Does Liquor Ever Expire? Straight Up Cocktails and Spirits

Q: True or False? Spirits are completely shelf stable. Unlike wine, which can sometimes develop an off taste during storage, or rapidly go downhill once it's been opened, liquor will keep indefinitely.

A: Well, yes and no. Read on to learn how to get the most out of your favorite bottle.

To find out more about the proper care and handling of spirits, I consulted Ethan Kelley, Head Spirit Sommelier and Beverage Director for the Brandy Library, a bar-lounge in NYC's Tribeca neighborhood that stocks over 900 fine bottles, including scotches, bourbons, brandies and armagnacs, as well as aged tequilas and rums:

Unopened bottles are shelf-stable, aren't they?
Ethan: Yes. Unlike wine, which continues to mature after bottling, a spirit stops aging after it's taken from its wood barrel and put in a glass bottle. An unopened bottle of spirits is stable - so long as it's properly sealed.

Okay, so far, so good. But what about after the bottle's been opened?
Ethan: From a spirit geek standpoint, it's good for 6-8 months - that's the industry standard. For the average layperson, 8 months to maybe a year.

What exactly happens to spirits after this "expiration date"?
Ethan: The first thing that happens is the alcohol begins to evaporate - you're losing the fun part. This will happen more quickly if you're keeping the bottle in a warm place. After that, at the 6-8 months mark, you'll begin to notice oxidation. The spirit will lose its "sparkle" and develop a flat taste.

Is it still drinkable at this point?
Ethan: Yes, but if it's a good bottle, you'll want to enjoy it at its very best. Once it's open, the clock is ticking.

Any tips for storing liquor?
Ethan: Room temperature is fine. Keep the bottle upright. You never want to keep anything stored sideways, the way you would a bottle of wine. If the bottle has a cork stopper, and the alcohol has prolonged contact with it, it will eat away at the material. (Ethan notes that this is a completely different phenomenon than the funky, moldy taste and smell of "corked" wine - what can go amiss with horizontally stored spirits is something more along the lines of an unappetizing "cork infusion".)

My Takeaway
Hmm, all this has me re-thinking those stray bottles I've been storing sideways in my wine rack...and a certain single malt scotch I've been dipping into from time to time over the past year or so, but haven't quite finished. Time to use things up, reorganize, and replenish for the new year.

Do you have any bottles needing "attention" at home?

Nora Maynard is a longtime home mixologist and an occasional instructor at NYC’s Astor Center. She is a contributor to The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food and Drink Industries and is the recipient of the American Egg Board Fellowship in culinary writing at the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow. She previously covered food and drink in film at The Kitchn in her weekly column, The Celluloid Pantry.

Further Reading: The Brandy Library

(Image: Nora Maynard)

Comments (23)

I had no idea..interesting post. I think the only thing we have that is fairly old is a bottle of Sambuca that I purchased over 10 years ago for a biscotti recipe. We go through our stuff, on a fairly regular basis; esp. vodka, gin and whiskey (canadian and otherwise). Wow, I just realized I made my household seem like a bunch of boozers.

Good lord, I wish my scotch lasted long enough for me to wonder if it's still good. :D

For some reason I've carted around a huge bottle of Finlandia that I purchased as a teenager when I was visiting Helsinki (I was legal there!)... let's say it was stored for oh, 20 years. A little had evaporated from the bottle but it tasted, well... like vodka. Frankly, it's such a neutral spirit that I expected it to keep as-is.

My husband was puzzled by the label until I told him how old it actually was. I think he was more puzzled at how a teenager/college kid wouldn't crack something like that open!

LOL. My parents have a wine cart filled with various bottles of spirits they've collected during their travels. Many have been opened. Many are older than I am (25).

alcohol doesn't last that long in my house...whatever we've opened in the beginning of the year and haven't finished usually gets killed by Halloween due to a large house party. we almost rely on them to kill off the old stuff we don't like. ;)

I host an invent-a-martini party every year on my birthday and drag out everything that's open and all the guests bring a bottle of something along as well. We don't often have anything that's already open still unfinished by the end of the night unless it's something really weird or unpalatable.

At Christmas, my dad found a half-full bottle of Crown Royal that he had forgotten about since *1961* (according to the label). It tasted perfectly fine.

Nevertheless, this article gives me a good excuse to finish off all the Scotch in the house.

My H and I have a very stylish looking bottle of Remy Martin with the tax seal still intact from 1978. We are guessing it's either amazing or completely disgusting, but don't really have the heart to break the seal after all these years.

what is the rule about such things like open bottles of Baileys and Kaluah? Can they last over a year as well?

shastablasta, considering my dad opened a bottle of bailey's at Christmas that had been sitting unopened in its box for god only knows how long only to find it had solidified into a gelatinous goop, I'd say a year yes, but more than that watch out!

A ruined bottle Tanqueray is heartbreaking. Remember to keep those lids tightened!

I have a bottle of port from the early sixties. I'm a bit scared to open it (or not). Is there any chance it could be drinkable?

And where does port fit in this? My husband and I treat it like spirits.

Port is different than spirits. It's meant to be aged and will improve with age like wine. Look up the year to see if it was a good one for port. If so, then it should be fine. If not, well... it might still be drinkable. I have a bottle of '77 port that I was able to taste a sample of before buying. It's amazing stuff!

Moema, it's most likely still drinkable and will probably be wonderful. You should try it. Instead of trying to save it for a special occasion, you should create a special occasion around opening your special bottle.

Whether or not port gets better with age depends on the type. Old ruby port doesn't taste all that much different from new ruby port, while tawny port is best when it is at least 20 years old. The bottle should specify the style and, if it's tawny port, indicate either an age or a vintage.

Since people are often confused about this, it is probably also worth pointing out that the age of an aged spirit is based on how long it sits in a barrel, not how long it has been since it was fermented. 12-year scotch will always be 12-year scotch, no matter how long the bottle sits in the back of the liquor cabinet.

This makes me sad. I really enjoy augmenting my husband's single malt scotch collection, but now I'm worried that I've purchased so many for him that they'll go bad before he has a chance to drink them all (he has about 8 bottles open right now). If you only open one bottle at a time, how can you compare them? *sigh*

Charise, Mille. Cara and Sean P: Thanks so much for the advice! It turns out that it is a bottle of tawny, so now I'm excited (my mother-in-law gave it to me saying, "This may be vinegar. Open it and you'll immediately know," which made me less than eager to do so). Now opening the bottle may merit a party!

Does anyone know how long a bottle of port, once opened, is good? Not that this will apply to this particular bottle...

It also depends on how the bottle has been stored, though, no? Variations in temperature, exposure to light can ruin a wine.

This was something I wondered about but decided all the open bottles were a great excuse to have a party. Thanks for the research.

Sean P: I thought it was the other way around actually, that tawny ports didn't change once bottled, and ruby ports are the ones with vintage dates on.

The tawny that I have at the moment (a Grand tawny from All Saints in Rutherglen, VIC, Aus) certainly doesn't have any sort of date on it, ditto the rest of the tawny available in Rutherglen. As compared to the vintage port that they sell there, which is made from shiraz, bottled with a vintage on the label, and is FANTASTIC after a good bit of aging (2006 saw the opening of a 1979 Stanton & Killeen - oh yum I say).

My brother has been storing a bottle of Blue Label on its side for over two years now! What a noob. I wonder if the damage is done or if it will be fine...

FoodieGreenie: I think I confused myself. Vintage port is ruby port but ruby port is not necessarily vintage port. Vintage port is the stuff that has "vintage port" and a vintage date printed on the bottle. Tawny port ages in the barrel but not in the bottle. Other ruby ports (including "late bottled vintage") do not age in the bottle.

The reason your tawny port doesn't have a date is that it is old enough to be considered tawny port but not so old as to merit being sold based on its age. That means it probably spent at least 7 but less than 10 years in the barrel.