Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Caffeinated]

Let's say you open a bottle and put the cap back on. How long can you keep it in the fridge?

[nukeday]

I wouldn't keep it longer than a day. There was a news story about a year back about some older guys dying due to bad mak gul li.

It's cheap, throwaway alcohol anyway.

Will you get sick? Probably not, but it also probably won't taste good anyway so you might as well replace it. Much like any other foodstuff. "Is this chicken still ok?" Up to you, really.

[morrisonhotel]

I've heard no longer than 3 days from a few people.

[nukeday]

Then again, even unopened bottles have poorly sealed caps. They always leak. I wonder how fresh new bottles are, really.

Metal cap on a plastic bottle? Who knew that might be problematic.

[Caffeinated]

Thanks for the answers. I bought a bottle for a nightcap but could only manage a few sips. I re-capped the rest but wasn't sure how long it keeps with the minimum of effort. I thought it tasted a little sour last night.

[Cedar]

After opening you really should drink it within a few hours at most. You shouldn't even store it in your fridge for more than a day or two before drinking and always check the date when you buy it. Also different makgeolli makers vary wildly in deliciousness, so try to find a brand you like by checking them all out.

[ThingsComeAround]

dang-

I've been holding onto some Makkeoli for about 1.5 years

better give it a sniff before tossing out

[northway]

I've totally drank it after about a week or so.

[redaxe]

Well, it's carbonated, so if you open it, drink some, put it back in the fridge and the next time you try to drink it, it's gone flat, then it's probably not good anymore.

[Jake_Kim]

Pasteurized Makkoli (labeled '살균탁주') - 6 months unopened, but give it a month or two, consume within a couple of weeks tops even if refrigerated.

Unpasteurized Makkoli (usually labeled '생/生') - 1 week~10 days unopened, but treat it like fresh milk - consume within 3~5 days.

Unpasteurized Makkoli bottles are 'designed to leak' to relieve increasing carbon dioxide pressure from active yeast, therefore their being 'poorly sealed' is their normal state. It is stated on some bottles, 'Keep the bottle upright.'

[nukeday]

And yet I've seen new bottles of the exact same brand with new, sealed tight plastic caps. Tastes exactly the same, too. However, they seem to go out of stock and it's back to the old bottles.

Craft beer sometimes has active yeast without leaky bottles. Looks like the mak gul li industry learned a trick.

[Jake_Kim]

I cannot speak for the entire Makkoli industry, but I speculate that the manufacturers chose to use leaking cap to prevent pressure from 'building up,' which would lead to explosion in transit or in storage. Other carbonated beverages - Pepsi or other soda - do contain CO2, but its pressure does not increase internally over time.

Beer bottles are typically glass bottles with steel crown cap. They can withstand increasing internal pressure better than plastic bottles. Unpasteurized Makkoli manufacturers might do the same, but I doubt they want increased production cost while they are happy to settle for plastic caps that are far cheaper.

[Sleepy in Seoul]

Makkoli will have already gone off by the time you get it back home, so your best bet will be to drink it quickly on your way home.