How Long Does Wine Last? (Does it go bad?) | Wine Folly (2024)

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How Long Does Wine Last? (Does it go bad?) | Wine Folly? ›

As a general rule, if a wine bottle is open for over a week it's probably gone “bad.” There are, of course, a few exceptions to this rule, including fortified dessert wines (like Port or other wines with 18+ ABV).

The best way to enjoy your wine fresh is to drink it shortly after you purchase it. However, you can still enjoy unopened wine about 1–5 years after the expiration date, while leftover wine can be enjoyed 1–5 days after it has been opened, depending on the type of wine.

How Long Does Wine Typically Last? When stored properly and kept unopened, white wines can often outlive their recommended drinking window by 1-2 years, red wines by 2-3 years, and cooking wines by 3-5 years. Fine wine — as you may have guessed — can typically be consumed for decades.

There is no expiry dates of wines as such. If stored properly (away from direct heat & light) and not opened, you can keep your bottle for months. That being said, some wines are meant to age and some are not. Once opened, we recommend to store it in the fridge and consume it within 4 days.

When a bottle is open, the wine inside encounters air, which begins the oxidation process. Oxidation can cause wine to go bad and may turn it into vinegar. Bacteria and other microbes can also cause wine to spoil. If bacteria come into contact with open wine, they can alter its flavor and consistency.

The tannins act as a natural preservative. On average, an unopened bottle of red wine can last anywhere from 2 to 10 years or more, with lighter reds being on the shorter side. High-quality red wines, like Bordeaux or Barolo, can age well for several decades if stored properly.

White wines generally have a shorter shelf life than reds, with an unopened bottle lasting up to two years past recommended drinking window. Red Wine: Red wines tend to have a longer shelf life than whites, with an unopened bottle typically lasting up to three years past recommended drinking window.

The best wines can be stored for more than 100 years, but most great wines will reach their peak before they turn 50 years old. Find out if your wine is ready to drink now...

The South-West German city is home to the world's oldest wine bottle and, if experts are to be believed, it's actually drinkable. The Historical Museum of Palatinate, Speyer, is home to the 'Speyer Wine Bottle', a 1,700-year-old bottle of wine that was discovered in 1867.

Pour a little in a glass, swirl gently, and take a whiff. Does it smell moldy, musty, acetic, or otherwise unpleasant? This could be a sign that the bottle is either flawed or was left open for too long.

Can you drink 20 year old red wine? ›

A 20-year-old wine should recover its composure within a week or two, while a 30-year-old wine may need up to a month. For a wine over 40 years old, let it sit for four to six weeks–or until it becomes clear. Once you have opened your wine, it should be served as soon as possible.

Since a sealed bottle of wine doesn't come in contact with excess oxygen, bacteria, and heat, it has a longer shelf life than an opened bottle of wine. You can consume these wines past their printed expiration date as long as they smell and taste okay.

Luckily, you can spot spoiled wine using three of your five senses. The smell, the look and the taste of the wine will quickly give away any signs of spoilage. If your wine smells like wet cardboard that means it's corked, chemicals or rotten egg smells also signify spoilage.

Even if the wine appears to have mold, you won't get ill from drinking it (unlike with spoiled food, for example). However, the flavor and aroma of spoiled wine or corked wine (cork taint) won't be pleasant and can taste weird.

Drinking old wine probably won't make you sick. It's possible that there may be foodborne pathogens hiding in a glass of bad wine, but the chance of coming down with food poisoning from bad wine is rare. It's more likely that the experience will be unpleasant than harmful to your health.

Can You Drink Spoiled Wine? Wine that has gone bad isn't likely to harm you if you consume it. Unlike perishable foods, wine probably won't harm you if it's oxidized or has gone through a second fermentation. However, "bad" wine is not the ideal way to enjoy a glass, so ultimately it's all about taste.

As a rule of thumb, most wines purchased at big box or liquor stores are meant to be consumed within a year or two, particularly if you spent less than $30. This is because most of these wines are meant to be opened right away and are not designed to get better with age.

The average bottle of wine that is purchased at a distributor or grocery store will only retain its integrity for approximately 2 to 5 years because of its sugar content and lower ABV. Fortified wines will act more like liqueurs, having nearly indefinite shelf lives because of their high alcohol content.

Typically, an opened bottle of red wine, white wine, or rosé wine—depending on how much sulfur is in the bottle and proper wine storage—can last between three and five days. “People tend not to put reds in the fridge, so they may go a bit sour faster,” Gray explains.

It never stops, no matter what precautions you take. That's why, while some wines can last a hundred years, they don't last forever. Eventually, too much change will occur. But somewhere on that continuum of a wine's ever-changing composition is a sweet spot, an optimal drinking window.