How long will a tincture of echinacea stay good?

Question

It was opened 2 years ago and the expiration date is 9/09. It has been stored in a dark cool pantry.

Thank you!

Answer 1

It's fine if it is an alcohol extract, and most of them are. If it is a glycerite, it will be labelled "alcohol free" and will have lost some of it's potency but not much. I read a doctor's report once where he tested an alcohol extract of Echinacea that still had its potency after 10 years.

Answer 2

Indefinitely.  The only downside is that sometimes people leave the rubber stoppers on the tincture bottles and the herb(s) and the alcohol will degrade the rubber stoppers over time.  So if you're going to keep a bottle of tincture around for more than a year, take the stoppers out and find something more stable to close the bottle with--a small cork and wax, if you can find nothing else.  If you've made tinctures in Ball Jars or other canning jars, please know the same thing can happen to the metal and rubber rings, so check them from time to time.  Tinctures are like brandies, wines and liquers--highly shelf stable, and they only improve over time.

Answer 3

They (all tinctures) usually stay good for 1 year after the expiry date...