Does sake in the fridge go bad?

So there’s a bottle of sake in your liquor cabinet sitting for quite some time now, and finally, you decided to do something about it. There’s no best-by date on the label, so the question “does sake go bad?” pops up in your head immediately.

If you’re not quite familiar with sake, like most people outside Japan, it’s difficult to guess how long it lasts or how to tell if it’s spoiled.

In this article, we will go through storage, shelf life, and signs of spoilage of sake. If that’s what you’re looking for, read on.

How To Store Sake

Sake, often called nihonshu, is made by fermenting rice. Because of that, people often call it Japanese rice wine. In Japan, rice is one of the most widely used foods, so no wonder they produce alcohol from it too. Technically sake isn’t a wine, but it shares some characteristics with it, so calling it a rice wine makes sense.

In general, you should store nihonshu similarly to how you store wine. That means that an unopened bottle should sit in a cool and dark place, away from sunlight and sources of heat. Temperature slightly below room temperature, that is around 20℃ (68°F) is the best for almost all types of sake.

Unpasteurized sake, or namazake, is the exception here because it should be stored in the fridge. If the sake you’ve bought was kept in the refrigerated section, you should keep it chilled too.

Once you open the bottle of sake, you should store it in the fridge and tightly sealed at all times, just like you do with wine.

How Long Does Sake Last

Most bottles of sake don’t come with a best-by date, because it’s not a requirement where they were produced. More often you can find the production date on the label. That’s the date sake was bottled.

Unlike wine, almost all kinds of sake aren’t meant for aging. You should consume it fresh, possibly within a year or two of bottling

Of course, the real shelf life will be much longer, but sake degrades with time. That means the longer you store it, the worse its quality will be. If you have an unopened bottle of sake stored in the pantry for like 6 years, it will probably be safe to consume, but the quality might not be that great.

Once you open the bottle, things change. To get the best possible quality, you should consume the whole bottle in one day. If that’s not an option, put it into the fridge, where it will remain safe to consume for a few weeks.

Remember that the taste will change and become softer with time. The speed at which the taste changes depends on the quality of the alcoholic beverage. Some will taste good for only a week or so, while others will remain okay for up to a month.

Please note that all dates are after the production date and are for the best quality only.

How To Tell If Sake Is Bad

When it comes to an unopened bottle of sake, the chance it goes bad is slim at best. If you store it for a long time, it might not be best once you open it, but it will be safe to drink.

An opened bottle won’t go bad that fast if stored in the fridge, either. It’s more likely that you will decide to discard it for quality purposes

Now let’s go through signs that sake is, or might be, spoiled:

• Yellow tint. Sake is typically clear, and the yellow hue indicates that the oxidation process did quite some damage to the alcohol.
• Off, rotten, or pungent smell. If it smells bad, throw it away.
• Particles, either floating or on the bottom of the bottle. The presence of any particles means nihonshu has started to fall apart.
• Off taste. Drink a small amount to check the flavor. If there’s something wrong with it, discard it. Of course, you might mistake spoiled sake with sake that you don’t like. Nevertheless, if you didn’t like it, there’s no point in storing it.

For more details on how to tell that sake is bad check out this article.

Sake is often referred to as “Rice wine” which is a total misconception. Rice wine is actually obtained from fermentation of rice in the same way as a grape wine would have been obtained from the fermentation of grapes.

However, Sake is made from a brewing process which converts the starch in the rice to alcohol, in the same way as how beer is made from barley.

Sake is known to be originated in Japan but some historians believe that Sake actually dates way back to 4800 BC and that it has its roots in China.

But this traditional drink of Japan is known to the whole world which is both sold and enjoyed around the continents.

But does Sake go bad despite it being of alcoholic nature? Let’s find out!

Sake can go bad if it is not stored in the proper conditions because sake is mostly hand-made and does not contain preservatives like most alcoholic drinks.

Sake is fermented which means that it has a long shelf-life, but it does not mean that it is exempted from spoilage.

Sake is expensive as well, so every care should be made to store it in the right conditions which keeping it in a cool, dry place and away from a sunlight.

Also make sure that the bottle is always properly sealed, because once moisture and air enters the bottle, the drink would lose its potency.

An unopened bottle of Sake can be stored in the pantry or in the fridge with a moderate temperature for six to ten years. 

An opened bottle of Sake should be stored in the fridge immediately and should be tightly sealed, after which it can be stored for one to two years.

But it is advisable to consume it within the next two to five days for optimal flavor. There is also no need to freeze Sake as it is already fermented.

How to Tell If Sake Is Bad? Sake Shelf Life!

It is usually hard to tell if a fermented product has spoiled or not. But the best way to guess it is by tasting it.

Bad sake will have an off or a pungent smell, which is unlike the usual smell. This means that the sake has turned and should be disposed off.

In another case, Bad Sake will have a yellowish hue as opposed to its normal clear appearance.

A yellowish tint means that it is time for the Sake to be thrown out in the bin and to get new bottles.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• Sake
• Labels and markers

Instructions

1. Read the guide thoroughly to learn how long it lasts.
2. Check the "Best-by-date" to know when it expires.
3. Make sure to store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place (pantry or fridge).
4. Always check for signs of spoilage before using.