When you open a bottle of wine with friends and family, it usually disappears in a few minutes. There is no need to worry about spoilage there. If, however, you open a very special bottle just to enjoy a glass or if you run a bar or restaurant and offer wine by the glass, the ability to keep the wines very fresh is important.

An opened bottle of wine usually has two to three days before it starts to lose its characteristic aroma, bouquet and taste before eventually going bad. Entrepreneurs in the wine industry have methods and products conceptualised and created regularly to stretch the life of a bottle of wine.

The problem – Oxidisation

Ultimately, too much oxygen coming in contact with the wine is the culprit and so all of these methods attempt to reduce the amount of the wine’s exposure to air. Essentially, there are three categories that these solutions fall in (1) Transfer (2) Vacuum and (3) Inert Gas.

Transfer

This is the simplest and perhaps least expensive method of wine preservation. After opening and pouring out the wine that you need, simply transfer the rest of the wine into a smaller bottle and then place it into the refrigerator to chill it.

Vacuum

A number of systems, from simple to sophisticated, are on the market including a special cork and a pump that is used to extract the air out of the bottle creating a vacuum in the bottle. The bottle is then chilled.

Inert Gas

Inert gases like odourless, tasteless argon are heavier than oxygen, so when inserted into the bottle, the much denser gas lies directly on the surface of the wine, creating a barrier between the lighter oxygen and the wine surface. Many systems at varying price points are on the market offering innovative ways of using gas to keep wines for longer. These methods are the most popular in the restaurant industry followed by the vacuum method. The inert gas systems require you to buy canisters of gas to refill the systems.

Coravin – A game-changing device.

The above methods attempt to reduce oxygen contact with wine once the bottle is opened. Can you imagine enjoying a glass or two without opening the bottle? This is where Coravin comes in. The mechanism is a medical-grade needle that pierces a cork, pumps wine out of a bottle, and replaces the space with inert heavy gas. When the needle is withdrawn, the cork’s natural elasticity closes the hole. The manufacturer’s recommendation is to do this over the course of days, weeks, months and even years. In test mode for some five years, this device has been a huge benefit to wine collectors and restaurants. There were early issues when a few bottles exploded upon opening. Thankfully, the issues have been resolved and Coravin is back on the market.

While I do from time to time use a basic vacuum pump at home, my long term solution is simple: consume the bottle within three days!

Christopher Reckord – Information Technology Entrepreneur & Wine Enthusiast. Send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com. Follow us on twitter: @Reckord