Wine - The Days After

[Chuck]

Hi all,

Have read many times of tasting note for wines left for a day or so after opening. Some say they get better however I have found, particularly for reds, they tend to lose primary fruit flavours. Is there any science here? I keep mine in the fridge. Is this OK or is it better to leave them out?

Grasshopper

[Nick]

Hi Chuck

I asked a similar question of the forum last week - the attached thread should give you a few answers:

http://forum.auswine.com.au/viewtopic.php?t=4968

Cheers
Nick

[D.I]

Hi
I try to give you the principle of oxidation - the cooler the wine the more oxidation it will absorbed. So basically it is not recommended to leave an open bottle in the refrig.
The vacuum rubber seal is very useful to reduce the amount of oxygen in the bottle.
I recommend sealing the battle with the vacuum rubber sealer and then keeping it in a dark place with room temperature.

[griff]

Just speaking from a pharmacy point of view. We are actually taught that oxidation INCREASES at a HIGHER temperature. This is actually taken advantage of while testing shelf-life of products. By testing the product at a higher temperature we can reduce the amount of time we need to test for. Very important if you want a long expiry date. Can't wait three years for the results to come in!

Needless to say, I keep my opened wine in the fridge. I even keep opened aromatic spirits such as an older cognac in the fridge as they also ondergo degradation

[GRB]

I think the term oxidation is being confused with the desolving of the oxigen gas into the liquid which will in fact increase at a lower temp. This does not mean the oxigen will react with the other chemicals in the wine causing them to oxidise. This will of cause decrease with the drop in temp hence the reason cellars are cool.

Glen

[TORB]

Hi
I try to give you the principle of oxidation - the cooler the wine the more oxidation it will absorbed. So basically it is not recommended to leave an open bottle in the refrig.
The vacuum rubber seal is very useful to reduce the amount of oxygen in the bottle.
I recommend sealing the battle with the vacuum rubber sealer and then keeping it in a dark place with room temperature.

This is in direct contradiction to my experience.

I have found that keeping an opened bottle in the fridge, ideally in a 375 ml bottle so there is less air, and sealed with a cork is the best method.

If you believe some winemakers, the vinvac actually removed some volatiles and the process is more harmful than helpful.

[Wizz]

A cooler liquid will absorb more oxygen into solution, but I think the bigger issue is that at the lower temperatures all chemical reactions slow down.

I put half finished bottles in the fridge all the time but I do replace the cork, limiting the amount of oxygen exposure. The 375ml bottle is an even better idea. Didnt someone do tests on this and conclude the small bottle in the fridge was the best method for storage for a day or two?

AB

[camw]

I have found that keeping an opened bottle in the fridge, ideally in a 375 ml bottle so there is less air, and sealed with a cork is the best method.

Why a cork rather than a screwcap Ric?

[TORB]

Cam,

Once open, a screwcap does not stop air getting into the bottle, a tight cork does a much better job. Just make sure it does not touch the wine (due to possible TCA.)

[D.I]

I believe that a battle of wine that has been opened need to be finish. But now we are dealing with the best of the worth, we all believe that a battle that has been opened start to die, what we are dealing now is how to slow that dieing process. And on the other hand we don’t want that the process to slow down the dieing of the wine will be hard and expensive.
By using a vinvac we remove some o the volatile acid and some of the aroma but for the long term it is less damage then expose the wine to huge amount of oxidant.
I can sagest another technic that I found as very effective - my suggestion is to use a bottle of mineral water (small one) fill in the "left over" wine, squeeze the battle until the wine rich the top then close the screw cork, and because there is no oxygen in that battle we can keep it in the refrig for short time with less damage then the other techniques

[Chuck]

Hi all,

Thank you for your posts; a lively intellectual discussion, but it does not address the issue of why, according to many posters, wine can taste better the next day. Can oxygenation improve a wine in the very short term or are there other factors in play?

Grasshopper

[underwraps50]

I don't think I have ever found an opened wine to be better the next day. I can only think that maybe a fresh palate is the reason.
I find that the older the wine the poorer it tastes the next day and with old reds, I even notice the difference over the course of the evening. Am I imagining this?

[simm]

A cooler liquid will absorb more oxygen into solution, but I think the bigger issue is that at the lower temperatures all chemical reactions slow down.

I put half finished bottles in the fridge all the time but I do replace the cork, limiting the amount of oxygen exposure. The 375ml bottle is an even better idea. Didnt someone do tests on this and conclude the small bottle in the fridge was the best method for storage for a day or two?

AB

Wasn't that only if you had opened a 750ml drunk some and then filled the rest in to the very top of a vacumpumped 375ml?

I don't think I have ever found an opened wine to be better the next day. I can only think that maybe a fresh palate is the reason.
I find that the older the wine the poorer it tastes the next day and with old reds, I even notice the difference over the course of the evening. Am I imagining this?

I think so. Of course there are some wines that will not take 24 hrs (particularly the drink now end of the spectrum) and other that may demand it , especially if they are new releases. I have recently been giving Australian 03 and 04 Pinot Noirs up to 6+ hr decant before they are even showing signs of opening up, so you can imagine what a younger, tighter Bordeaux is going need. It's all relative.

Cam,

Once open, a screwcap does not stop air getting into the bottle, a tight cork does a much better job. Just make sure it does not touch the wine (due to possible TCA.)

How short a time does it take for TCA to make an affect. Surely it isn't that quick?

[TORB]

How short a time does it take for TCA to make an affect. Surely it isn't that quick?

Hi Simm,

I don't like taking chances. When I was in MR, a wine that had been bottled on Thursday was opened on Saturday morning and it was rank with TCA.

[Craig(NZ)]

Not always possible but i usually just dont open a bottle unless i know it will be empty by the end of the night - this is especially the case for flash bottles

However I have been known to open a cheapie with express purpose of lasting 2 or 3 nights in which case i refrigerate

Boozy nights with Ross, Adair and the likes seem to be the only time we have left overs of good wine from wanting to 'try' so many bottles!