How Long Wine Lasts After Opening

Each type of wine has a specific time frame before it goes completely bad and should just be thrown out. It’s sad to see a bottle of wine go to waste, so everyone should know how long wine lasts after opening. Once everyone knows how long they can save an opened bottle of wine, the world will become a better (much happier) place.

Regardless of how often you enjoy this beverage, knowing how long wine lasts after opening will help you enjoy it during its prime without having to worry about pouring any of it down the drain.

There are many different types of wine and everyone has a favorite. But no matter what type of wine you enjoy the most, once you open the bottle you give it an expiration date. Each wine is different and comes with a different expiration time, not to mention how you store the open bottle matters as well.

If you want to make your wine last, you will need to know how long wine lasts after opening the bottle. Believe it or not, one bottle will be able to last you days at a time if you store it correctly after you open it.

While the taste may not be the exact same towards the end of the expiration period, it will still hold some of its flavors.

How Long Wine Lasts After Opening

How does wine go bad in the first place? The answer is actually very scientific and interesting if you like that sort of thing. Wine is corked for a reason, the cork is made of wood tissue and it expands when it’s moist.

Wine is stored sideways so the cork stays moist and expanded, keeping oxygen out of the bottle. Once oxygen hits the wine it begins a chemical reaction with the sugars naturally found in the wine. As the sugars begin to oxidize, the flavor of wine shifts, drastically.

You’ll never want to get past the expiration date if you do, wine takes on a vinegar-like flavor. That is when you know wine has gone bad.

How to Avoid Oxygen in a Bottle

Knowing how long wine lasts after opening is only part of what will help wine last; you’ll also need to know how to store it. Wine bottles should be stored in cool, dark places to avoid any prolonged interaction with light. Storing bottles sideways is also really important as it will keep the cork moist and expanded and prevent any extra oxygen from getting into the bottle.

How Long Wine Lasts After Opening

Each type of wine has a different length of time that it can last after opening. There are even some different storage necessities, depending on the type of wine that will help make it last longer.

There are ways to get the wine out of the bottle without removing the cork but if you do remove the cork keep in mind these time frames: Sparkling wines can last 1 to 3 days in the fridge as long as you replace the cork with a wine stopper.

Light white wine or rose wine will last 5 to 7 days in the fridge, just make sure you put the cork back in. Full-bodied whites will last for 3 to 5 days in the fridge with the cork put back in and same goes for red wines. However, the reds should be stored in a cool, dark place instead of the fridge.

Fortified wine will last the longest, 28 days total, in a cool, dark place with the cork put back in it.