Champagne Storage

I see on some websites they say not to store Champagne in Refrig for more than a couple days.

I have been storing for 4-5 months typically as my cellar space is primarily for good reds.

My champagne has always been fine assuming not in refridge for more than a year. Never problems with cork.

Why is Refridge for Champagne not good long term?

Reply to
Richard Neidich
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It's not a problem. Please repeat things they've heard without any scientific basis.

Storing wine (or sparkling wine) at a lower temperature simply slows down aging-- because, in general, chemical reactions slow down at lower temperatures.

Refrigerators tend to be dry, so there is some possibility of drying a cork out. However, keep in mind two things:

  1. The humidity on the inside of a bottle of liquid is close to 100%.

  1. If you store a bottle on its side, the cork stays wet.

I've stored Champagne bottles in the fridge for a couple of years and have not noticed any deterioration in quality. There is some risk in storing any wine long-term, though some wines last decades.

Non-vintage Champagne may not last as long as vintage Champagne simply because N.V. often contains pinot meunier, which doesn't generally age as well as the other two grapes common in Champagne (pinot noir and chardonnay).

So, you can store Champagnes for a long time. But why would you? Stop waiting for something monumental to celebrate-- celebrate today. Even this usenet posting is worthy of celebration!

Another myth to deflate-- hanging a silver spoon in a bottle of opened Champagne will not keep it from going flat. But-- if you have left-overs-- they make special corks to seal Champagne. And if you don't have one, some aluminum foil held onto the bottle with a rubber band will even hold in much of the fizz for a day.

Enjoy!

Shaun Eli

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Brain Champagne: Clever Comedy for Smart Minds (sm)

Reply to
Shaun Eli

Thanks.

Last night we celebrated my sons college graduation with Cristal 1997 and a bottle of 1988 Haut Brion that we brought with us to the local "The Palm". They did not even charge us a corkage since they were impressed :-)

Yes..to the peanut gallery that thinks I am anti french wine. I am not. However the Haut Brion could have been boycotted 5 more years and that might have been better. :-)

Tonight we drank a 1994 Late Discorged Schramsburg. The Blanc de Noir. GREAT wine.

We bought an extra refrid as I ran out of cellar space in my two Eurocaves. I took all whites out that I planned to drink over next 6 months and placed in new refridge. Someone told me that it was not a good idea...all the wine is cold, tastes great!!!!

Thanks for your response.

Reply to
Richard Neidich

Thank you for this posting! It got me motivated to take a wine I was saving-- Tarlant Brut Zero Champagne-- and drink it.

I had been saving it for someone who would appreciate a Brut Non Dose Champagne-- a very dry style since it's made with no added sugar (very rare for a Champagne). It's probably been in my fridge for three years; I bought it on a trip to the winery nine years ago.

The heck with finding someone who would appreciate it, and a time to open it. Had it last night.

Wow. Wish I'd bought more. But then there was a limit to what we could carry home-- and we brought home several bottles of Tarlant Cuvee Louis-- perhaps all they had left of their first vintage of this wine (we tried the second vintage at the winery and said it didn't taste as good as the one bottle we'd had in the states; they explained it was a new vintage and we asked for the prior one).

The great Champagne motivated me to replace the stock art on my website with some original photos-- Champagne bottles, corks and glasses. I have to redo the photo of the bottles and corks (still learning to use the merging software that came with my new digital camera). Learned the hard way that it's really hard to take photos of a glass of Champagne using a flash. Ended up using overhead lighting. Anyway, the results are on my website.

Shaun Eli

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Brain Champagne: Clever Comedy for Smart Minds (sm)

Reply to
Shaun Eli

The aluminum foil will be about as effective as the spoon (and, I suspect, the special resealing corks). Probably good to put SOMETHING over the opening though, to stop stuff falling in.

The truth is the Champagne will retain a lot of its fizz anyway, Just make sure the bottle stands undisturbed. It's shaking the bottle around that will really cause the Champagne to go flat.

Reply to
Steve Slatcher

Whilst on this thread I pass on to anybody who does not already know (I suspect few in this group) the tip never to use detergent of any kind on Chmpagne glasses but simply to wash them in very hot water. Detergent is said to coat the tiny imperfections inthe glass so as to reduce the bubbling of Chmapagne. I was sceptical till I poured tow glasses -one detergent washed but rinsed afterwards and one simply washed in very hot water.

Tim Hartley

Reply to
Timothy Hartley

Tim, does that matter other than for appearance? I'd imagine that bubbling in the glass is less relevant to taste than the bubbling which will occur once the Champagne reaches your tongue. Any bubbling in the glass before you drink it reduces the amount of carbonation remaining in the Champagne when you do drink it.

As far as the aluminum foil not being effective, the foil (or, probably better-- plastic wrap) held on tight with a rubber band will seal the bottle somewhat from decarbonation. It will also reduce evaporation. But the special corks made for Champagne do work. Of course the less wine remaining in the bottle, the more air at the top and thus faster decarbonation. If you have only a glass and reseal the bottle it'll last longer than if you leave only a glass in the bottle.

Shaun Eli

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Brain Champagne: Clever Comedy for Smart Minds (sm)

Reply to
Shaun Eli

It depends whether you can seperate your visual impression from your palate and/or overall enjoyment of the wine.

There may be other areas of enjoyment (and I'm not thinking of song) where, in theory, outward appearance does not matter if all other aspects of performance are equal! - but I remain to be convinced.

Flat Champagne does not inspire me with desire.

Tim

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Timothy Hartley

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Joe "Beppe"Rosenberg
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Timothy Hartley

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