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| Storage |
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What is the best way to store wine?
In spite of the blue, green or brown bottles, wine ivs light-sensitive.
Wine bottles must be stored lying down so that the corks do not dry out. Wine should always be
stored well away from strongly smelling foods, detergents, potatoes, onions, fuel oil and petrol.
You should also avoid extremes of temperature and very cold air. If you do not have a cellar,
you can also store wine in a refrigerator that stays at a constant temperature. However, wines
should only be stored if this will make them more mature. |
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Which wines can be stored for a particularly long time?
The deciding factors for whether to store red and white wines are their
acid structure, extract, alcohol content and sweetness, and the tannin structure of red wines.
On this basis, our recommendations are as follows:
- Normal 'Qualitatsweine' and 'Kabinettweine' should not be stored for a long time.
- Dry wines should be drunk after 3-4 years.
- Sweet wines (Spatlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese, Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein)
and red wines with a high alcohol and corresponding tannin content can be stored
for longer periods of time.
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How long can I keep a bottle of wine that's been opened?
A bottle of wine that has already been opened must be well corked in any
case. When the wine comes into contact with the oxygen in the air, the precious carbon dioxide that
was part of the wine and some of the aromas will be lost. The wine loses the freshness of its bouquet
and flavour. The oxygen in the air can also cause oxidation; the wine takes on an
age tone ('flattening')
, which can become even stronger and turn into a
"sherry tone"
, which is not meant at all positively in this case. |
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| The more air there is in the bottle, the faster the oxidation
occurs. If kept cool, white wines up to the quality level 'Auslese' can be kept as follows: 75%
full: 3-5 days, 50% full: 2-3 days, less than half full: 1 day. Red wines,
Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese wines oxidise less. They can be kept for about twice as long
once they have been opened. But remember: wine tastes best when it's fresh, because the aromas are at
their prime then. |
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How long can you store sparkling wine?
In contrast to still wines, sparkling wines should be stored upright.
The cork will be kept damp through the fine carbon dioxide mist in the space between the wine
and the cork. If the bottle is lying down, the cork would get too wet, and the danger of a 'corked'
flavour would be greater. In any case, bottles should be kept in cool, dark rooms at an even
temperature not exceeding 15¡ÆC. Even in these ideal storage conditions, bottles should really not
be kept for longer than a year.
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