Storing Open Wine

[pergamum]

Dino, I'm a novice on the subject of keeping wine. However, I know a few techniques that may be useful. First, I don't think its necessary to buy a wine stopper to "recork" an opened bottle of wine--the original cork serves the same purpose (unless it has been destroyed). Second, while storing wine in a refrigerator its probably not wise to leave it uncorked--you may find that oxidation sets in more quickly, destroying the flavor and texture of the wine (I've found that it takes only about three days). Last, in my limited experience, the best technique for preserving wine in a refrig is to transfer the wine to a smaller bottle and then recork. This leaves little space for oxegen in between the cork and the wine and slows down the process of oxidation.
If you're really feeling daring, you could purchase a small bottle of wine preserver--usually runs at around $9. I couple of sprits of this nitrogen based compound will preserve wine for period ranging from 2 weeks to 2 months depending on the wine.


[This message has been edited by pergamum (edited 03-27-2001).]