Save your opened bottles of wine even if you don't have a cork thanks to these tips from wine experts and sommeliers.
Have you ever gone to cork a bottle of wine only to discover that the cork is suddenly missing, doesn’t fit, or has broken or crumbled apart? Trying to come up with a solution after you’ve had a couple glasses can be almost as frustrating as figuring out how to open a bottle of wine without a corkscrew. Luckily we're here to share expert-approved ways to close a wine bottle without a cork. “The best way to deal with this scenario is obviously to drink the rest of the bottle,” jokes certified sommelier Daniel Beedle, assistant F&B director at Kimpton The Forum Hotel in Charlottesville, Virginia. Blue Wine Bottles
But seriously, all you need is something that will keep the bottle airtight (to prevent oxidation) and not adversely affect the flavor of the wine.
“Believe me, I've seen some interesting things get shoved into wine bottles when corks accidentally get thrown away or don't fit,” says Kaye Askins, owner of Best Little Wine and Books, a wine bar and retail bottle shop in Historic Downtown Lockhart, Texas. “Thick linen hand towels from the restroom being one of them, which was both hilarious and horrifying.”
Leave it to a handful of crafty wine experts and sommeliers who have been there, done that—to help solve the problem. Below, each one shares an inventive (and sanitary!) way to hack this problem with things you probably already have lying around the house.
Both Beedle and Askins suggest grabbing plastic wrap from your pantry and a hair tie or rubber band. “Cover the opening, hold it tight over the lip of the bottle, and wrap a rubber band, hair tie, or scrunchie high up on the neck to keep it in place and oxygen from getting in,” says Askins, who adds that putting open wines in the fridge is really the key to slow down oxidation, which is what makes wine taste bland if it's open too long.
This method also works with a zip-top plastic bag, notes sommelier Anne Hampton, CS, CSW, CSS, manager at Chophouse Nexton in Summerville, South Carolina. “And if you're traveling, try rolling a plastic bag into the shape of a cork to seal the bottle's opening,” she says. Still, be sure to secure the bottle upright in the car, so you don’t run the risk of a spill.
Steven Rogers, wine director and director of food and beverage for Virgin Hotels New Orleans always suggests making your own homemade wine bladder: “Pour the wine into a zip-top plastic bag bag, eliminate the air out of the bag, and then throw your makeshift wine bladder in the fridge. Save your bottle or, if you have a decanter, throw away the bottle. When you’re ready to enjoy that wine, cut the corner of the zip-top plastic bag to pour into the bottle or decanter and enjoy.”
Atlanta-based culinary and lifestyle tastemaker Erica Thomas uses a balloon to preserve wine after hosting her exclusive supper club dinners, when a lot of bottles are opened and not consumed. “Simply stretch a small balloon over the neck of the bottle, and secure it with a rubber band,” she says. “This creates an airtight seal and will help extend the life of opened wine bottles. You can even use colored balloons to add some pizzazz or to identify red wines and white wines.”
Michelle LaBorde, sommelier at Dancing Bear Appalachian Bistro in Townsend, Tennessee, uses bourbon corks to replace wine bottle corks that have been lost or broken. "The bourbon tops are almost always universally fit to both bourbon and wine bottles," she explains. Bill Brillinger, head sommelier and lead bar manager at the Kimpton Sylvan Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia, agrees. “One of my favorite ways to stop up a bottle of wine without a cork is usually the stopper from a bourbon bottle. Most all of them come with a nice cork stopper and I always have a bottle or two on hand. Of course, the most creative I’ve ever had to be was out camping. I had to use a baby carrot as that’s all I had. It worked surprisingly well, and the carrot was actually better with a little wine on it.”
Get creative with other stretchy substances you have, like latex or silicone. “You could use a latex glove—bonus points if you blow it up to look like a turkey,” says Ian Rynecki, general manager of Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Or look in your drawers for those reusable silicone caps. “They are made of food-grade silicone and will fit snugly over the wine bottle's opening, creating an airtight seal,” says certified sommelier Bardia Ketabi, general manager of The Pembroke in Washington, DC. “You just need to place it on top of the bottle, and its flexibility allows it to fit securely. They're also easy to clean and reusable, which is a plus. I also love that they come in a range of colors and designs, so they allow for personalization and easy identification."
Antique Liquor Bottles If none of those options work, we’ve got one more trick up our sleeves. “I've found that transferring leftover wine to an old jelly or pickle jar works great," said Tom Croghan, co-owner and lead winemaker of The Vineyards at Dodon in Davidsonville, Maryland. "While it's not elegant or glamorous, the best way to preserve wine after removing the cork is limiting the amount of ‘headspace’ in the container, so using any glass jars you may already have around your house is a great option.”