Yes, refrigerate an opened jar of standard supermarket maraschino cherries. An unopened jar stays in the pantry, and cocktail cherries such as Luxardo may carry different wording. Below: what each label says, what to do after a party, and what to do if the syrup crystallizes.
Do maraschino cherries need to be refrigerated?
The Short Answer
Yes, after opening, for standard supermarket jars. Store-brand labels and Tillen Farms say to refrigerate after opening, and we recommend it. Keep unopened jars in a cool, dry pantry, and the store labels say 40 to 80°F. Storage wording can differ for cocktail cherries such as Luxardo, so the instructions on your own jar should control. General canned-fruit guidance also points to the fridge after opening, but it isn’t a maraschino-specific rule.
For a complete pantry storage reference, see our Food Storage Guide. For the full shelf-life timeline, see our guide on whether maraschino cherries go bad.
Do Maraschino Cherries Need to Be Refrigerated: At a Glance
Unopened jar
No. Cool, dry place. Store-brand labels say 40 to 80°F
Opened, standard supermarket jar
Yes. Store-brand labels say refrigerate after opening
Opened, Tillen Farms
Yes. Refrigerate after opening and serve cold
Opened, Luxardo
Follow your jar’s label. One retailer’s listing advises a closed jar in a cool, dry place
Luxardo 6.6 lb jar
A distributor’s sheet says not to refrigerate. Cold may crystallize the syrup
Left out at a party
We found no source. We’d put the jar back in the fridge afterward
Fridge outage
FoodSafety.gov’s outage chart says keep opened canned fruit and candied fruits. It doesn’t name cherries
Freezing
One retailer’s listing of Luxardo’s label says no. We found no guidance for standard jars
Key Takeaways
Yes, refrigerate an opened jar of standard supermarket maraschino cherries. Giant’s and Best Choice’s store-brand labels both say to refrigerate after opening, and Tillen Farms says the same for its cherries.
Unopened jars don’t need the fridge. Both store-brand labels say to keep them in a cool, dry place at 40 to 80°F.
Some Luxardo materials differ from standard supermarket labels. A distributor’s sheet for the 6.6 lb jar says not to refrigerate, because cold may crystallize the syrup. A retailer’s listing for the 400 g jar advises a closed jar in a cool, dry place and no freezing. Luxardo’s own sheet gives no storage instruction, so check your jar.
General canned-fruit guidance also points to the fridge after opening, in NDSU Extension’s guide and a Wyoming Department of Health chart based on USDA’s FoodKeeper. That isn’t a maraschino-specific rule, and neither names maraschino cherries.
Follow your own label if it differs. We did not locate an authoritative timeframe for how long an opened jar lasts, and our shelf-life guide covers what we found.
Which Maraschino Cherries Do You Have?
Bright red supermarket jars, naturally colored cherries and Luxardo-style co
