Does Baileys Expire or Go Bad? How to Check and Know?

Does Baileys Expire or Go Bad? Baileys Irish Cream is one of the world’s most well-known alcoholic beverages. It’s extremely popular in the winter, but it’s also a popular gift choice in the summer – especially for the ladies.

Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!

If you have an unopened bottle of Baileys Irish Cream in your cabinet, you may be wondering if it’s safe to open it.

Most likely, yeah. Let’s dissect it.

Is Baileys still available? Baileys does expire, although not as rapidly as you might imagine given its cream-based composition. Cream-based liqueurs, such as Baileys, can securely last up to 2 years in sealed bottles, and even longer provided the bottle isn’t contaminated in any way. The liqueur can last up to 6 months after the seal is broken, though it is more susceptible to outside influences and may spoil faster.

To ensure that your Baileys Irish Cream lasts as long as possible and maintains its entire flavor profile, you must first understand how to properly store it, as well as the indicators to check for if you are doubtful that the bottle has been stored properly.

When Does Baileys Go Extinct?

It’s difficult to determine a specific date. As a result, the best by date rather than the expiration date will be placed on the label of your Baileys Irish Cream bottle.

The general belief is that cream-based liqueurs can be securely stored in a sealed bottle for up to two years. So the best by date on your Baileys bottle will be exactly two years after it was bottled.

However, a variety of external elements may have an impact on the liquid inside the bottle. Depending on how it’s stored, Baileys may go bad inside the bottle even before the best by date, or it may taste and feel good months after the best by date has passed.

If the bottle has been opened, the same cannot be said. If the seal on your Baileys bottle is damaged, the shelf life is drastically shortened, making the best by date useless.

Does Baileys Expire or Go Bad

A bottle of opened Baileys has a shelf life of about 6 months, which is quite outstanding for a cream-based drink. However, as soon as the bottle is opened, the cream and alcohol begin to separate.

This will have a detrimental impact on both flavor and texture over time, so if you have an open Baileys bottle, it’s best to consume it within the first couple of months and not wait until the 6-month mark.

Why Does Baileys Go Bad?

When sealed, most spirit-based alcoholic beverages do not expire. A bottle of unopened whiskey or vodka has an unlimited shelf life. And, because Baileys Irish Cream is a whiskey-based drink, it’s not entirely crazy to believe it, too, would endure indefinitely.

However, Baileys is a liqueur, not a pure liquor. Liqueurs gain their flavor by combining tasty components with spirits, making them prone to spoiling depending on these additional elements.

Baileys, in particular, ages since it is a homogenized drink prepared by combining whisky and cream. While alcohol extends the cream’s shelf life, it will still spoil over time.

How to Store Baileys Irish Cream Correctly

A sealed bottle of Baileys Irish Cream should be stored between 32°F and 77°F. The heated temperature will hasten deterioration, just as it would with pure milk, and there’s a good risk it’ll go bad before the best by date.

Unless it’s summer and there’s no temperature-controlled space in the house, it doesn’t need to be refrigerated.

If the Baileys bottle has been opened, you must reseal it to the best of your ability and store it in the refrigerator.

What Are the Symptoms of Baileys Expiration?

Because Baileys is a cream-based drink, the key symptoms that it has gone bad will be pretty similar to that of cream going bad.

You must pay attention to the drink’s:

Smell

As with ruined dairy, bad Baileys will first smell overly sweet (like custard) or outright sour if the process has barely begun (if the process has been going on for some time).

Texture

The homogeneity of whiskey and cream begins to break down with time. Instead of the creamy and smooth texture of Baileys, you’ll get a drink that’s lumpy, thick, and congealed on your hands.

However, the texture may begin to degrade even before the drink becomes rotten. If the texture smooths out after a light shaking, your drink may still be good.

Color

Color darkening is another negative consequence of whiskey-cream homogenization breakdown. The deeper color of Baileys indicates that it is about half a step away from coagulating, therefore it is preferable to get rid of it.

Taste

If you’re still not sure after the smell/texture/color test, you can do a taste test (but no more than a sip).

If the drink has begun to deteriorate, it will have sour ingredients. The taste of fully expired Baileys has been compared to sour cream and yogurt, but it does not have to reach those levels to be declared expired. A few sour notes are a good indicator.

What Happens If You Drink Old Baileys?

Drinking expired Baileys will most likely produce comparable outcomes to drinking ruined cream. If consumed in little amounts, you may get no results or, at most, a mild stomach disturbance.

In larger doses, it may cause normal food poisoning symptoms such as nausea and vomiting, upset stomach, and/or diarrhea.

Fortunately, common spoilage indications should serve as good indicators that your Baileys has expired, alerting you not to consume any at all.

Conclusion

A sealed Baileys bottle has a shelf life of about two years. While it won’t necessarily go bad after that (that’s why it has a best by date on the label rather than an expiration date), it’s not recommended to extend the drink past that point because its flavor and texture profile will have diminished by then.

An opened bottle is safe to consume for up to 6 months; however, the deterioration process begins as soon as the bottle is unsealed, so use as soon as feasible.
Heat accelerates spoilage, so keep the bottle (whether sealed or open) in a cool, dry area, preferably a refrigerator.
Drinking expired Baileys will most likely produce comparable outcomes to consuming expired cheese. It won’t hurt you much in tiny amounts, but if you keep eating it, you can get food poisoning.
Keep the drink cool and use it before the best by date, and you should be able to completely enjoy its smooth luxuriously creamy taste with no downsides.