Preserving wine, a subject that concerns every wine lover of the better wine. When laying wines in cellars and wine cabinets, the rule is quite simple: the ideal temperature is 12 - 14 degrees Celsius, the humidity 60% -80%, the room must be dark (UV free) and vibration-free. That is the ideal picture, but experience shows that limited deviations are usually not a problem. Too high humidity will affect the labels but will be good for the cork. Too dry is bad for the cork. Too low a temperature results in wines that ripen (too) slowly, too high ensures faster development. Temperatures that are above 20 degrees for a long time cause a rapid decline in quality.
Keeping wine from a bottle that has been opened
Wine in an open bottle oxidizes. Again, such a general rule. On average, wine is still drinkable for 2-3 days, especially if the bottle has been put in the refrigerator. And white wine is "over" faster than red wine.
Products such as Coravin, where wine is sucked up from the bottle through the cork, after which a gas is blown back into the bottle, can extend the shelf life of a bottle up to several weeks while maintaining quality. But such a product is pricey and the gas fillings also cost money.
The do-it-yourself method and free of charge
Fortunately, there is a solution that works almost optimally and costs nothing. The main reason why wine oxidizes is contact with oxygen. And the warmer the wine, the faster this oxidation. So you have to make sure that the wine is kept cooler, a refrigerator is a great method for that. When reopening the bottle, the wine must be taken out of the refrigerator for a while.
But how do you ensure that the wine is no longer in contact with oxygen? It's simple: make sure there is no more oxygen in the bottle. And that can be done by transferring the bottle into a PET bottle that contained water. And then you have to use the version that is easy to squeeze. You pour the wine you have left from the wine bottle into the PET bottle and squeeze it until the wine is just up to the cap. Cap on and ready. There is now no more oxygen in it. And you don't have to worry that the PET bottle will give off flavors or odors to the wine, because it is used for water: a consumer would immediately smell or taste any flavor or scent that would come from such a bottle. And then this bottle would no longer be bought.
Put the bottle in the fridge and you're done. Our experience is that white and red wines were sometimes good to drink for weeks.
