Well, not really discovered - I always knew it was there, but I just didn't really look at it too much. I picked it up sometime in the Winter of 2004 during a conference at a local hotel. Nowhere on the packaging does it say "Refrigerate", so I didn't. The first month, I meant to drink it, but after that I didn't know if it was good anymore. Now that it's October, a coworker of mine said I should call them and find out if it's still good to drink. That's exactly what I did.
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When I called the number I was put through to the voicemail of a woman named Jenny Bailey. I left a message saying that I had a 10 oz. plastic bottle of orange juice and would like to know if I could still drink it. She called me back the next day, but I was not at my desk when the call came through. She left a message stating that if I could provide her with the lot number printed on the shoulder of the bottle, then she could tell me when the shelf life expired.
Two days later, I remembered to call the 800 number again and this time I got Sonya who looked up the lot number and informed me that my orange juice was packaged on November 10, 2003. The shelf life on the TreeTop orange juice in plastic bottles is six months, she explained. She suspected (correctly) that the orange juice had started to turn brown, but went on to assure me that it was perfectly safe for me to open it and take a sip to test the flavor. I declined.According to Sonya from TreeTop, the orange juice's shelf life is determined by how long the juice will keep it's fresh look and flavor. TreeTop claims six months for their orange juice because in their studies after six months the orange juice begins to change colors due to oxidation (not bacteria cultures). The orange juice is perfectly safe to drink due to the pasteurization process, but after it changes color, it loses a great deal of its flavor. Sonya also told me that there is probably no nutritional content in my beverage anymore.
Since my curiosity was piqued, I asked if refrigerating the orange juice would have been a smart thing to do. She said that refrigerating the orange juice would definitely prolong its shelf life. Since my bottle was prepared for unrefrigerated storage, placing it in refrigeration would probably extend its life for much more than a year. Surely, had I refrigerated, the beverage would look and taste much as it would have in February when it entered my possession. Sonya also mentioned that once an orange juice product is opened, it should be stored in the refrigerator for no more than a week before being finished or disposed of.
Now I'm just contemplating whether or not I should taste this brown juice.
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--Karan
karanmisra.com
-Dranore
I mean, I really like your blog, and want you to keep writing it, so I'm on the fence about you drinking more than a sip - I don't want anything bad to happen to you. They could always be wrong over at Tree Top, right?
Besides, who wants to drink orange juice that's brown and has lots its flavor and nutritional value? If you wanted to do that, you could add food coloring to orange soda and let it go flat.
It would be interesting to repeat the expirament with three bottles: a control on your desk, a bottle in a thick brown paper bag (or other opaque container) and a third in the fridge. I'm willing to bet that light is at least partially responsible for the degredation.
I think of Winter of 2004 as starting on Dec. 22, 2003 and ending March 20, 2004. To assign that winter to year 2003 seems "unfair" to 2004 as only 9 days occurred in 2003.
re: Tasting the OJ
My wife says that I should keep it around longer to see what happens to it and how dark it's going to get. Then call TreeTop again before taking a sip. I haven't decided yet...
re: Oxidation and Light
After TreeTop informed me that the darkening color was due to oxidation, I knew it had to do with light and wished I had more bottles to do some tests. Oh well.
i would encourage you to at least take a little sip,
be sure to post your results!
i once had a carton of apple juice which was left for a similar period of time, took a taste one day..apple cider!!
Come on man, what's your price?
come on man... do it, you know you want to (most compelling argument known to man)
BTW, found you through /. , great site, I like the recepie layout
Hehe...if I were u...i'd taste it. Most prolly coz im one of those ppl still in uni and willing to do crazy things. Hehe :P
Personally, i've tasted an opened OJ left in the fridge for god-knows how many weeks. I saw it in my fren's fridge - he's living alone, bachelor boy - and asked if i could drink. As i wuz really thirsty, i poured myself a glass and took a hearty mouthfull. It tasted like beer....fermented orange juice...only then did dat fren of mine mention that he's not sure how long it's been thr...prolly 3-4 weeks. WTH?!?! hahaha....
But since urs is upopen...i bet it wouldnt taste as weird so try it....or mail it to me and I'll taste it for u...by the time it gets here (Malaysia in South East Asia) it'll probably be blacker than before. LOL!!
- CoCoNuT^iCe
http://coconutice.blogspot.com
V O D K A
Vodka and OJ. Drink half the bottle of Vodka and then mix the OJ with the other half.
Weeeeee
-gage
Michael
First off, don't taste the OJ... Euwwe! Gross! I guess if you have to do it because you feel you're missing out on life for some insane reason, go for it. Second, I loved your article *grin*, and was inspired, so I found this site which explains what exactly food "packed dates", "sell-by-dates", "best-if-used-by-dates", and just everything you ever wanted to know about shelf life of foods, and all the factors that affect quality of foods (exciting stuff I know! *grin*). I'll be sleeping well tonight that's for sure. It's: [code:1:4b954f7854]http://www.ces.uga.edu/pubcd/b914-w.html[/code:1:4b954f7854]. (Update: March 30, 2007 - The URL no longer works.)
Anyway, what I would do..... which I think would be neat, is... it took sooo long to get your orange juice that way. Why not look up a bacteria/yeast/ other microbe that can use that as a food source and then order some, and then feed that stuff to it. Look for one that produces some interesting end products, and maybe use it to fuel something, power your train set or something for really cheap. Then you can start buying predator ones that eat those and produce different end products, and so on. Then maybe somewhere along the way make some really "interesting" tasting bread or alcohol. You can have like 20+ generations (like an army) in like 24 hours.
Anyway, enjoyed your article, and got a real laugh out of it. Thanx,
Cheers,
-Ellen *grin*
#E1950B - #955700 = #4C3E0B
or, wait until you have a friend over for a movie. Make lots of salty popcorn. When they ask for something to drink, say, "Do you like orange juice? It is all I have."
Once the orange juice has been opened, it no longer has an indefinite shelf life and should be refrigerated. That OJ spent the night at bacteria and microbe producing temperatures and if you drank out of the container previously, then a culture of bacteria has been introduced into a sugar and water rich environment....
On the label was written the words 'Improved Taste'. They weren't kidding - it was still pretty good.
Of course I have been told by some people I use to work with that shelf life or dating things is only for America. They tell me that in their countries nothing ever expires. You see, I am fixing to make some lemon pickle and thinking how the spices that were givin to me to make that are now over 10 years old too. Haven't used them in about 10 years either.
Found this web site today and been reading about making mayonnaise, Costco cookware, some test recipes and now old, past shelf life orange juice. Sounds like your juice is not that old, maybe you should take a sip. Mine is in a large juice can, so if I open it, it will have to be finished within a week or perhaps tossed right away.
I must admit though, this is a rather cool cooking web site. :)
Woke up heaving in the middle of the night and having coughing fits, ears ringing, and started heaving heavy. Cough hurts my chest and feels like it is closing in, the taste in my mouth is awful, painfully dry.
Im five months pregnant and when I looked at the bottle again noticed that the expiry date on that container was Dec 24, 2006. Im drinking plenty of milk and sucking on honey, but am worried now due to all the pain and acidicky feeling.
My girlfriend told me that's why you should always look. It's been 21 hours now and I feel like a volcano or dragon, and am worried about the baby.
Woke up heaving in the middle of the night and having coughing fits, ears ringing, and started heaving heavy. Cough hurts my chest and feels like it is closing in, the taste in my mouth is awful, painfully dry.
Im five months pregnant and when I looked at the bottle again noticed that the expiry date on that container was Dec 24, 2006. Im drinking plenty of milk and sucking on honey, but am worried now due to all the pain and acidicky feeling.
My girlfriend told me that's why you should always look. It's been 21 hours now and I feel like a volcano or dragon, and am worried about the baby.
Uhm, try calling Dole. The number should be in the carton. Was this refrigerated orange juice or the shelf stable variety?
Please don't drink opened orange juice that's old. Even if the orange juice is sealed, if it's the refrigerated type (not the shelf stable variety), then you shouldn't drink it past the expiration date.
about 2/3 the way down the page under Frequently Asked Questions About Food Dates and Storage.
Re: old orange juice: While doing major yard work on a very hot day, and having skipped lunch which caused blood sugar, i.e., energy, to drop to zero, I drank some Tropicana in plastic bottles that had turned dark after a year unrefrigerated. No ill effects except in my mind worrying about the sweet juice that had little acid to ward off bacteria.
Like drinking orange flavored acid, this stuff was terrible and suffice to say im still tasting it in my mouth. Now maybe it was fine and Welches is just a disgusting brand of OJ. You think if I left a note I could get my dollar back for getting 2 weeks expired Orange Juice?
Most vending machines have a telephone number on it that you can call. The times that I've had to call, they've always told me how to get my money back.
chefzimz@yahoo.com
Never ran into bad OJ. Shoulda known. Opened up the container (it was a frozen sort, mixed with water eventually) about 2 inches left. I opened it up and it inhaled air. Not a good sign, but smelled it and smelled fine. Poured a glass and gave a good swig. Might as well of drunk some vodka. It would have tasted better. Stung all the way down. 40 minutes later I still taste the aftertaste. Don't think I'm going to bed just yet. Maybe I should just drink half a bottle of newmans own salad dressing. Pull a Carlin.. Ack it got on me by accident aaaaahhhhhhh...!!!!!
It's great. Frmented, and if I want to make it 'healthy' I throw in some psyllium seed powder. To sweeten --admittedly it IS sourish, fizzy--i throw in either sugar or some whey protein powder.
I am convinced that it's STRICTLY for business reasons, rather than health ones, that food has sell-by dates.
For seven years I've operated the Salivation Army frm the local dumpster here in NorCal. Never once been sick.
One of my friends fell ill, from panic. The other guests that night were less prone to panic about pollution issues. I always prepare my guests for the idea of 'orphan food'. See my food blog at phelanfood.com
1. yummy orange orange juice that tastes, smells and pours like orange juice
2. sits on a shelf in the garage for a year - no refrigeration and not being opened - turns brownish and the heavier part of the juice settles to the bottom - looks yucky. After opening, it tastes less like orange juice - just close your eyes and gulp. It's still fine after opening, for a few weeks, without any fermentation. Not very pleasant looking and not real sweet. Just change the way you think about it and it'll be fine - mix with other juices to tone it down.
3. Several weeks have passed, and you'll know when fermentation has occurred, because when you open the top, you hear the fzzzzzzzzzz sound. Tastes like beer. Since I'm not a beer drinker and find it disgusting, am trying to find a recipe that calls for beer or some fermented or fizzy drink in the baking - like a cake or muffin. It will serve the purpose of some liquid and provide some fermentation for the batter, but obviously has no nutritional value at this point. It' s just a matter of trying to make it useful. I'm all for that!
I don't know if the fizzzzz is strong enough to clean out a toilet bowl. Haven't tried that yet.
When I got home today, the orange juice container was gone, and I didn't think much about it, until my daughter tasted the orange juice that was in the pitcher, and asked why it tasted so "funky". My son had made the juice when he got up this morning, thinking that I had left the juice in the sink to thaw out...He had about 16 ounces of the old juice, and he seems to be no worse for it, yet.
Now, the other story. The label story. And this is a true story:
Out drinking one night.
spent night at my brother and sisterin-laws.
got up for a swig of oj cause I was so.ooooo thirsty.
chug-a-lug , and came up for air when I realized it was so salty!
What was it?
HER URINE SAMPLE
Couldn't decide if I should vomit and taste it again or leave well enough alone. Decided I couldn't bear the thought of tasting it again and was glad to learn urine can't hurt you it's just well..... you know....pee (and minerals, water)
It may say OJ on the bottle but it doesn't mean it is OJ!!!
I still have it... it's like a Cooking For Engineers holy relic at this point...
No JK! Its garbage. Throw it away. :-)