Purchasing at estate sales

[DROB]

For those who purchase older bottles, is it generally safe to purchase open bottles from estate sales or should this be avoided?

[Whiskey Dick]

i have a buddy who loves to hit yardsales every saturday. I told him to buy me any sealed bottles he finds. not very often, but its paid off a few times

[CardsandBourbon]

I would be very leery of purchasing an open bottle, unless you knew the person who owned it and they would vouch for it.

[jvd99]

That's nasty.  I wouldn't.  What if the prior owner was swigging it out of the bottle? Then you've gotta ask what the poor fellow died from.  No thanks. 

 

Sealed bottles - all day (but it's not really "legal") 

[fishnbowljoe]

Be careful. Unless they have the proper license, they can't legally sell alcohol regardless of whether it's open or not. I ran into this a few times, once just a few blocks from my house a number of years ago. It was a slightly older home with a great bar/man cave in the basement. I asked if they had any bottles and was told, "We couldn't sell it because of legalities, so we poured out about forty bottles." The other time, the person running the sale said they didn't have any at the auction, but they might have a few things back at their warehouse. Winka Winka. No thanks. Of course there are moving sales and such where you just might find something decent. 

 

Joe

[jvd99]

In all seriousness, most professional estate sale operators will never sell alcohol because their livelihood is on the line.  

[b1gcountry]

Estate sales are weird...I got a garment bag one time for $10, and it had a joint and a condom in the one side pocket. I didn't use either.

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[PaulO]

I would pass any open bottles from people I don't know.  I would probably pass sealed bottles with low fill levels too, unless it's free or I just want the empty botttle.

A side note - My neighbor at a former address (whom I was friends with) told me he left some whiskey by my back door.  At first I thought it was a joke.  Anyway, it was from an older lady he knew; cleaning out her house.  I got an Old Fitz Prime and a Cutty Sark; both from late 1970s and more than half full.  The Scotch and Bourbon both turned out to be just fine.  

[starhopper]

I personally wouldn't unless I could determine within a shadow if a doubt that the cork/seal had never been broken, and  that it has never been stored directly in the sunlight.

[OldFitzWithTheGoldLabel]

Estate sales are weird...I got a garment bag one time for $10, and it had a joint and a condom in the one side pocket. I didn't use either.

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Did you use the garment bag?

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[b1gcountry]

Did you use the garment bag?

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Yes, but it made my clothes smell like cigarettes and I couldn't get the smell out of the bag.

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[OldFitzWithTheGoldLabel]

Yes, but it made my clothes smell like cigarettes and I couldn't get the smell out of the bag.

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That sounds like a Seinfeld episode.

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[smokinjoe]

12 hours ago, DROB said:

 

For those who purchase older bottles, is it generally safe to purchase open bottles from estate sales or should this be avoided?

 

 

[michaelturtle1]

I have bought plenty of opens from estate sales, just don't be stupid about it and I dont really see an issue with it... for example, if you see an open bottle of whiskey in the garage and they have a bar with other opens I at least pop the cap and smell it to see if its whiskey.. also the swigging out of the bottle thing, come on it is alcohol... pretty sure the antiseptic effects will take care of that.

[GaryT]

8 hours ago, michaelturtle1 said:

I have bought plenty of opens from estate sales, just don't be stupid about it and I dont really see an issue with it... for example, if you see an open bottle of whiskey in the garage and they have a bar with other opens I at least pop the cap and smell it to see if its whiskey.. also the swigging out of the bottle thing, come on it is alcohol... pretty sure the antiseptic effects will take care of that.

 

I haven't bought any open bottles, but to Mike's point - if I opened it and could tell that ND OGD smelled exactly like I expect ND OGD - I'm picking it up if they'll let me (and if they've concerns about selling liquor, I'll try the whole "Allow me to ensure a proper disposal for you, so you don't have to have this discussion with anyone else again" story). 

[fishnbowljoe]

FWIW, a few years ago my wife and I stopped at an estate sale just a couple of blocks from our house. It was the last day of the sale, so everything was marked down 30%. Mixed in with all the glassware priced at $1.00 each, were a couple of glass Glencairns. I was a happy camper to say the least. Ya' just can't beat two Glencairns for $1.40 .

 

Cheers! Joe 

[Guest]

I've bought several bottles of booze at Estate sales.  The "use your head" advice is good.  Anything that is open...it's a crapshoot.  Weigh cost / how bad you want it / how lucky you're feeling.  But if it's sealed and the fill level is decent and it's in the basement bar... go for it.  Just don't try to beat that yellow light on the way home.  

[Tony Santana]

11 hours ago, michaelturtle1 said:

I have bought plenty of opens from estate sales, just don't be stupid about it and I dont really see an issue with it... for example, if you see an open bottle of whiskey in the garage and they have a bar with other opens I at least pop the cap and smell it to see if its whiskey.. also the swigging out of the bottle thing, come on it is alcohol... pretty sure the antiseptic effects will take care of that.

 

I like this approach.  I don't go to estate sales, but I wouldn't be afraid of it.  Common sense.

[mbroo5880i]

On 3/9/2017 at 9:29 PM, fishnbowljoe said:

Be careful. Unless they have the proper license, they can't legally sell alcohol regardless of whether it's open or not. I ran into this a few times, once just a few blocks from my house a number of years ago. It was a slightly older home with a great bar/man cave in the basement. I asked if they had any bottles and was told, "We couldn't sell it because of legalities, so we poured out about forty bottles." The other time, the person running the sale said they didn't have any at the auction, but they might have a few things back at their warehouse. Winka Winka. No thanks. Of course there are moving sales and such where you just might find something decent. 

 

Joe

 

I don't know the answer but I was thinking in some states estate auctioneers may be able to obtain an alcohol license.  

 

[smokinjoe]

I don't know, man.  Buying an open bottle...you risk a little wang in it, no? 

 

 

 

[jvd99]

2 hours ago, smokinjoe said:

I don't know, man.  Buying an open bottle...you risk a little wang in it, no? 

 

 

 

That's freakin hilarious!  

 

In Illinois, professional estate sales people are prohibited from selling alcohol under any circumstance.  Whether they do it on the side is a different question, but they probably wouldn't transact with s stranger.  

[Harry in WashDC]

21 hours ago, mbroo5880i said:

 

I don't know the answer but I was thinking in some states estate auctioneers may be able to obtain an alcohol license.  

 

I have some friends who are professional auctioneers in Virginia.  With the appropriate prior approval, they have sold and can sell distilled spirits at an estate sale.  I've asked them about this which is how I heard this story, which I've posted before:  Several years ago, one of them handled an estate sale downstate East of the Potomac River: 1,300+ bottles of Wild Turkey going back several decades - all sealed, all intact - of just about everything WT released.

[OldFitzWithTheGoldLabel]

I don't know, man.  Buying an open bottle...you risk a little wang in it, no? [emoji14]
 

 

Everybody Wang Chung tonight

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[tanstaafl2]

On ‎3‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 7:14 PM, Harry in WashDC said:

I have some friends who are professional auctioneers in Virginia.  With the appropriate prior approval, they have sold and can sell distilled spirits at an estate sale.  I've asked them about this which is how I heard this story, which I've posted before:  Several years ago, one of them handled an estate sale downstate East of the Potomac River: 1,300+ bottles of Wild Turkey going back several decades - all sealed, all intact - of just about everything WT released.

 

Which is why you should open it all and start drinking (and sharing) now!

 

Friends don't let friends bottles end up in estate sales.