drinking airlock vodka

just out of curiosity, has anyone else ever tasted the vodka after it has sat in the air lock for 2+ months? or is it just me?

I wanted to know if maybe the vodka had absorbed some of the fermentation tastes or if it still tasted like vodka. But, I found out that it actually tasted and had the same mouthfeel of that similar to sugar water. no alcoholic bite to it at all.

Now that has me wondering. Has all the alcohol evaporated and the impurities in my cheep vodka were left behind? Does it still have the same sanitation properties after sitting for so long? should it replaced every (insert timeframe here)? I have tasted it on multiple occasions with different fermenting beers and the vodka always seems to have the same taste. Just curious if I should switch to using starsan in my airlocks instead.

How interesting! I really want to know the answer to this if anyone has some input.

I would imagine that most of the alcohol has evaporated out after 2 months. That's why we leave the caps on liquor bottles I would also imagine that the sanitation properties evaporated with the alcohol. Starsan breaks down with time as well, so may not be any better off using it.

Maybe just change it before you do anything that's likely to suck the liquid back into the fermenter. Otherwise it should be fine as a barrier, even if it's not antiseptic.

I just use distilled water in my airlocks. It has always worked fine for me.

Alcohol is a volatile substance. It'll evaporate faster than the water.

I use starsan and refresh it every week or so.

I don't know about drinking the liquor post-fermentation, but I always make sure to take a swig BEFORE fermentation "for the gods."

I was using super cheap, super nasty scotch for a long time, so it was more like a rite of passage than an enjoyable drink.

ChshreCat said:

Alcohol is a volatile substance. It'll evaporate faster than the water.

I use starsan and refresh it every week or so.

Click to expand...

I'll probably start using starsan now, it's cheaper than vodka. I'm not sure if I would bother to refresh it though and have more of a chance for me to screw something up by messing with it.

kanzimonson said:

I don't know about drinking the liquor post-fermentation, but I always make sure to take a swig BEFORE fermentation "for the gods."

I was using super cheap, super nasty scotch for a long time, so it was more like a rite of passage than an enjoyable drink.

Click to expand...

Well of course! Every shot in the airlock= 2 down the gullet!

billtzk said:

I just use distilled water in my airlocks. It has always worked fine for me.

Click to expand...

I just use tap water with similar results.

I always use cheap vodka & I can't seem to let it go to waste so of course I drink it! Still taste like cheap vodka even after 1 month...

beninan said:

I'll probably start using starsan now, it's cheaper than vodka. I'm not sure if I would bother to refresh it though and have more of a chance for me to screw something up by messing with it.

Click to expand...

I keep starsan in a spray bottle to make sanitation easy. to refresh my airlocks, I just pop the cap off, add a few sprays to replace what evaporates and put the cap back on. Don't even have to take the airlock off the fermenter.