The Right Way to Recork Wine (And Why It Matters)

Even if you drink or cook wine, you can’t use up the whole bottle at once. Sure, you can use a wine stopper to keep your wine fresh until you’re ready to finish it, but what if you don’t have one? there is. Here’s what you should know:

What is the shelf life of wine after opening?

Once you open a bottle of wine, it’s usually drinkable if it’s stored properly. 2 to 5 days left, depending on the type of wine. Sparkling wine is slightly different. It’s nearly gone the next day, but with proper re-corking it can stay fresh enough to drink for up to three days.

How to re-cork wine

What should I start with? No do. If you plan to drink leftover wine, don’t leave the bottle open.Even if you throw away the cork There is no wine stopper and the top of the bottle is covered with a cover. scrap of plastic wrap or foil A rubber band isn’t ideal, but it’s better than nothing.

And now how to properly re-cork wine:

examine the cork

before attempting to re-cork Look closely at the wine, the cork itself. Is it damaged? Are there any debris on the ground? Are you crumbling? be endless hole Cork when opened?

If any of these apply, you shouldn’t try to reuse the cork. In that case, you may be able to get away with wrapping it in wax paper. (More on this later.)

Return the wine-stained side

If the cork is undamaged, resist the urge to put the “clean” side into the wine bottle. the world and came Keeping in touch with who knows what.you are better put wine-stained edges Put the cork in the bottle.

To reinsert the corkplace the bottle on a stable, sturdy surface and tilt the cork so that the dirty end of the wine enters the bottle, leaving the clean end.Tin on the lips. From there, twist the cork until the cork is about half way into the bottle.

use wax paper

Even if the original cork remains and is intact, it may have swelled since you first removed the cork from the bottle, making it difficult to replace. a little wax paper.

Cut a piece of wax paper about the same length as the cork and wide enough to wrap the cork around once (but no more).

Place the bottle on a stable, sturdy surface and insert the covered end of the cork. Press down with a gentle rocking motion until the cork is about half way into the bottle. Do not twist. Wax paper can wrinkle or tear.

put the bottle in the fridge

Once you’ve recorked a bottle of wine, there are a few other things you can do to prevent the wine from oxidizing too quickly.Put the bottle first upright, to minimize the surface area of ​​the wine exposed to oxygen. Also, keeping uncorked bottles of wine in the refrigerator is your best bet, as cold temperatures slow down the oxidation process. even if red.