Here’s a common mistake wine drinkers make, according to this sommelier. This one offers a trick that “will change your life”.
This bubbly sommelier’s Tiktok video has garnered over 2.5 million views. In it, she explains that wine drinkers don’t need to be experts to enjoy this brew, but reveals a common mistake people make – and how to avoid it. This error is: Replacing the cork on an unfinished bottle. “I have a much better tip that will change your life.” she says.
Warner Boin (@confidenceuncorked), a 30-something on a mission to demystify wine, explains it in seconds: Cork stoppers are porous, which means they have tiny holes that allow oxygen to flow through the container. Result: Even more air than is already there will enter the half-empty bottle. However, too much oxygen in a bottle of wine can destroy the complex flavors of the drink, deciphers the professional.
Warner Boin therefore offers another way to close the wine bottle without exposing it to too much air. “What you really want to do is reduce the oxygen to wine ratio,” she introduces in her video. “I recommend a mason jar. Just take whatever wine you have left and pour it into the mason jar – or any type of airtight container.” The Mason jar is a glass food container with a metal screw-on lid. It takes its name from the American – another – John Landis Mason, who patented it on November 30, 1858. It is the standard North American jar.
This involves using a small jar, which will hold less air than the half-empty bottle. “You can use different mason jars [or jars in general] depending on how much wine you have left,” notes Warner Boin. Once the container is sealed with a lid, the wine will be protected.
Sommelier 2.0 said she swears by this trick and will continue to recommend it because “it will keep your wine still tasting fresh even a few days after opening it, whereas a day after opened a bottle of wine and put the cork back on, I can tell the difference between the two tastes”. In a separate commentary to the video, Warner Boin even states that you could make your wine last “a week, maybe longer” using this method.
