It’s a Wednesday night and you cracked open a bottle of wine. You poured yourself a glass and fell asleep on the couch watching Netflix. How long does wine last opened? Is the rest of that wine still good the next day? Yes! What about the day after? Should be okay! The day after that? Hmmm….test it out. If it still tastes okay to you, then have at it. A week later? Now you’re pushing it.
How long does wine last opened?
Quick answer:
White wine and rose can last up to 3 days after it’s been opened
Red wine can last 4 days after it’s been opened.
Sparkling wine doesn’t last at all without a Champagne stopper and even then, no promises.
An ideal situation is consuming the wine within 48 hours. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to salvage the situation.
What makes wine go bad?
The key to understanding how long can wine last opened is to know what makes wine go bad. The big bad wine destroyer is our friend oxygen. The minute the cork is popped the wine begins to oxidize. Of course, some oxygen is good, that’s why we swirl our glass and decant young wines. But too much oxygen makes wine disintegrate- flavors start to dull, aromas start to fade. White wine will start to go bad faster than red wine. Red wine has tannins which keep it going for as much as two days longer. Drinking wine that’s been open for a while won’t hurt you, it just won’t taste great.
How to keep opened wine fresh as long as possible?
Buy smaller formats
If you’re the only one in your house, or the only one in your house that drinks wine, consider buying smaller bottles of wine. A half bottle, or 375ml, is two and a half glasses. A much more manageable amount of wine for a Wednesday. This is especially valuable advice for sparkling wines that go flat quickly.
Stick a cork in it!
If you know you’re only going to have a glass of wine that night, seal the bottle immediately after you pour and stick it in the fridge, even reds. The cold temperature will slow down the oxygenation. If it’s an expensive wine, consider investing in a Coravin. This contraption allows you to pour out a glass without removing the cork.
Gadgets to help keep opened wine fresh
There are a few wine accessories on the market that will keep a bottle of wine alive for longer once it’s been opened. As you may have guessed, they are gadgets that remove oxygen from the bottle. The most popular and cheapest are the vacuum pumps that work by pumping out the oxygen and creating a tight seal to prevent any oxygen from going in. These will give you another day. Major pro is that they are reusable.
Another option is the inert gases that you spray into the bottle and quickly seal it. Usually argon or nitrogen gas which blankets the wine and fills up the space with the gas and pushes the oxygen out. These work pretty great actually and can give you up to 3 extra days. They aren’t that expensive either.
What to do with leftover wine?
You taste the wine and it’s acidic and the fruit flavors are gone. Now what? The wine didn’t make it, RIP. Now what? There are plenty of options for wine that went bad.
Cook with it
Throw it some pasta sauce or use to marinate meat. Better yet, make a red wine vinaigrette.
Freeze it
If you won’t be cooking for a few days, put the wine in an ice cube tray and store it for later.
Can you keep a secret? Please don’t tell my sommelier friends but I keep a few white wine ice cubes in my freezer at all times. Sometimes I forget to put a bottle of wine in the fridge and it’s too warm and I lack patience. I’ll stick a white wine ice cube in, swirl it around a bit, and then remove it before it melts too much. It’s way better than a regular ice cube because at least it’s not watering down my wine. I hope they don’t take away my somm pin for this confession, but whatever, that shit works.
Make sangria or mulled wine
This is my favorite option. There’s enough sugar, juices, and spices to mask any off flavors in the wine. Sangria can be made with white or red wine. Mulled wine is made from red. Click here for some great wine cocktail recipes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if you drink old wine?
Old wine that has been opened a while will not harm you, it just won’t taste great either. It’s mostly wasted calories. The wine isn’t completely useless. You can use it in a vinaigrette or put it in some pasta sauce.
How do you know wine is bad?
Start with your eyes. Is your white wine now brown wine? Is your red wine now brick colored? These will be indications that the wine is off. Secondly, your nose knows. If you smell a wine and it doesn’t smell good, it’s probably not good. If you smell vinegary smells, the wine has likely gone bad. If the smell doesn’t bother you, or if the smell is flat, then take a small sip. If the wine has lost all of its fruitiness and pep, the wine has likely expired. The wine is not harmful, just not near its potential.
How long does Prosecco last once opened?
Prosecco will only last a few hours once it’s been opened. It needs to be consumed quickly or all the carbonation will escape. You can keep Prosecco bubbly a little longer with the use of a Champagne stopper but it will be flat after 24 hours.
