[alexdudek]

So I was forced to move some beer out of the fermenting room to make room for a house guest and I forgot to cover 8 gallons of porter in glass carboys. They sat in the sun for about 4 hours. Not direct sun but enough to make my stomach turn when I remembered later in the day. A few laps around google leads me to believe that beer can skunk in minutes with enough light. I plan on kegging and bottling and just hoping for the best come tasting time, but I was wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation or knows what the likely outcome is.

[Lazy Ant Brewing]

I know dark beers take longer to skunk than lighter colored ones, but 4 hours is a long time.

When you taste, let us know the outcome please.  Probably everyone on the forum has had their "A* S**t" moments.

[mainebrewer]

If it's skunked, you'll be able to smell/taste it right now. No need to bottle/keg and wait.

[jeffy]

I agree with the first two answers.  Skunking is a reaction that is immediate, but light has to penetrate the beer.  Also the amount of hops in the beer directly affects the outcome, so your porter may not be as reactive as in IPA.