The Spoon Hack That Will Help Champagne Stay Fresh
Champagne is for celebration, toasting to the new year, or even the weekend morning mixed with orange juice. Nothing hits quite like the first crisp sips of champagne, but the longer you let your glass of stars sit out, those delightful bubbles of carbon dioxide will escape, according to Difford's Guide.
Ideally, sparkling wine should be consumed in one sitting, not only to prevent the wine from going flat but to prevent oxidation (per Vino Vest). For wine, oxidation is the process of wine being exposed to oxygen (via Wine Enthusiast). After prolonged exposure, like leaving a bottle of wine open overnight with hopes of finishing the next day, the oxygen in the air breaks down the ethanol (alcohol) and converts it to acetaldehyde. In fact, the taste of the wine will turn flat and sour, like vinegar, explains Vine Pair.
However, not all oxidation is bad. In fact, many reds are opened 15 to 30 minutes ahead of drinking to give them time to breathe (per Vino Vest). For a short duration, introducing oxygen can help release aromas and flavors. But for sparkling wines, time is of the essence to keep its effervescence and flavor.
So how can you keep the party going and save that half-drunk bottle of bubbly for the next day? Sure you can re-cork it to help it keep bubbles in and oxygen out, but it won't taste the same as when you first opened it. However, there is an intriguing and ridiculously simple trick that claims to solve this.
Put a spoon in it
Reader's Digest claims that all you need to keep the stars in your bottle of opened bubbly is to stick a spoon down the neck, handle-side down, and store in the fridge. The article emphasizes using a metal spoon to regulate the temperature in the neck of the bottle by absorbing warm air. The cold spoon is said to, "create a sort of natural barrier to the escaping carbon dioxide."
According to Scientific American, "carbon dioxide is more soluble at low temperature, so cold liquids better retain their dissolved gas." In other words, simply keeping your bubbly cold, will slow the release of bubbles — this is why many restaurants will keep your bottle on ice between refills (per Vino Vest).
So does the spoon trick work? According to Vino Vest, the answer is yes. But if you consider what The Guardian says, the champagne spoon myth is a bust. With the sources split, there's only one way to find out for yourself. Next time you commit yourself to a couple of glasses of bubbly, stick a spoon in it and pop it in the fridge for a super simple, (hopefully) bubble-saving hack.