Will Whiskey Freeze And Can You Keep Whisky In The Freezer?

by Dane Wilson | Last Updated: August 23, 2022

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Whiskey is a deliciously diverse drink that you can become in a wide variety of flavours from a multitude of different cultures. These can include Scotch, Irish, American or Japanese whiskey along with a variety of other options. As we all know, whisky is typically best served at low temperatures. With that in mind, when it comes to buying your whiskey, you may wonder whether it can be frozen. As such, below we will answer, will whiskey freeze and can you keep whisky in the freeze?  

Table of Contents

• Can You Freeze Whiskey?
• What Is The Actual Freezing Point Of Whiskey?
• Why Does Whisky Not Freeze At The Same Temperature As Water?
• The Freezing Point Of Whiskey Compared To Other Alcoholic Drinks
• Can A Domestic Freezer Bring Whiskey To Freezing Point?
• Is It Dangerous To Freeze Whiskey?
• Will Freezing Whiskey Ruin The Flavour?
• Answered: Will Whiskey Freeze and Can you Keep Whisky in the Freezer?
• FAQ – Will Whiskey Freeze and Can you Keep Whisky in the Freezer?

Can You Freeze Whiskey?

As we’ve posed above, part of the question here is whether or not whiskey will freeze. Of course, alcohol is typically served as a very cold drink. Especially when it comes to liquors such as whiskey. However, despite this, you may have never actually have seen whiskey or indeed any other spirit freeze. Even when immersed within such an environment where the freezing points of other liquids are reached, whiskey will not freeze. 

With that in mind then you may believe that when you chill whiskey to these extreme temperatures that it will not even freeze. However, whiskey, like other alcoholic drinks will freeze. That said, it will have to reach a much lower freezing point than like something such as water to do so.

What Is The Actual Freezing Point Of Whiskey?

With the above context in mind then, you may be wondering what the actual freezing point of whiskey is then. Now of course we know that standard freezing temperatures for water aren’t going to cut it here. So what is the freezing point of whiskey?

Well, strictly speaking, there isn’t actually just one answer to this question. The reason for this being that different types of whisky will have different freezing points. This being because the alcohol content found within the whiskey will dramatically alter the temperature whiskey freezes at. With that in mind then, below are some of the average alcohol proof ratings of whiskey, along with their freezing temperatures:

• Forty Proof Or Twenty Percent ABV Whiskey: Twenty-two degrees Fahrenheit (or minus seven degrees celsius)
• Sixty-Four Proof Or Thirty-Two Percent ABV Whiskey: Minus ten degrees Fahrenheit (or minus twenty-three degrees celsius)
• Eighty Proof Or Forty Percent ABV Whiskey: Minus seventeen degrees Fahrenheit (or minus twenty-seven degrees celsius)

Why Does Whisky Not Freeze At The Same Temperature As Water?

As mentioned above, whiskey does not freeze at the freezing point of water. In fact, the freezing point of whiskey is noticeably lower than that of something like water. That said as mentioned above, different whiskies will freeze and different temperatures due to their alcohol contents.

As such, you may have guessed that the alcohol content will determine just how cold the whiskey must be before it freezes. If so, you’d be correct. As such, since water doesn’t contain alcohol, its freezing point will be much higher than that of whiskey.

The Freezing Point Of Whiskey Compared To Other Alcoholic Drinks

As established above whisky will need to be brought to lower temperatures than water in order to reach its freezing point. Additionally, what that freezing point will be can vary depending on the alcohol content contained within a whiskey bottle. As such, you may be wondering at what temperatures other alcoholic drinks freeze. If so, don’t worry as the answers to some of these are revealed below:

• Pure Ethanol Alcohol: Obviously you should not actually drink this. However, the freezing point will be minus one hundred and seventy-three point five degrees Fahrenheit. In celsius, that works out at approximately minus one hundred and fourteen degrees.
• Other Spirits: Like whiskey, the temperatures at which a spirit will freeze will vary. However, when you freeze gin, vodka or rum with a similar purity rating to the whiskies mentioned above, they will freeze at around the same temperatures.
• Wine: A wine bottle will on average freeze between temperatures of fifteen to twenty degrees Fahrenheit (or around minus six to minus nine degrees celsius). That said, like with spirits the alcohol content will cause this to vary.
• Beer: Beer will freeze at around twenty-eight degrees Fahrenheit (or roughly minus two degrees celsius). Again though, the alcohol content will cause this to vary.

Can A Domestic Freezer Bring Whiskey To Freezing Point?

With the above in mind then, it is very clear that many types of whiskey will need to be in much colder conditions for them to freeze. However, you may naturally be wondering whether or not your freezer will be able to do the job.

Unfortunately, if do plan to freeze your whiskey, the average domestic freezer won’t cut the mustard. The reason for this being that many freezers will be kept at a temperature of zero degrees Fahrenheit (or minus eighteen degrees Celcius). This is due to these temperatures being how the American FDA recommends that food should be safely frozen without compromising the flavour.

As such, these temperatures will not be nearly cold enough to freeze anything but the weakest whiskey variations. However, it will be sufficient for other alcoholic beverages such as wine or beer.

Is It Dangerous To Freeze Whiskey?

Whilst it may not freeze, you can of course still put your whiskey in the freezer and it will be cooled dramatically. However, you may have some concerns regarding how healthy such a practice would be.

Fortunately, this is not too much of a concern as cooling whiskey in such a manner will not make it inedible. That said though, you should still be careful when doing so as the super-chilled bottle will be prone to thermal shock. This means that if its temperature abruptly rises it may shatter.

Will Freezing Whiskey Ruin The Flavour?

That said though, whilst it is not dangerous to store your whiskey in the freezer it is still not necessarily a good idea. At least not for prolonged periods. The reason for this is that as a liquor whiskey is a hybrid of water and alcohol. As such the water content will freeze long before the alcohol.

Additionally, the chemical components of liquors like whiskey that give it, its flavours are called volatiles. These are at their best when they can move around and evaporate. As such, when whiskey is kept at extremely low temperatures, the restriction of these volatiles and numbing of the taste buds from the cold will mute the resulting flavour considerably.

Answered: Will Whiskey Freeze and Can you Keep Whisky in the Freezer?

With the above in mind, we can now establish that whiskey can in fact be frozen. However, in a domestic freezer, you won’t be able to do so under normal circumstances. The reason for this is that it won’t be cold enough to do so.

Additionally, whilst it is safe to put whiskey in the freezer, doing so isn’t recommended. The reason for this being that doing so will result in a noticeably more dull and muted flavour. Instead, keeping it at room temperature and chilling with an ice cube or a cooled glass is recommended.

FAQ – Will Whiskey Freeze and Can you Keep Whisky in the Freezer?