Preservation System?
 

Now we all want to know what is the best method of preserving red wine after
the bottle is opened. Let's say we don't finish the bottle the evening that it
is opened. Normally, the FOLLOWING evening it is still "OK".. But the next
evening after that (48 hours later), normally its gone bad.
There are a few options out there. The gas aerosol containers (that normally
sell for $9). Nitrogen systems (that start at $70). And refrigerating the red
wine and then allowing it to warm up before drinking. And, the vacume pump to
suck out the air.
Anyone have any input as to what they use?
----Ron

Experience with home preservation systems
 

"Cactus888" in ...
> Now we all want to know what is the best method of preserving red wine
after
> the bottle is opened.


As usual this topic has history on the wine newsgroup, from many
perspectives. I find it from 1990 on Google (Craig Gleason article -- he
posted a lot in those days -- under his real name, of course, like most
people for most of newsgroup history) and I recall earlier articles
(remember, only a tiny fraction of the net.wines and, especially,
rec.food.drink wine postings appear in that archive).

I started using Vacu-Vin (tm) vacuum-stopper system regularly 15? years ago
and still keep kits in the trunk (UK boot) of my car, near the highway
flares, en-cas-d'urgence. (Less useful, by the way, than the stack of
disposable spit-cups I also keep in my car. Impromptu or genteel wine
tastings in the US may lack a crachoir or open ground.) I don't use the
Vacu-Vin often these days, more on that presently. (In case it's
unfamiliar, Vacu-Vin is soft synthetic-rubber corks with one-way sphincter
valves through which you extract most of the air in the bottle with a simple
pump.)

I found the Vacu-Vin effective and pragmatic (cheap and only moderately
fussy) for preserving open bottles of wine, with attention to points of
technique. The corks varied slightly, a few kept the seal less reliably
than others. Lightly wetting the ribbed outsides of the corks before
inserting helped the seal. And most important, REFRIGERATION along with
sealing the bottles, whatever method you use to seal. That always retards
processes that change wine.

A few years ago I found it was less trouble and still fairly effective to
skip the air extraction and use re-usable flat-top corks from fortified
wines (ones with wide enough cork that fit tightly into regular bottle
necks). This illustrates trading maybe some performance for definitely less
fuss. I appreciate that as time goes by.

Wine collectors and writers I know with experience (30+ years) tend not to
use gadgets (25-year-old newbies, in contrast, revere them and get into
fights over which is best). They tend to just re-cork tightly and
refrigerate.

F. W. I. W. -- Max

Experience with home preservation systems
 

"Max Hauser" > wrote:

> Wine collectors and writers I know with experience (30+ years)
> tend not to use gadgets (25-year-old newbies, in contrast,
> revere them and get into fights over which is best). They tend
> to just re-cork tightly and refrigerate.

100 percent accepted.

M.

Experience with home preservation systems
 

"Michael Pronay" > wrote in message
...
> "Max Hauser" > wrote:
>
> > Wine collectors and writers I know with experience (30+ years)
> > tend not to use gadgets (25-year-old newbies, in contrast,
> > revere them and get into fights over which is best). They tend
> > to just re-cork tightly and refrigerate.
>
> 100 percent accepted.
>
> M.

For our everyday wines, we simply re-cork and pop them into the ice-box..
The trick is to take them out early enough to get to room temp. So, in the
morning I see what we drank the previous night, put it on the counter, and
about 6 P.M it's about right.

Rich