SMF

In a local grocery, I stumbled on several bottles of deeeeeeply discounted Humphrey's witch hazel. They are all expired by two years (04/06 is the expiration date on the bottle).

Now, I know that with many shaving products, there is a real expiration date (usually a couple of years after the product is open) and an official expiration date, but I'm having trouble deciding if witch hazel would expire at all. Any opinions?

Thanks and regards,

I'm no expert, but I would put this stuff in the category of "if it looks good and smells good then it probably is good".

Only problem with Humprey's is that it smells like burnt almonds. Other then that it works just great. I always mix it up with some lavender water or rose water.

Jani, yeah, Humphrey's smell ain't all that lovely, but like you, I correct it. I have orange blossom water, rose water, and assorted EOs on hand, so I can come up with a nice range of scents with Humphrey's.

When I went back to the store, there were about 20 new bottles on the shelf and only two of the old ones. All were the same price, and I checked with the manager, who said they have a large quantity in the storeroom. I only bought two bottles. I'm sure it'll still be there when I need it next. And anyway, God help me the day I get Witch Hazel Acquisition Disorder (WHAD?) FWIW, I also bought one of the old ones and smelled it. Smells fine. Used it today, too. No problems so far.

Regards,

I found a bottle of witch hazel in the bathroom that had expired for over 2 years. it smelt right looked right and did a good job on my flared up hemorrhoids . It was in a cabinet and I say if it smells alright, looks alright and still works it is still good !

i recently cleaned out my cabinet where I had two or three bottles of witch hazel, among a bunch of stinky and cheap aftershaves and such. I didn't go by the printed date of expiration, which I presume were on there somewhere. The fact is that the witch hazel I might have had definitely expired when I happily poured them all down the drain. So the answer is yes, it expires.

Although I would expect it to have an expiration date (and I know that the Thayer's bottles have included dates on them for some time now), I have some lemon I purchased several years ago and it's still good. I use a small dollar store travel spray bottle and a large bottle lasts a very long time even when I share it with my wife who uses it in larger quantities than I do daily.

2 years over the expiration date should still be OK. There's nothing really in there to feed bacteria, and witch hazel doesn't exactly make a happy home for them, anyways.

From https://www.humphreysusa.com/#faq
:

www.humphreysusa.com/#faq wrote:Q. How can Humphreys With Hazel be all natural if it contains alcohol?
A. Unlike other astringent products that contain high levels of either synthetic alcohol or isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol), our products contain only natural alcohol derived from grain. This ingredient is used in limited quantities as a natural preservative.

So, it sounds like it needs to be preserved against something.

Radon gas is "all-natural" too. I don't see the importance of a preservative (or any product) being all-natural, unless it has some other useful property.

Interesting discussion. Obviously I have nothing to contribute. However, I greatly enjoy reading and being educated by the information provided by those who do contribute.