Fake Alcohol

[-SharonA-]

With this being in the news recently, a recent bottle of vodka which I kept in the freezer completely froze solid. Every time I wanted a drink I had to run the bottle under cold water and vodka came out in ice slivers.
My friend tells me this was a fake vodka as vodka does not freeze. Was she right???

[-Talbot-]

Not in your domestic freezer

[-SharonA-]

Yes, in my domestic freezer.

[Old_Geezer]

The freezing point of 80 proof vodka is -26.95 C or -16.51 F.

Maybe it's vodka plus something ?

[-Talbot-]

Vodka will not freeze in your domestic freezer

[hc4361]

Is it a bottle of Absolut? There is reports of that freezing in a domestic freezer but generally vodka should not freeze.

[-Talbot-]

[-SharonA-]

Mine was Smirnoff. Since I've switched to Belvedere.

[hc4361]

https://contact.absolut.com/org/absolut-vodka/d/frozen-vodka-1/

[Bazile]

Is other stuff freezing in your fridge ?

[Baldric]

The OP does say "which I kept in the freezer" if that helps.

[-Talbot-]

What temp have you got your freezer set at, Sharon?

[IJKLM]

Ethanol (pure alcohol) freezes at -114.1 °C

Water freezes at 0°C

While a mixture of alcohol and water will freeze, it has to be quite dilute. When yu put an alcoholic drink inthe freezer, the dilute fraction freezes. The remaining liquid is much richer in alcohol and less rich in water.


If the whole thing freezes solid, then there is very little ethanol in there.

I leave bottles of vodka (acquired from friends in Poland) in the freezer. It does not freeze solid.

In fact, one way or purifying dilute alcohol is to cool it until part of it freezes and pour off the (more contentrated) alcohol, leaving behind the less-alcoholic stuff.

This is equivalent to distilling (strictly, it is fractional freezing), but happens at the freezing point, rather than the boiling point. I believe it was seen as a way of getting around laws that prohibit distilling of alcoholic beverages.

[gingejbee]

Standard vodka (37.5 or 40% alcohol by volume) doesn't freeze at minus 18C....or even lower. In Siberia, they keep their vodka outside on a window-ledge to keep it very cold...and it doesn't freeze.

[-SharonA-]

My freezer temp is on 3 and other stuff freezing as normal. My fridge/freezer is a whirlpool.

[Canary42]

Sounds like your friend was right.

[gingejbee]

"Maybe it's vodka plus something?".......or, more likely
maybe it's vodka minus something.....much of the alcohol?