I store mine in amber glass bottles, and spray a bit of "Endust" into the bottle before putting the cap on if the bottle isn't full. I store it in my bedroom, and we keep the house fairly cool (68F-75F). I have repeatedly used it for up to 12 months without any problems.
I just do a simple and quick "clip test" with a clip of the film from the leader. (Develop it for roughly the regular dev time for that film, then fix it. I fix it along side with a clip of the film that was not developed. After fixing, the developed clip should be completely black, and the non-developed clip should be clear. I think there are more accurate, precise ways to do a clip test, but this is quick and easy, and so far has been sufficient to verify that xtol has not died on me.)