How Long to Keep an Open Bottle of Wine

A good guideline to follow is the 3-day rule. 95% of your wines will keep for about that long. Different conditions can change this and the shelf-life on bottles can differ, but it is a good rule of hand.

After you open and drink your wine you can and most often should close it tightly and refrigerate it until you are ready to serve it again. There are a bunch of different stoppers, pumps and gadgets out there you can use to try to increase the life of your wine. Some work better than others. I like to use a vacuum pump. The pump forces out the oxygen to keep the wine in a more air-tight environment.

As time goes by oxygen gets into the wine and slowly starts to destroy the characteristics we prize such as aroma will change and the fruit flavors will begin to subside. This is called oxidation. If you have ever tasted a wine that had a strong sherry characteristic to it - this is oxidation.

So, don't tempt fate. Stick to the 3-day rule. Recork and refrigerate the bottle for up to three days. With red wines, pull the wine out of the fridge at least 1/2 hour before you want to use it.so it will warm to a desirable serving temperature in the mid 60's F. With white wines or roses, just pull and pour when you need them.

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