Bourbon in the bottle is getting low...Seems weaker?

[Mr. Bourbon]

I know as air gets more into the bottle, It will slowly decrease the taste, But will also decrease the Alcohol content?

I'm sipping some Makers Mark right now, I've had a few ounces and I usually feel a little funny by then.

It seems when then bourbon is low in the bottle that I don't feel the need to add water to it, When it's a fresh bottle it tastes and smells much stronger.

I assume many have experienced the same thing?

[TunnelTiger]

I know as air gets more into the bottle, It will slowly decrease the taste, But will also decrease the Alcohol content?

I'm sipping some Makers Mark right now, I've had a few ounces and I usually feel a little funny by then.

It seems when then bourbon is low in the bottle that I don't feel the need to add water to it, When it's a fresh bottle it tastes and smells much stronger.

I assume many have experienced the same thing?

Nope, nada, never ever noticed that before.

[Richnimrod]

I've not noticed it; but with my iron palate, it'd probably have to change a bunch for me to notice.

It does stand to reason that as the space in the bottle increases, the more aromatic elements would be susceptible to greater evaporation. Does anybody with actual scientific expertise have a definitive statement about this?

[squire]

My decidedly unscientific approach is to finish off the bottle before the contents have a chance to change. Its my first opened first consumed rule.

[Mr. Bourbon]

My decidedly unscientific approach is to finish off the bottle before the contents have a chance to change. Its my first opened first consumed rule.

I never open another bottle until an opened one is finished!

I could have been the glass I was using, I'm not quite sure.

I think a Glencairn is the next step.

[squire]

When you think about it the bottle is glass.

[Harry in WashDC]

Try this formula for the rate of alcohol evaporation from a glass created by some persons at UNC-Wilmington. (The formula, not the glass, is what they created.)

http://people.uncw.edu/lugo/mcp/diff_eq/deproj/alevap/alevap.htm

I've never noticed whether the taste changes over time (other than due to food, aeration in the glass, added ice, etc.). BUT, I've never left the top off a bottle more than an hour or so and don't think I've ever had an opened bottle of bourbon last more than a couple months. Unless it was a REAL clunker in which case it won't last more than a year.

[Paddy]

I think that what changes is my palate. A freshly opened bottle is like a new girlfriend. They are all similar in many ways, but each have their nuances....some subtle, some not so subtle. After a little time with her we figure our way around and determine what we like vs what we don't.

Once you reach this point, one can make the call on whether the relationship is worthy of continuance. I seem to find something to like in just about anything, once I figure out how to get it to go where I want it to. They don't really change as much as we (and our perception of them) do.

[Mr. Bourbon]

Try this formula for the rate of alcohol evaporation from a glass created by some persons at UNC-Wilmington. (The formula, not the glass, is what they created.)

http://people.uncw.edu/lugo/mcp/diff_eq/deproj/alevap/alevap.htm

I've never noticed whether the taste changes over time (other than due to food, aeration in the glass, added ice, etc.). BUT, I've never left the top off a bottle more than an hour or so and don't think I've ever had an opened bottle of bourbon last more than a couple months. Unless it was a REAL clunker in which case it won't last more than a year.

That's quite an interesting read!