Comments on: Can I use spoiled wine as vinegar?

Question: Can I use spoiled wine as vinegar?

qvantamon — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 00:50:32 -0800

Can I use spoiled wine as vinegar? Cooking wine?

I managed to open some fairly good pinot noir, only to drink two glasses of it, and forget the rest in the fridge for a month or so.

Since vinegar is basically spoiled wine, can I at least use this wine as fancy vinegar (for salads, etc), or cooking wine (for sauces, etc). Or is it somehow harmful (it tastes good, so my only worry is on the health side).

Also, if I'm to do that, is there anything I should do to make it more adequate? Like leaving it completely open (I originally stored it with the cork on), out of the fridge, or something like that?

By: jb

jb — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 00:56:19 -0800

Yes, but I would use it as cooking wine, not vinegar. It's still alcoholic, and may not have the same acid quality of vinegar. I do this all the time.

By: Jahaza

Jahaza — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 01:04:00 -0800

Cooking wine is not vinegar... it's wine with salt added to it.

By: pompomtom

pompomtom — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 01:06:11 -0800

Don't cook with anything you would't drink.

By: fiTs

fiTs — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 01:41:11 -0800

Of course you can, but will you like the taste?

By: holgate

holgate — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 02:10:21 -0800

At a stretch, for deglazing. Otherwise, what pompomtom said.

If you really want to make vinegar with it, you'll need a mother.

By: _dario

_dario — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 02:45:46 -0800

Move the wine out of the fridge, into a glass jar (half a gallon or so), cover the opening with cheesecloth, or paper, and store in a dark (but not cold) place.
To promote the formation of a mother (which will form anyway, eventually) you can drop, for instance, a handful of broken spaghetti in the jar, and/or half a glass of organic, non pasteurized wine vinegar. Wait two to four weeks, and voila! (Spoiled) pinot noir vinegar. (keep in mind that the "garbage in, garbage out" rule applies to vinegar, too). Empty the remains of good bottles into the jar every now and then, and draw vinegar (as it is ready) with, for instance, a chicken baster/syringe.
Next step, a vinegar tank (picture).

By: HotPatatta

HotPatatta — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 08:57:04 -0800

Yes, but I would use it as cooking wine, not vinegar.

I would never use spoiled wine for cooking. Cooking will cause the water in the wine to evaporate and the flavor thus concentrates. Concentrated spoiled wine = yuck.

By: mzurer

mzurer — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 09:19:40 -0800

I use slightly soured wine in pasta sauce all the time. Not usually more than a week or two after I have opened it though.

By: neuron

neuron — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 14:14:42 -0800

Don't cook with anything you would't drink.

Agree strongly. Don't buy so-called "cooking wine".

By: electroboy

electroboy — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 15:18:51 -0800

Why are you putting pinot noir in the fridge?

By: desuetude

desuetude — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 20:37:15 -0800

So the wine wasn't bad, it's just been open too long, and has been in the fridge the whole time to boot? Sure, use it in tomato sauce.

By: jb

jb — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 11:46:45 -0800

Seriously, it will be fine cooking wine. Maybe not if you are such a gourmet that you would buy fancy wine to cook with (because it does make a difference), but for the rest of us who cook with Sainsbury's Basics wine (UK grocery store brand, famously cheap and sometimes nasty) because we are a) not rich and b) have an ordinary palate, it will taste just dandy. I've cooked with corked Sainsbury's Basics, and still had the food taste fine.

You can cook with wine you would not drink, because it is not the sole flavour in your dish. I have never cooked with anything BUT open or not good wine I wouldn't drink - because I wouldn't waste good wine on cooking.

That said, Sainsbury's Basics Wine is surprisingly good. Not great, by any means, but at £2.10/bottle (last fall, may be higher now), it's as good as most £4 wines, and still as good as some £8 wines.