How to use use up a bottle of horribly sweet wine?

August 1, 2016 9:12 PM

I bought a bottle of something similar to a white zinfandel for a dinner party guest who cancelled. She's the only person I know who likes super-sweet white wines. We (stupidly) opened it tonight anyway, thinking that we'd give it a try, and no one could drink more than a few sips- it's so horribly, cloyingly sweet! What other drinks can I make with it to make it drinkable?

I'm thinking of soaking some mint in it, and then blending it with ice. If no one has any better suggestions I'll give that a try...

posted by ezrainch to Food & Drink (26 answers total)

Response by poster: Sorry, this is the wine.
posted by ezrainch at 9:15 PM on August 1, 2016

Best answer: White Sangria. Water it down with club soda, ice and a pile of fruit.
posted by gt2 at 9:15 PM on August 1, 2016 [21 favorites]

Best answer: Mix it with club soda?
posted by infinitywaltz at 9:15 PM on August 1, 2016 [5 favorites]

Best answer: Sangria with less sweet fruit juice like blood orange.

Reduced in a sauce and served over lightly sweetened dessert.
posted by Candleman at 9:17 PM on August 1, 2016 [4 favorites]

Best answer: You could poach some light white fish in it.
posted by fshgrl at 9:26 PM on August 1, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Yep, sangria.
posted by Jubey at 9:31 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Use it as a base for cocktails. If sangria doesn't cut it, I'd try 2 tbsp of the wine with a teaspoon to a tablespoon of a dry spirit, perhaps an aquavit or eau de vie, and some bitters. Maybe nutmeg if you want to make it sort of pre-prohibition. Stir with ice in a mixing glass, strain, and garnish with citrus peel of some sort. This would be a sort of low alcohol twist on a classic cocktail--I've done similar things with nonsparkling alcoholic cider and been quite pleased.

(I also second the sangria suggestion. Covers a multitude of sins.)
posted by matematichica at 9:32 PM on August 1, 2016

Best answer: If you don't like fish, you could poach pears in it instead, then reduce to a nice syrup. Something like this. Or, well, sangria.
posted by cdefgfeadgagfe at 10:37 PM on August 1, 2016 [3 favorites]

Best answer: A wine slushy.
posted by brujita at 10:49 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: mix it with lemon juice for a boozy lemonade
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 11:44 PM on August 1, 2016

Best answer: Club soda / seltzer is a great suggestion - but I'd encourage you to try tonic. The bitterness of the quinine should offset the sweetness of the wine nicely. Add a bit of citrus.
posted by kickingtheground at 12:44 AM on August 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Granita! You can cut the sugar a bit, but not too much as it will make the end result more icy than slushy. Might not be a bad thing, tough, considering.
posted by ananci at 12:53 AM on August 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I would suggest peaches or nectarines as an alternative to pears: just poach them in wine and sugar. Yummy.
posted by Bloxworth Snout at 2:08 AM on August 2, 2016

Best answer: Get some Campari and soda and make you some biciclettas.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 2:13 AM on August 2, 2016 [3 favorites]

Best answer: A wine slushie could be worth experimenting with. Cut the sugar/honey and add whatever fruit you think might suit!
posted by h00py at 2:14 AM on August 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: In a pan on the stove, reduce it to a syrup, let cool, then drizzle over vanilla ice cream.
posted by Short Attention Sp at 4:08 AM on August 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: If you're doing sangria, instead of club soda you can also add a super dry bubbly like a cava. Sorry that I don't have any suggestions on brands, but I bet someone else in here or someone at your local shop can help with that.
posted by Night_owl at 4:39 AM on August 2, 2016

Best answer: Seconding poached pears.
posted by briank at 5:07 AM on August 2, 2016

Best answer: Yeah, make it into a spritzer, about 1:3 or 4 wine:seltzer.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 5:27 AM on August 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I would avoid the hangover from the excess sugar and toss that down the drain with zero hesitation.
posted by slateyness at 5:30 AM on August 2, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Wine jello/gummies! You just need plain gelatin and since you find the wine sweet, skip the extra added sugar.
posted by carrioncomfort at 6:45 AM on August 2, 2016 [3 favorites]

Best answer: add it to seltzer water with lemon or lime juice, should make tasty boozy fizzy lemonade.
posted by fingersandtoes at 7:32 AM on August 2, 2016

Best answer: Cocktail use seems to have been covered. Have you considered making your own vinegar out of it? Cultures can be found rather cheap, and oftentimes your local brew-store will have some.
posted by furnace.heart at 8:58 AM on August 2, 2016

Best answer: Add lemon juice and ice for a nice summer drink.
posted by domo at 9:08 AM on August 2, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Yes to granita! I just rescued a horribly sweet rosé by adding lemon juice and cayenne and making it into granita. The sour, spicy, and cold all cut the sweetness and the sorbet format tricks your brain into thinking sweetness is a desirable attribute
posted by (Over) Thinking at 7:41 PM on August 2, 2016

Response by poster: Thanks All! What ended up happening to the bottle of wine? I was telling my friend about this wine and she said "My Mom loves that kind of wine mixed with Sprite". We all went camping together this weekend, and I surprised her Mom with this "cocktail". Her Mom got drunk, I was happy for someone who likes this wine to enjoy it, and we had a blast! Hooray!
posted by ezrainch at 4:18 PM on August 7, 2016 [2 favorites]