shelf life of wine

amymeenieminymo

I've had a cheap bottle of white zinfindel (7 bucks from the grocery store) for about a month or two now, is it still good? I know a lot of fancy's wines are 20+ years old, but this has been opened. I wasn't sure how long it lasts once its opened.

LittleSister

I bet it's still good, as long as its temperature has remained constant. (In other words, as long as it hasn't been in the fridge for awhile, then out of the fridge for awhile, back in the fridge, etc.)

Unopened, it's probably good for 6 - 12 months. In the fridge, it's probably fine for a couple of years!

allibeck

Its usually best consumed the first few days its actually opened. If the flavor has changed negatively afterward (lost the fruity flavor or is vinegary), its probably not the best to drink.

stef_e_b

Just check the flavour. If it tastes fine, then cheers.:drinker:

LittleSister

Opened is another story. Wine is intended to be consumed upon opening. It started to degrade immediately after opening. Even with special airtight seal caps and corks they sell these days, wine really isn't good the next day. Since I always keep a stash of veggie clippings & scraps in the freeze to use to make vegetable stock, if I have leftover wine, I make soup stock and add it to the soup stock & freeze it. It does make a nice addition to soup stocks. (Unless the wine is too sweet, then it's not so good.)

mmnichol

Just check the flavour. If it tastes fine, then cheers.:drinker:

Ditto on this post, you'll know if it turned but that will only happen at room temperature. Most commercial wine has sulfites added to preserve the wine. I'm sure its still fine.