The Auswine Forum

Hi everyone,
I'm very new to wines and don't know an awful lot. I bought a muscat from a winery outside fo Daylesford in Victoria (Big Shed) which was amzing when i tasted it.
I haven't opened the bottle yet because I'm not sure if it's like ordinary wines - does it go off after it's been opened? Should I store it at a particular temperature or anything? Or can I drink a little a at a time and recork it without worry?

Sorry if these are silly questions, like I said I'm very new and know just about nothing about wines!

Thanks for your help!
CasperTG

Hi Casper

I have covered this topic fairly recently in my Wine Appreciation course (Highly recommended... contact your local Wine Industry Centre).

Most Australian fortifieds like Muscats and Tokays are a blend of old (sometimes very old) and younger base wines, designed to taste good pretty much at the time of bottling. The big exception is Vintage Port, which is generally designed to mature in bottle for a very long time.
Depending on the blend, you will lose some balancing freshness after between a few months (at the fino sherry end of the fortified spectrum) and a couple of years storage. Of course, some people may prefer that more mature taste, but it may not be what the winemaker intended for you to enjoy.

As to having a bit and re-corking for later, once again you will most likely notice a drop in freshness after as little as a couple of days, perhaps a couple of weeks at the most. It probably will not go "off", though, for several months, depending on the blend.

I guess that is one of the reasons for having half bottles!

Cheers

As my handle may indicate,to the observant,I like a drop or two of the 'ol Muscat. I have found that it really does not go off even after an extended time,eg. several months.
I have even found that some of the lesser Muscats can actually improve with time in a bottle after being opened. It is,I must emphasize,a matter of personal taste.
MM.
PS - If you like Muscat, you should also try Rutherglen Tokays.

Thought I was in automatically.
Muscat Mike.

Mike

I used to suffer from that a lot too, but mostly when I was younger

Btw, Hi to everyone.

[quote="CasperTG"]

>> I bought a muscat from a winery outside fo Daylesford in Victoria (Big Shed) which was amazing when i tasted it.

for one thing, i wouldn't stick it in the cupboard above the deep fryer mate! otherwise it keeps fine but don't wait until you have alzheimers to forget it.

i had a 1983 Taminick[Rutherglen] Muscat recently and it blew everybody away. incredibly fragrant, looked and tasted like strawberries with a surprising lightness upon the palate. delightful after dinner, a little went a long way.

Rutherglen fortifieds are world class wines and still relatively cheap. I cringe every time a new Parker Australian edition comes out because he's giving them huge points which can only waken the US to these treasures.

Drink up whilst you can afford to!