Why is that that liquor is stored in liquor cabinets without any refridgeration while beer is fridgerated?

People store liquor in liquor cabinets and add ice during consumption. Why don't they just put it in the fridge? like they do with beer? Does it affect taste? or is there some kind of chemical imbalance if it does happen?

Public Comments

1. it is due to the sugar content in beer this is why alcopops etc also have to refrigerated even though they contain hard liquor.
2. It has to do - mostly - with the alcohol content. Beer only has around 5% alcohol, give or take a few pct points, depending on the brew. But liquor usually has about 40% alcohol. So there's no need to keep it refrigerated, it doesn't spoil like beer will. And also, ice, like you say, most people don't want to water down their beer with ice, whereas liquor is usually mixed down with all kinds of godknowswhats.
3. It has to do with the amount of alcohol in the product. Alcohol is a natural preservative, so items with high alcohol content don't NEED to be refrigerated. You add ice to either mask or enhance the taste. (ask a Scotts Whiskey person how they like their scotch and why) Beer is low in alcohol because of the way is made, brewed and fermented. By law anything with beer ingredients that has over 5.2% alcohol must be called a "Malt Liquor". The yeast in beer is left to ferment for a few days at most. In wine it is left to ferment until the yeast die of gas poisoning (14% alcohol level kills yeast) The liquor that is measured in "Proof" (twice the alcohol percentage by volume) has been distilled. Distillation is a process in which the water is boiled off leaving the pure alcohol behind, it's much more complicated than this but that is the gist. Anything over 10% alcohol has enough alcohol in it to keep it from going bad or turning to vinegar. Beer that is not kept cold (52 deg F. or lower) will go bad and this is called "skunky beer".
4. because ppl put ice in their mixed drinks, but not in beer
5. I don't know but I prefer my drinks cold...taking a shot of cold vodka goes down so much easier than room temp vodka!
6. Its very common to keep a bottle of vodka in the freezer. Personally i'm a beer and bourbon drinker - i prefer my beer cold straight from the fridge and i drink bourbon with ice. Partly because i have a drink dispenser which wouldn't fit in the fridge - but there is something about the process of putting the ice in the glass pouring over the bourbon and hearing the cracking before you add the coke. I can't really taste the difference between iced and uniced bourbon but it just comes down to personal taste. My partner puts ice in anything he drinks even if its out of the fridge. Except Beer. You don't put ice in beer - its would be like drinking a shandy (no point)
7. To be honest, it has to do with personal preference. Everyone that is saying it has to do with alcohol content isn't exactly correct. Red and white wines have a slightly higher alcohol content to beer but not as high as liquor, yet you only chill white wine. Red wine is served room temperature. Vodka, and liquors such as Jaggermeister are commonly kept in the freezer. Somehow in the US it became the norm to serve beer ice cold. If you go to Europe, a lot of the beer is served room temperature. You can store beer at room temperature, stores like Trader Joes sell it that way. Most beer is stored chilled because you don't want watered down beer by adding ice., and it takes a long time to wait for it to cool. Most people store it in the fridge for convenience.