How do you tell if Bourbon has gone bad?

You can tell if a Bourbon has gone bad from the faded color and dull taste of it. Air, sunlight, temperature, and even the bottle’s headspace are factors in Bourbon’s degradation. The best way to store your Bourbon is in a clean, dark place at room temperature.

Can old whiskey make you sick?

Expired alcohol doesn’t make you sick. If you drink liquor after it’s been open for more than a year, you generally only risk a duller taste.

How do I know if my whiskey is bad?

If an old whiskey looks or smells bad, discard it immediately. If it looks and smells fine, taste a small amount to determine if it is safe to drink. If it has a milder taste than usual, that is fine. But if it has a sour, metallic, or other strange taste, discard it.

How long will unopened bourbon last?

Unopened bourbon has pretty much indefinite shelf life. As long as the seal is intact, the alcohol should be as good as new. Once you open the bottle, the liquid starts to slowly degrade in quality.

Does bourbon continue to age in the bottle?

The short answer is no. Whiskey is not like wine it does not continue to age once bottled. The long answer is not so easy. While whiskey doesn’t age in the glass, it does eventually turn bad.

Is it safe to drink 40 year old whiskey?

Yes it will be fine. The ageing process doesn’t continue once it’s in the bottle and ethanol is a good preservative so it should be as good as the day it was bottled!

Does Whisky have expiry date?

Unopened whisky will not go bad or expire and generally lasts for decades, provided it’s stored correctly. However, when bottles are opened environmental factors come into play so it’s best not to keep too many bottles open at once if you plan to drink them over longer periods of time.

How long is whiskey good for unopened?

If sealed correctly, scotch whiskey has a shelf life between 6 months to 2 years, whereas an opened bottle of wine can only last for a few days. Proper storage of unopened whiskey gives it a shelf life of about 10 years.

How do you store bourbon after opening?

Bourbon Storage Basics:
  1. Store your bourbon upright. Unlike wine which should always be stored on it’s side, bourbon should always be stored in the upright position. …
  2. Keep it out of direct sunlight. …
  3. Protect your bourbon from temperature extremes.

Does whisky deteriorate after opening?

Once you crack that seal, the alcohol content can drop as ethanol evaporates and strongly smelling Scotches such as big, peaty numbers can lose their intensity the longer they’re open.

Does bourbon whiskey go bad?

The shelf life of bourbon isn’t much different from the shelf life of whiskey, as a whole. Unopened, a bottle of bourbon won’t go bad. You can store it for decades. But once a bottle of bourbon is opened, it’s got roughly 1 to 2 years before it goes bad.


What’s the difference between bourbon and whiskey?

Whiskey is a distilled spirit made from grains like corn and rye and aged in wooden barrels. Bourbon is a type of whiskey, and there are strict rules in place to ensure its quality. Bourbon must be made in the US, distilled from at least 51% corn, and aged in new oak-charred barrels.

Does bourbon need to be refrigerated?

You should NOT refrigerate your bourbon. Bourbon is best served at room temperature. Refrigeration doesn’t do anything to improve the taste. Experts agree it is not a good idea to refrigerate your bourbon as it can pull the flavors away from your bourbon.

How much is a 50 year old bottle of whiskey worth?

Current offerings of 50 year old scotch, like Dalmore, can cost as much as $60,000 a bottle, making others, like Benromach, look like a veritable bargain at $14,500. Therefore, you will likely belong to one of two groups: those who can afford 50 year old scotch, or those who aspire to afford 50 year old scotch.

Why Jack Daniels is not a bourbon?

Jack Daniel’s is not a bourbon – it’s a Tennessee Whiskey. Jack Daniel’s is dripped slowly – drop-by-drop – through ten feet of firmly packed charcoal (made from hard sugar maple) before going into new charred oak barrels for maturing. This special process gives Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey its rare smoothness.

What does aging do to bourbon?

The aging process helps to mellow out the harshness of the alcohol while also lending the bourbon its distinctive flavor. The flavor notes are drawn from the wood itself, the longer the bourbon sits in the barrel, the more rich and complex its flavor profile will be.