How long does unopened wine "keep"?

LittleSister

Having some friends over this afternoon, and I'm eyeing a couple bottles of wine of indeterminant age in my cupboard. It hasn't been stored properly (as in it's been standing upright instead of angled or on the sides). I'm pretty sure they may be as old as 2 years.

I'm thinking to pick up a couple of bottles today instead of risking it, but thought I'd see if anyone has anything thoughts. By the way, this isn't fine wine that benefits from long term aging. This is the $25/bottle stuff that has a lifespan.

Thanks!

tehboxingkitteh

Sorry, OP. I never let wine sit around; I always put it to good use immediately.

Ainar

If you store it incorrectly air can access to it and it will go bad, that's why they keep it on side and in right humidity, so cork won't dry out and air would not get in bottle. It depends if your wine is good or not. Maybe it's ok if room temperature and humidity was decent. In really bad one it can go bad in weeks. In good one it can still stay good for years even if bottle is not sideways. So it depends how much air has gotten in, if any. Only way you can find out is by opening. ^^

Jonesingmucho

I vote for drinking it!

Most table wines are not supposed to be "cellared". They want to be consumed!
They can last 2-3 years, so u are right at that point.

Drink them. Drink them all this week!
Invite me over and I'll help drink them. I'm a humanitarian.

TropicalFlowerz

Not long if it's in front of me!:laugh: :drinker: :drinker: :drinker:

FatHuMan1

If you store it incorrectly air can access to it and it will go bad, that's why they keep it on side and in right humidity, so cork won't dry out and air would not get in bottle. It depends if your wine is good or not. Maybe it's ok if room temperature and humidity was decent. In really bad one it can go bad in weeks. In good one it can still stay good for years even if bottle is not sideways. So it depends how much air has gotten in, if any. Only way you can find out is by opening. ^^

Pretty much this. Open it and try it. If it's still good you'll still be able to serve it this afternoon, if not you can go get some more before your guests arrive

amcsouth

Not long if it's in front of me!:laugh: :drinker: :drinker: :drinker:

^^ True!! :drinker:

That being said I have discovered a couple bottles of wine in the cupboards that were more than a year old. Some of them were okay, others not. The more expensive wines kept better than the cheaper ones. They were not stored properly (standing up) but were in a cool area. So maybe buy some back-up bottles just in case?

Good Luck!

tammys_changing

Not long if it's in front of me!:laugh: :drinker: :drinker: :drinker:

This exactly. Once it's open, it's a done deal. Lol

cwolfman13

that's kind of like asking how many licks it takes to get to the center of a tootsie pop...the world may never know.

I don't think I've had a bottle of wine sit around for more than a couple months tops if it's a nicer bottle. My wife and I easily go through several bottles of wine in a week...

I vote to just open it up and give it a try. If it's not good then you can go get a new bottle or two.

Greywalk

whites normally last 7 years reds can go as high as 25 before they drift far from their designed taste.

LittleSister

Thanks everyone!!

Well, we chickened out & bought some bottles of good wine for the party. The old bottles are still there. Hubby says we'll just open them ourselves & if they're nasty, we'll dump them.