first, as it’s the quickest and easiest way to eliminate the possibility of buying the product. Do you really think state employees at the Utah DABC are taking their sweet time to decode their bottles of European beer so they don’t send you home with warm Duvel from 2016? It’s possible, but I’d rather take the time to suss out the date myself instead of feeling that sting of pouring dollars down the drain. It’s a ridiculous time suck, but it’s better than the gamble.

8 = 2018, O (first) = October, O (second) = 15 (O is the 15th letter of the alphabet).

For figuring out the date code system of US breweries, the beer gods have granted us Fresh Beer Only. The website seems to be under construction, but the important bits are all there. If you care enough about cracking date codes, you’ll have this website saved on your phone for in-store use. As handy as it is, Fresh Beer Only does not cover beer from other countries, leaving you out in the cold of the date code abyss. Believe me, it’s a lonely hole to climb out of.

I gathered some of the more cryptic European date codes from the liquor store, snapping photos of the unintelligible digits and numbers so I could google them to death when I got home. Even after combing the world wide web for several hours, unearthing old message board posts and digging deep into specific brewery websites, some codes remained uncracked. I didn’t bother to reach out to the specific breweries that kept the Rosetta Stone of their date code held closely to their chest, as I don’t believe I would have received a response in time for reporting the results to you. So until that information surfaces, you’ll be in the dark with the rest of us.

Ayinger, in particular, was a mystery. Extensive research did not reveal a way to translate the notches on the bottom of the label. Other notched labels typically have months or days where the notches exist to identify the date code, but not so here. Anyone have any ideas?

Three of the codes that I was able to figure out are from breweries that have a relatively large variety of options available in Utah liquor stores (and likely even larger in other states). They are Samuel Smith, Chimay, and Lindemans. See the photos below for how to best translate their date codes.

Samuel Smith
“SK14Q1”
S = Samuel Smith
K = 11th month of the year (Nov), 11th letter in the alphabet
14 = 14th day of the month
Q = 2017, 17th letter in the alphabet

Lindemans
“L BA05RFR”
L = Lindemans
B = unknown
A = 1st month of the year (Jan), 1st letter of the alphabet
05 = 5th day of the month
R = 2018
FR = Framboise

Chimay
“L16-685”
16 = 2016
685 = 685th batch or bottle produced
Note: Chimay Grande Réserve is considered to be best after five years of aging. This one only needs another three!

Date codes can be dirty business, and I don’t know why. I can accept my American mindset may not be in line with European standards, but there should at least be a way to research how to read the freshness stamp on a brewery’s product. Regardless of where the beer is coming from, I urge everyone to either enforce or demand legible date codes on beer. If you see a smudgy date code on your can (or no code at all), bring it to the brewery’s attention. If you can’t decipher a stamped date code, email the brewery and ask for an explanation (I plan to email Merchant du Vin). As consumers, we should demand transparency from the companies we’re supporting with our dollars. Being duped into purchasing old beer is a terrible thing, and I would think it’s in the brewery and retailer’s best interest to provide accurate and legible freshness information on packaging.

For more information on carefully selecting beer for purchase, read our post, Beer Buyers Beware!.

Props to Orval for legibly fitting both the “bottled on” AND “best by” dates on arguably the smallest beer label on the shelf! (Note: European dates read DD/MM/YYYY)

Freshness shouldn’t be a gamble. Drink wisely, friends!

Resources:

Fresh Beer Only – https://www.brewersassociation.org/best-practices/quality/date-lot-coding/

Julian Date Code Converter – https://www.epochconverter.com/days/2018

Kenary’s Clarion Call: Date Code Your Beer – https://www.brewbound.com/news/kenarys-clarion-call-date-code-beer

Brewer’s Association Date Code Standards – https://www.brewersassociation.org/best-practices/quality/date-lot-coding/

Filed Under: Beer Tools, Education, Utah Beer Tagged With: Chimay, date code, date stamp, fresh beer, freshness, freshness code, lindemans, lot number, samuel smith, the struggle is real

Comments

  1. Hillbilly says

    December 22, 2019 at 3:13 am

    Can anybody figure out the day on the bottom of a can of Pennsylvania style ice beer? The number on the bottom of my can is 3259 0201.

    Reply
    • Lauren Lerch says

      February 19, 2020 at 4:20 pm

      Hillbilly,

      My best guess is the first three digits are a Julian date code, and the last is the year. I would think this means November 21st, 2019. I don’t know if that code would be packaged on or best by.

      Lauren

      Reply
  2. Sara carter says

    January 30, 2020 at 7:36 pm

    How do I know the date on rolling rock bottles and cans

    Reply
    • Lauren Lerch says

      February 19, 2020 at 4:15 pm

      Sara,

      I believe the Rolling Rock date code begins with five numbers. The first two are the year, and the three following are a Julian date code. For example, “19327” would be November 23rd, 2019. I do not know if the date is considered to be a packaging or best by date.

      Lauren

      Reply
  3. Alex Hepler says

    March 20, 2020 at 11:35 pm

    Thanks for the helpful info here.

    Some beers are now available in a six pack of cans contained in a cardboard box. The box has no date, so you can’t tell what is marked on the cans until after you make a purchase.

    Beer that doesn’t taste right makes a nice and beneficial addition to compost. Several pages on the web feature info on this.

    Reply
  4. Dave. OLSE says

    April 17, 2020 at 11:41 pm

    Louis Pasteur 1822 1888 founder of pasteurization was a godsend to the food industry around the turn of the century.
    A cool dry dark storage could add years of usefullness to many prooducts including beer !! Our age and experience will provide a baseline to follow. I hope you budweiser fans can handle it. If in doubt throw it out applies to everything !!!!

    Reply
  5. David says

    May 13, 2020 at 5:55 pm

    Good Afternoon,

    I am looking for a date explained on a Coors Banquet. Can anyone help me?
    Bottom of can reads:
    12089
    A10832032

    Thank you so much!

    Reply
    • Lauren Lerch says

      May 29, 2020 at 2:51 am

      Hi David,

      I did some searching, but came up a bit empty-handed. I did find out that the date code for Coors products is a pull date, as in the product should be removed from circulation on the date printed. Sorry I couldn’t be of more help! -Lauren

      Reply
      • David says

        June 3, 2020 at 6:37 am

        No worries Lauren. Thanks for looking!

        Reply
  6. John W. says

    June 4, 2020 at 6:34 pm

    Hi, I have a Girardin Black label with CX 2020. I know that this was bottled in 2019 but don’t know what month the C stands for. Hope you can help.

    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Lauren Lerch says

      June 4, 2020 at 8:05 pm

      Hi John,

      I found some helpful information here: https://www.lambic.info/Gueuze_1882_(Black_label)

      It seems their usage of letters does not always correspond to the same month each year. Without contacting the brewery, it will be difficult to know for sure. My best guess would be March for the letter “C”, as they are the third month of the year and third letter of the alphabet, respectively. Their date codes are best by dates, though I have seen some gueuze dated for 10+ years in the future.

      Cheers!
      Lauren

      Reply
  7. baseman says

    June 9, 2020 at 6:36 pm

    is the date on a keg of stella the born on date or best by date?

    Reply
  8. Alexis Lindsey says

    June 16, 2020 at 5:05 pm

    I purchased a premixed cocktail from a Local Liquour Warehouse and was alarmed to find what looks like a date for 2005. I called the store and was told they can’t be certain that its a date of origin or expiration date stamp, and that it could be a batch number. However it looks pretty clear to me that it is a date and timestamp.

    My question is what does this code look like to you? Below is how the code is listed.

    2005 1-4
    13:17:38

    Reply
  9. Roy says

    August 10, 2020 at 7:43 pm

    Stone cans come in a box. The box has no date. The beer is stale. Can we lobby Stone brewery to put a date on the box?

    Reply
  10. Eric Rice says

    October 17, 2020 at 9:17 pm

    Efes Pilsener, a beer from Turkey, has this puzzle:

    Printed on Label: “Best before date and lot number”
    Stamped Below : “ETEH L 190”

    Any ideas? And thanks in advance!

    Reply
  11. Chris says

    November 8, 2020 at 8:38 pm

    Mine says 20204231800 26……still good?

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Beer Tastings: FMU Double IPA - Moab Brewery | Utah Beer News says:
    December 4, 2018 at 11:41 pm

    […] note: Check out his fascinating article by Lauren of CraftyBeerGirls.com on date-coding of […]

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