We’re all guilty of saving something ‘for a special occasion’ – but it turns out when doing so, we might just be ruining the very thing we’re waiting for.
One man learnt this the hard way after keeping a bottle of whisky for 17 long years, only to be left gutted when he finally came to open it to savour its taste.
Taking to Reddit, he revealed how he tucked away a bottle of Johnnie Walker Green Label almost two decades ago – and completely forgot about it until recently.
However, when he went to open it, he found the cork had completely crumbled.
He told Newsweek: “Important lesson that I learned – the value of things changes over time. What was once very precious or hard to get, may have held a special place in our hearts/minds, may not really be that great once we go on and explore more or as we grow older.”
He went on to reveal how he was given the bottle from a colleague in 2008 when he worked for a major IT company.
After working long hours together, his team members clubbed together to buy him a gift to thank him for his hard work and to show him their appreciation for his friendship.
Grateful for the gift, he decided to keep it to drink on a special occasion.
But as time went on, the bottle started to gather dust at the back of his bar.
Recently, he stumbled across the bottle and decided it was finally the right time to open it up and enjoy. Despite its now crusty appearance, he confessed it still had a “nice” taste to it – but he has now learnt to savour life’s gifts as they come, rather than making himself wait.
One user suggested a method to prevent the cork from falling into the whisky: “Simply rotating the bottle vertically to soak the cork for a few seconds every few weeks is enough to preserve the cork.”
Another user chimed in: “This happens frequently with old wine bottles (and just the random bad luck).
“If you don’t already have one get an Ah-So wine opener. Always keep some coffee filters on hand, and then decant the wine/whiskey into a new bottle to filter out any cork bits that fall down into the bottle.”
A third user advised: “A bottle corkscrew pops these right out. If a piece breaks off it’s not a big deal.”
Yet another user added: “Ideally you let the bottle sit still for as long as you can so anything and everything settles down the siphon it in another bottle using a pipe can find on Amazon or local shop selling chemistry lab stuff for schools).
“Just use the same method people use to steal petrol from your bike and car. Getting the lure good stiff out while letting the dirt stay where it is. This method is also used when brewing your own beer.”