Food & Drink Sparkling Wine shelf Life?

Hi there,

I was given a few bottles of old sparkling wine and was wondering if they were safe to drink? I know my teas & my rums but I know little to nothing about wines : / So here I have a Codorniu 1985, 2x Codorniu 1990, Tott's Brut (Probably as old as the other bottles), Chandon Carneros (California stuff, probably cheap) and a bottle of Henkell Trocken (There's particles inside the bottle, I don't think sparkling wine is supposed to have particle?). There was also a bottle of Peach Schnapps and a Chateauneuf Du Pape - La Fiole du Pape.

 

If they've been stored correctly they should be ok...

Only way to know for sure is to open them...

 

This - wine is good to keep until it isn't, scientifically speaking.

If it tastes good, enjoy it. If it doesn't, show it the drain.

I recently opened a couple bottles of port at my folks house. They don't drink port, and received them as gifts in what they estimate was the mid 90s and have been transported and stored side by side since. The first bottle was the colour of white wine, oddly, and tasted even more odd. It was shown the drain. The other was delicious (but only after having fought with a cork that disintegrated when trying to remove it). Go figure.

 

Exactly, I've had wine that's older than I am that's been fine, and stuff only a few years old that's been rotten.

 

I've drank some Belgian beers from 1994-96 and they were excellent. (La Moneuse to be more specific)

 

My wife the ex-wine buyer says that they're definitely worth a try. Although sparkling wines are not meant to age a lot, some do so beautifully.

Particles in the wine suggests that the cork is crumbling, as it can do with age if it dries out (which is why wine is stored horizontally --keeps the cork moist). As long as the seal isn't broken however that isn't a problem.

You won't poison yourself. At worst it tastes horrible; if you're lucky it tastes very nice indeed.

 

This, in spades. It's even more important in fizzy wine, as a dry cork means the gas can escape, you no longer have a fizzy wine and air can get in, leading to oxidation (meaning the alcohol turns into vinegar).

Just to echo everyone else: have a try. If it's good, carry on; if it tastes awful, chuck it.

Easy

 

The sediment might just be yeast. iirc high quality champagne will have the yeast removed, but i'm not sure if that's universal.

Chill em, and try, you'll know right away if they're any good.

 

I'll probably try a bottle this weekend and give an update.

 

For science!

 

*Its called laying it down

 

I have something similar with whisk(e)y (well bourbon) I found in the parents cellar.

Does it age in the (closed) bottle? They were kept in a cool, dark cellar.

It's a couple of bottles Jim Beam White Label 200 years edition (so probably from 1995), some Four Roses with a similar age.
Also a couple of VSOP Cognacs, probably from the early eighties.
Highlight was grandpa's bottle of VAT69 in the WWII style bottle (that has been discontinued since....?)
I opened that at my kids birth, so the point is moot

My biggest problem is, I don't know how these were supposed to taste in the first place, so it's difficult to say how they are.

The Cognacs taste....a bit stale, maybe the Jimmies do as well, I don't know how they're supposed to taste. (Jacky and Jimmy aren't my thing)

 

Whiskey dosnt age after its out of the cask, but shouldn't deteriorate either. Maybe find a forum that specializes in whiskey and see if they're worth anything.

 

The Henkell Trocken went down the drain, it smelt vinegar.

 

Doubt it, that's just plain Jim Beam with a special label...
Then again, they maybe semi-rare as they're the 1L tax-free special size.

I think I just need to find someone that likes bourbon-coke

 

Shouldn't be too difficult, look for someone who drinks scotch with ginger ale. ;D

 

I opened 2 bottles tonight, the Totts Brut and the Chandon.

The Totts Brut - The cork did not POP ( which was very suspicious), the color was kinda caramelish, there was no fizz and the scent was funny. I dumped it without regrets.

The Chandon Brut Classic (Apparently an affordable American Offspring of Moët & Chandon aka Dom Perignon priced at 25$ a bottle) - The cork did POP, there was fizz, the scent was ok (I'm only an unsophisticated Canadian, forgive my lack of words) and the color was like a blonde ale. I took a risk and drank a sip, then glass, I'm still alive for now.

Note: Still alive 2 glasses later.



Cheers.

 

Not being dead is just icing on the cake.

 

I'm finishing the rest of the bottle, I don't know if it's because it breathe but the taste definitively got better. Well in fact, it taste good : )

 

Hum...I seem to have misplaced mine.
Oh well, there's more in the cellar they came from