Ageing alcohol – down it or destroy it?
This is relevant to either of several types of people: those who buy too much booze, those who drink too little booze, and especially those who do both.
While we’d like to think we love all our alcoholic purchase equally, there’s always something or other sitting at the back of one’s liquor cabinet that may, or may not, have been there too long. So we reluctantly welcome this list of what to toss out and what to keep (and for how long).
It’s the kind of advice you don’t want, but really need:
DIMPLE
What is it? A blend of malt and grain Scotch whiskeys.
Hanging around the bar for … : 20-30 years
Unique characteristics: Triangular, dimpled bottle.
What the expert says: “It’s faded a little bit, not a lot; 10 to 20 percent on the aromatics and the flavor. You can still tell it’s Scotch. And some people might like that, though. It tastes a little smoother. It’s past its prime, but some people might not mind. Certainly drinkable.”
Expert assessment: Faded but fine
It’s also helpful for clever liquor facts – Crème de Grand Marnier lasts twenty times longer than Midori. Madness.
Not everything in your liquor cabinet is aging gracefully. So do you… Pitch it or pour it? [Chicago Tribune via Liquor Snob]
One Response to “Ageing alcohol – down it or destroy it?”
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February 8th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
I dunno about Grand Marnier.
When my grandma died, we cleaned out her house and there was a bottle of CHERRY Marnier. I never even heard of Cherry Marnier (and I used to work for their ad agency), so I took it.
I have no idea how old the bottle was (sometime between Repeal and the 80s, when booze still had US Treasury seals), but inside was this nasty, slimy film of some kind. I tasted it anyway. It was awful, but you could still taste the Marnier.