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Can You Freeze Alcohol?

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By Ross Young

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Whether you want alcohol popsicles or alcohol-soaked fruit, you’re here because you want the answer to one important question. So…

Can You Freeze Alcohol?

Yes, you can freeze alcohol but it is unlikely that you will be able to do so at home. Ethanol, which is the alcohol in drinks, freezes at around -114°C. Most home freezers only drop to around -22°C.

Does Alcohol Freeze Well? No

Can You Refreeze Alcohol? No

Why Alcohol Won’t Freeze at Home

If you have access to an industrial freezer that will drop to -50°C or lower then you might have a good chance of freezing it.

Unfortunately, most home freezers sit around -22°C. Ethanol, the alcohol in drinks, freezes at around -114°C, which goes some way to explaining why you’ll struggle to freeze it at home.

Beer, wine and spirits aren’t 100% ethanol and are mixed with other liquids which brings this freezing point up slightly.

If you place a bottle of beer in the freezer for an hour or so, you’ll get it ice-cold – perfect for a summer’s evening. But if you leave it in there much longer then you’ll find it become a slushy mess and ruin the beer.

The same can be said for some wines with lower alcohol contents.

If you place a bottle of vodka or tequila in the freezer then there is pretty much no chance it’ll freeze. Instead, it will go super cold and may thicken ever so slightly. If you enjoy your spirits cold then get them in the freezer.

How to Freeze Alcohol Popsicles

Before you go about freezing your alcohol ice lollies or popsicles, you’re going to need an ice lolly mould. This will make the process far easier:

Once you’ve got a suitable ice lolly mould, you can get to work on creating your ice lollies packed with alcohol:

  1. Pick Your Spirit: First, choose your spirit. Most clear spirits will work well here such as gin, tequila or vodka.
  2. Mix with Water: You now want to mix 1 part of your spirit with 5 parts of another liquid. You could try lemonade, sparkling water or even cola. You can add a few other flavourings. You can try cordials, slices of fruit or mint leaves. White rum, lime juice and mint leaves give you mojito vibes.
  3. Fill Your Moulds: Fill you ice lolly moulds – they’ll usually have a fill line giving you an indication on where to fill them to.
  4. Freeze: Place them in the freezer and enjoy!
Freeze Alcohol Popsicles

How to Freeze Alcohol Soak Fruit

Freezing fruit that’s soaked in alcohol is actually pretty straightforward. Thanks to the water content of most fruit, they’ll still freeze well even when soaked in a spirit of your choosing.

One adult treat that works wonders is soaking blueberries in vodka, then freezing them. They make a great garnish for a cocktail.

The other reason you may want to soak your fruit is for a fruit or Christmas cake. Soak your dried fruit as your normally would then place it in a ziplock bag and place it in the freezer.

You’ll find the fruit won’t completely freeze but placing it in the freezer will preserve it further so you have ready-soaked fruit you can use.

How Long Can You Freeze Alcohol?

You won’t want to leave your alcohol in the freezer for too long as it can ruin the consistency. With spirits, try and use them within a month. With beer, as mentioned previously, only leave them in the freezer for up to an hour to get them super cold.

How Do You Defrost Alcohol?

If you’re putting alcohol in the freezer then it’s probably because you either want it incredibly cold or you’ve made ice lollies, both of which don’t actually require any defrosting. So remove from the freezer and enjoy!

Does Alcohol Freeze Well?

It doesn’t freeze well at all. The only exception is when you freeze beer and some low-alcohol wines. If you leave them in the freezer for too long then they will turn slushy and that’s not what you want from your alcohol either.

Related FAQs

If you’ve still got questions about freezing alcohol or alcohol in general, then these may help:

Can Alcohol Freeze When Mixed With Water?

You can mix alcohol with water and it will freeze. If you’re freezing a spirit then you’ll want around 1 part alcohol to 5 parts water to get it to freeze solid. This is the only way to truly get it to freeze.

Can You Freeze Alcohol Into Ice Cubes?

You certainly can. You can do so using the popsicle method we’ve used above. You simply need to mix your chosen alcohol with 5 parts of another liquid. Try water, soda water, lemonade or cola. Then pour into your ice cube tray.

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