How to store Burgundy wine?

[DoYouKubuntu]

Okay, I don't drink. However, I do occasionally use wine, usually Burgundy, in cooking. I just bought a bottle for the first time in a long time--and it's MUCH bigger than I expected. (I order my groceries online from Vons.) Its quantity is enough to last for more than a year. So my question is, how best to store it? Cool, dark cupboard? Very cold refrigerator? Somewhere else?

And what's the worst that can happen? I mean, it's just for cooking purposes--there are no high-brow wine connoisseurs critiquing it! If I keep it, after it's open, in the fridge for a year...well, what?

[GreyGeek]

You probably know that ethyl alcohol oxidizes to the aldehyde and then to vinegar in the presence of air(Oxygen). And, that the rate of reaction doubles for very 10C above the freezing point of the alcohol-water azeotrope. Also, aromatic oils evaporate off even at refridge temps given enough time and a leaky cork. Sealing the bottle with a waxy cork helps slow down the process. However all that said, wine can keep in cool (not necessarily cold) wine cellars for years if the bottle is sealed well enough. And, for many wines, the older it is the better it is ... to a point. I read somewhere that they opened a bottle of wine brought to the surface from a 17th century galley ship and gave it a try. It was terrible.

[DoYouKubuntu]

I heard about the old--awful--wine, too!

Anyway, once I open the bottle [to use in one of my signature pasta dishes], if I put its screw-on cap back on and put the bottle standing up in the fridge, what should I expect in terms of useful lifespan?

[Qqmike]

Interesting "issue," I'm sure a common question, people not wanting to throw the left-over wine away.

After googling this for awhile, patterns are clear: White wine may last 3 days, red wine 1 day, in frig, standing upright, sealed tight. Some people push this a bit further, like up to a week +/-. That is for drinking. Typical:
http://winefolly.com/tutorial/storing-open-red-wine/
http://www.winemag.com/May-2014/Solv...-Wine-Dilemma/

Vacuum pumps, devices, controversial, but may be a possibility, not inexpensive.

Of course, the issue is the oxidation process leading to vinegar. Taste. To compensate for this, one person adds back in to the recipe some sugar, offsetting any vinegar taste. I don't think so, do you?

Best advice is to drink it. But you don't drink. It's already been around for some days now, right? Is it OK? Can you give it to a neighbor or friend? If the recipient is already drunk, they would not notice any slight vinegar taste

Stumbled across this creative possibility, maybe GreyGeek can assess it chemically: freeze it! Start with an ice cube tray, make the cubes, store the cubes in a ZipLock bag for future cooking uses. Answer #7, last paragraph:
http://cooking.stackexchange.com/que...e-cooking-wine

The idea I have gleaned--if I did a lot of cooking with wine--would be to buy the miniatures, 187 ml:
http://www.onestopwineshop.com/?meth...L-Mini-Bottles

I think it's a good question, but your goal to make it go some months may be pushing it! Unless the frozen wine-cube idea would work. Of course, buying the miniatures is probably the best idea if you are not a wine drinker, even if you had to buy two for a large recipe, they are probably a tad more expense per ml that buying a 750-1.5L bottle on sale, though. I have bought them when in the mood for a quick hit but not in the mood to finish a 750 ml off during the week.

[GreyGeek]

... Stumbled across this creative possibility, maybe GreyGeek can assess it chemically: freeze it! Start with an ice cube tray, make the cubes, store the cubes in a ZipLock bag for future cooking uses. Answer #7, last paragraph:
http://cooking.stackexchange.com/que...e-cooking-wine

....

The freezing point of pure Ethanol is -110C. Water's freezing point is, of course, 0C. Even assuming salts and oils lowers the freezing point of the water component to -5 or 6C water will freeze out leaving an alcohol mixture of 95% Ethanol, the azeotrope, which won't freeze until the temperature drops to -117C or lower. At best a slush is formed or the azeotrope is entrapped in the frozen water as very small bubbles of fluid. Even worse, as water cools it absorbs MORE Oxygen from the air and at about its most dense temperature, 4C, it becomes saturated with O2, even in the refrigerator. Ethanol is an Oxygen scavenger and it will feed on the higher concentration of O2 and turn into Ethyl Aldehyde and then Vinegar. The volatile oils and other components of fermentation will also oxidize as well. By the time the slush is formed, entrained or otherwise, a lot of the alcohol is changed to vinegar. The average refrigerator temperature (not the ice box) is 3.3C to 5.5C. From a room temp of 20C the drop of 15C will drop the reactivity of Oxygen with Ethanol to only about 1/3rd of what it is at 20C. That's why wine doesn't last long in the fridge or the ice box. If a person can't tell the difference between the taste of a freshly opened bottle of good wine and a bottle that has spent a day in the refrigerator they can't appreciate a fine wine.

I agree with Qqmike. Give the partially used bottle of Wine to someone who has never tasted a great wine!

[DoYouKubuntu]

Best advice is to drink it. But you don't drink. It's already been around for some days now, right? Is it OK? Can you give it to a neighbor or friend? If the recipient is already drunk, they would not notice any slight vinegar taste

As of now, it's still unopened.

Stumbled across this creative possibility, maybe GreyGeek can assess it chemically: freeze it! Start with an ice cube tray, make the cubes, store the cubes in a ZipLock bag for future cooking uses. Answer #7, last paragraph:
http://cooking.stackexchange.com/que...e-cooking-wine

This sounds interesting. And promising. I'm going to look into it further.

The idea I have gleaned--if I did a lot of cooking with wine--would be to buy the miniatures, 187 ml:
http://www.onestopwineshop.com/?meth...L-Mini-Bottles

The problem with ordering groceries online is that you're stuck with whatever sizes they happen to offer. I LOVE shopping at Vons.com and am truly grateful for it. It's just like shopping in their supermarkets yourself as far as selection goes; everything is hand-picked from an actual store and delivered to your kitchen. But some products are offered in limited sizes--like the Burgundy I ordered. It was ~$9 for what turned out to be a FOUR LITER bottle! I admit I didn't read the size, but it wouldn't have mattered anyway because I wanted it AND it was the only Burgundy they had available. If I end up tossing most of it, it's not like I lost a fortune on it. It's just that I grew up with Depression-era grandmother and mother, and I feel badly about throwing things away.

I think it's a good question, but your goal to make it go some months may be pushing it! Unless the frozen wine-cube idea would work. Of course, buying the miniatures is probably the best idea if you are not a wine drinker, even if you had to buy two for a large recipe, they are probably a tad more expense per ml that buying a 750-1.5L bottle on sale, though. I have bought them when in the mood for a quick hit but not in the mood to finish a 750 ml off during the week.

See above.

[Qqmike]

It's just that I grew up with Depression-era grandmother and mother, and I feel badly about throwing things away.

Yep, me, too, very superstitious about wasting food or drink.

See GreyGeek's post (above) about (not doing) the wine-ice-cubes.

[DoYouKubuntu]

The freezing point of pure Ethanol is -110C. Water's freezing point is, of course, 0C. Even assuming salts and oils lowers the freezing point of the water component to -5 or 6C water will freeze out leaving an alcohol mixture of 95% Ethanol, the azeotrope, which won't freeze until the temperature drops to -117C or lower. At best a slush is formed or the azeotrope is entrapped in the frozen water as very small bubbles of fluid. Even worse, as water cools it absorbs MORE Oxygen from the air and at about its most dense temperature, 4C, it becomes saturated with O2, even in the refrigerator. Ethanol is an Oxygen scavenger and it will feed on the higher concentration of O2 and turn into Ethyl Aldehyde and then Vinegar. The volatile oils and other components of fermentation will also oxidize as well. By the time the slush is formed, entrained or otherwise, a lot of the alcohol is changed to vinegar. The average refrigerator temperature (not the ice box) is 3.3C to 5.5C. From a room temp of 20C the drop of 15C will drop the reactivity of Oxygen with Ethanol to only about 1/3rd of what it is at 20C.

Oh my goodness...for a moment there, I thought I'd gone back in time some 30 years and was in my General Chemistry class again.

That's why wine doesn't last long in the fridge or the ice box. If a person can't tell the difference between the taste of a freshly opened bottle of good wine and a bottle that has spent a day in the refrigerator they can't appreciate a fine wine.

I agree with Qqmike. Give the partially used bottle of Wine to someone who has never tasted a great wine!

That's what I'll probably end up doing--or just tossing it. Frankly, I think I'll keep it in the fridge--or I may try the ice cube thing--and take a taste the next time I want to use it. I know I've kept Burgundy in the refrigerator for months before and it was fine when used in whatever dishes we put it in. Again, I'm no wine connoisseur, however I think I would know the taste--and smell--of vinegar, and I've definitely never had that happen.

[jlittle]

... It was ~$9 for what turned out to be a FOUR LITER bottle!

IMO, toss it all now. Don't imagine anyone drinking it. I presume you have taxes on alcohol; maybe it's so bad that it's considered denatured, and has less tax. Was it sold expressly for cooking purposes?

[mparillo]

But some products are offered in limited sizes--like the Burgundy I ordered. It was ~$9 for what turned out to be a FOUR LITER bottle!

At that price, it may have been cooking wine. If so, it is undrinkable because of its high salt content, but it may last a lot longer.

[GreyGeek]

At that price it is like what Red Fox (Stanford and sons) used to call Ripple! ��you can't buy a cheaper drunk than that!
Pure glacial acetic acid (100% vinegar) boils at 118C and freezes at 16C. In a cool room it can appear like slush. When you bake or cook using Wine the alcohol boils off first and if the temp goes above 118C the vinegar follows, leaving behind only the high boiling point aromatics, oils and salts, which is where most of the flavor comes from. Which kind of wine is best for cooking is entirely up to personal taste.

[DoYouKubuntu]

No, it's definitely not cooking wine. In fact, until right now, I hadn't even noticed that its price was a sale price--$5 off. It's Carlo Rossi Burgundy:



Another interesting thing I just noticed: its description [in the screenshot] says to "refrigerate after opening."

[GreyGeek]

I noticed that one of the ingredients is "sulfites". Sulfites, like Nitrites, are Oxygen scavengers. They'll react with Oxygen to form sulfates and nitrates until they are fully oxidized, preserving the alcohol until then. Minimize the pouring time during which the cap is off the bottle and the wine will be preserved for a few days more in the fridge. They also increase the shelf life of the unopened bottle for quite a long time.
Their are drawbacks, however.

[oshunluvr]

I just glanced through the thread since and I'm late here, my comments might be repetition. As a former wine bar owner and wine snob by most definitions, the only thing that allows red wine to last longer than a day or two (in a drinkable state anyway) is to replace the air in the bottle with a heavier gas. The presence of oxygen "ages" the wine rapidly to the point of killing it within a few days for most varietals.

The four things to avoid when storing wine (in order of importance): Air (oxygen), heat, light, movement (vibration).

There's a product called "Private reserve" which you spray into the bottle, then store the bottle up-right, and the heavier gas sits on top the wine preventing further oxidation. The other real negative component in this state is vibration. The bottle must sit in still place, so on top or even near the fridge is a bad location. Although refrigeration will slow the oxidizing process, vibration speeds it up. Using this combo (gassed and still), I've kept good wines for a week or more in a drinkable state. A dark, cool cabinet is the best place.

Finally, since you're just cooking with it, you might consider buying a box wine. The aseptic packaging and lack of introduction of air allow it to keep for a very long time, months even. Personally, I don't cook with Burgundy unless I'm using the whole bottle (minus a glass for the chef ). The Pinot Noir grape is too delicate in stature and too subtle in aroma to have a large impact on the flavor. I prefer a heavier red and just use less of it.

[oshunluvr]

Funny, as here, I find French wines to be considerably cheaper than American wines of the same caliber.

If I were in someplace like, say Amsterdam, I would take a holiday to the Midi-Pyrénées region of France around the last weekend in August and attend the Fronton Wine Festival. 100's of wines to taste for a mere 5€ and open grills of sausage. Stock up on the Négrette blends for hearty reds and you must try the wonderful dry rosés, especially of Château La Colombière (Say hello to Diane for me). Stock up!