I had mutton chops through college and it turned into a beard when the chin hair finally arrived to close the gap. I kept it all the way until I was 52 because I hated shaving. I had some late nights, followed by early mornings and I didn't want to take the time to shave, so a beard was the answer.
When I was 52, I needed surgery and had to shave the beard. My daughter was 12 at the time and she had never seen me without a beard. There was a look of amazement on her face the first time she saw me beardless.
After I recovered, a tried the goatee for a while, but eventually grew it all back and that is how it remains, 20 years later.
I don't remember exactly when it went from brown to gray, but it's all gray now.