What the Short dated and Past best labels mean, and where they come from.
A short-dated beer is one that is close to its best before date. Breweries and bottle shops often cut the price to clear it, which is why short-dated beer turns up among the deals.
A best before date is about quality, not safety: the Food Standards Agency says food and drink can be eaten after its best before date but may no longer be at its best. That is different from a use by date, which is about safety. Beer carries a best before date.
How much a beer changes with age depends on the style. Hop-forward beers such as IPAs and pale ales are brewed to be drunk fresh, and their hop character fades first. Stronger and darker beers generally hold up for longer. If freshness matters to you for a particular beer, the date is worth a look before you buy.
We only ever repeat what the shop says. A listing is marked Short dated when the shop itself describes it that way, and where the shop gives a date it must be no more than 60 days away. A listing is marked Past best only when the shop's own best before date has already passed.
A date in the future never earns a label on its own, and we never work out a date the shop has not published. Where a shop gives its best before date, the listing shows it in the shop's own words.
Some shops keep a clearance section. A clearance listing here carries a neutral Clearance label and the shop's own best before wording. It is not counted as a deal, because a clearance price is not a verified cut against the shop's own crossed-out price.