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I wanted to freeze some leftover wine (about half a bottle) to use for cooking at a later date.

  • Will it keep at all?
  • Are there any special ways to freeze it?
  • Would freezing it in the bottle be safe?
  • Should it be defrosted first before using, or can I use it straight out of the freezer?
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  • Yes. cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/1422/…
    – Joe
    Aug 20, 2010 at 2:43
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    You could also use the wine and make some home made vinegar with it.
    – Martin
    Aug 20, 2010 at 5:09
  • I've heard about freezing it in an ice cube tray - any body else try this? Will it pick up the flavor of the fridge?
    – AttilaNYC
    Aug 21, 2010 at 0:57
  • Isn't the wine supposed to get better when standing still and unfrozen? ;) If it's not that kind of wine one might want to consider buying new when needed instead of freezing...
    – naugtur
    Aug 29, 2010 at 16:29

3 Answers 3

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I tried freezing leftover wine many years ago, and it does work. You can just freeze it in the original bottle.

The flavors are somewhat muted compared to the same wine unfrozen. Not recommended for drinking the wine, but it is acceptable for cooking purposes.

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    I'm not willing to contradict this outright but I will say (1) look at Emiliano's answer -- I've heard the same but I haven't tried it (2) I've heard and adhere to the mantra: don't cook with wine you wouldn't drink. Again, I won't swear that this is the final word on the matter, but I've heard it said many times and it's what I personally go with.
    – Dinah
    Aug 20, 2010 at 2:47
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Be aware that freezing it in the bottle may break it, it's because the frozen water increases its volume when becomes ice

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  • As far as I understand it, as long as the liquid has somewhere to expand to when freezing, it should be fine. Since this is a half bottle, it should be able to expand up, so I wouldn't worry too much about freezing it in the bottle...assuming it's half full, of course. That's based on my understanding of liquids in general, but I'm not a wine expert at all, so please correct me if anyone knows otherwise. Now, if you have a glass bottle that's of poor quality and can't withstand freezing temperatures...that's another story :) But I would hope wine wouldn't come in one of those...
    – stephennmcdonald
    Aug 20, 2010 at 3:24
  • browsing from a while in the future... but you have a problem if the ice forms at the top first... :)
    – Joe
    Jan 28, 2012 at 16:13
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I have tried this, but not in a bottle, only in icecube containers. They are ok for putting in something like gravy or a bolognaise but I wouldn't use it in anything where wine is a main ingredient, like Coq au Vin.

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