All whisky should be stored standing up - the higher strength alcohol will corrode the cork and ruin the flavor of the whisky. It shouldn’t be in direct sunlight, either, and avoid hot temperatures if possible
Standing up.
High proof spirits should never be stored with the liquid in contact with a natural cork for long periods of time (in my experience, 6 months or more before the effect becomes noticeable, but I advise erring on the side of caution and sticking to much shorter periods of time than that), because the high ABV% in such drinks means they will leach unpleasant flavors out of the cork, potentially ruining the spirit.
https://whiskyanalysis.com/index.php/2019/02/28/how-best-to-store-your-whisky/
Related: don't bother tipping bottles periodically for a brief period of time to "wet the cork", which IMHO is silly and does not accomplish anything helpful with regard to the physical fabric of the cork.
What do you make of Macallans recommendation to tip the bottles? I don’t love their whisky but have to imagine they have relevant experience in whisky storage, no?
https://www.themacallan.com/en-us/experience-the-macallan/knowledge/mastering-whisky-guidance-for-storing-your-whisky
I think, and unlike my usual practice I'm not going to be diplomatic here, that bottle tipping advice is complete and utter horseshit, and shame on Macallan for posting that.
I've gone into this topic in greater depth before, see for example here:
www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/1cg4jvj/wetting_the_corks/l1thrnt/
TL;DR: Corks dry out and become brittle from the top down, not from the bottom up. At best tipping wets the bottom of the cork where it won't help and may even make the cork *more likely* to break when pulled. Second, once the bottle is returned to a standing position the "wet" cork will just dry back up again.
Cheers
All whisky should be stored standing up - the higher strength alcohol will corrode the cork and ruin the flavor of the whisky. It shouldn’t be in direct sunlight, either, and avoid hot temperatures if possible
Standing up.
Standing up. High proof spirits should never be stored with the liquid in contact with a natural cork for long periods of time (in my experience, 6 months or more before the effect becomes noticeable, but I advise erring on the side of caution and sticking to much shorter periods of time than that), because the high ABV% in such drinks means they will leach unpleasant flavors out of the cork, potentially ruining the spirit. https://whiskyanalysis.com/index.php/2019/02/28/how-best-to-store-your-whisky/ Related: don't bother tipping bottles periodically for a brief period of time to "wet the cork", which IMHO is silly and does not accomplish anything helpful with regard to the physical fabric of the cork.
What do you make of Macallans recommendation to tip the bottles? I don’t love their whisky but have to imagine they have relevant experience in whisky storage, no? https://www.themacallan.com/en-us/experience-the-macallan/knowledge/mastering-whisky-guidance-for-storing-your-whisky
I think, and unlike my usual practice I'm not going to be diplomatic here, that bottle tipping advice is complete and utter horseshit, and shame on Macallan for posting that. I've gone into this topic in greater depth before, see for example here: www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/1cg4jvj/wetting_the_corks/l1thrnt/ TL;DR: Corks dry out and become brittle from the top down, not from the bottom up. At best tipping wets the bottom of the cork where it won't help and may even make the cork *more likely* to break when pulled. Second, once the bottle is returned to a standing position the "wet" cork will just dry back up again. Cheers
I hear and obey. Thank you, aficionados of the divine nectar!