Why Does Italian Wine Have Such a Long Expiration Date?

We all know what happens to a bottle of Italian wine once it has been opened.

Oxygen gets into the bottle and changes the chemical composition of the wine. And while this is a good thing in the short-term, with oxidisation being key to releasing many of the flavours and aromas in the wine, it damages the wine in the long-term. This is why a typical bottle of Italian wine will only last for a couple of days once it has been opened.

Of course, that’s assuming that you don’t take special measures to preserve the opened bottle. But we’ve talked about those in other articles, so we won’t dwell on them here.

Instead, we want to focus on another aspect of wine preservation.

Yes, we know that opened wines will spoil in fairly short order.

However, we also know that most unopened bottles can be aged for years before they begin to go off. In some cases, a wine can be aged for decades before it reaches its full potential. In this sense, Italian wine may be one of the longest-lasting drinks in the world.

We wanted to know why.

What’s going on with wine that allows it to be stored, assuming it’s unopened, for years at a time?

Hopefully, this article will provide the answers.

It All Starts With Fermentation

The winemaking process is pretty well documented at this point.

At the basic level, wine is made by fermenting grape juice. This involves crushing grapes to extract the juice before yeast and sugar are added to start a chemical reaction. This reaction leads to the formulation of alcohol, creating the wines that we all know and love.

It’s also this fermentation process that provides us with our main reason why Italian wines last so long.

The fermentation process results in the creation of certain bacteria and acids alongside the alcohol that it is intended to create. Of course, the alcohol itself acts as a preservative, which lends some extra life to the wine. However, the acids and bacteria can also help the wine to last a little longer.

This is where things can get a little complicated.

Some acids and bacteria can actually play a role in spoiling the wine too. It all depends on the specific types of acids and bacteria, plus how they react chemically to the wine. If the reaction is positive, these extra products of the winemaking process can have a beneficial effect. If the reaction is less than positive, they can have a spoiling effect.

However, the key point to take from this is that the winemaking process produces alcohol, which is a preservative in its own right. In some case, the acids and bacteria produced by the process can enhance the preservative effects of the alcohol, allowing the wine to last longer.

But that is far from the full story.

The Role of Sulphites

While the presence of alcohol in wine helps to preserve its integrity for a while, it’s far from a perfect solution.

That’s where sulphites come in.

These chemicals are often added to the wine towards the end of the production process with the sole intention of aiding the wine in lasting for longer than it naturally would. Generally speaking, this means a wine that contains sulphites will last longer than a wine that does not. Interestingly, this has an impact on one of the key trends in today’s Italian wine industry. With many producers now adopting organic and biodynamic practices, we’re seeing more wines produced that lack sulphites. These natural wines tend not to last as long as more traditional wines.

So, sulphites are powerful preservatives for Italian wine. However, not all wines contain them, which has a direct effect on the specific ageing length of the wine.

What Role Does the Type of Wine Play?

We also have to examine the type of wine when determining how long a wine will last for.

Generally speaking, white wines have much lower ageing potential than reds. Even the best whites start to lose their lustre after 5-10 years, meaning that they can’t be left in a cellar for decades and expected to maintain their qualities.

By contrast, many red wines can be aged for several decades and still maintain, or even experience enhanced, quality.

Why is this?

It’s due to the presence of tannins.

Tannins come from grape skins. In red wines, these grape skins are part of the winemaking process, which means the tannins become a part of the wine and can act as an additional preservative. It is also due to tannins that red wines tend to be more complex than their white brethren.

With white wines, the grape skins are not part of the production process. As such, these wines contain far lower levels of tannins, which affects their ageing potential but also contributes to the fresher and clearer taste you get with these wines.

What Happens When Wines Spoil?

So, we see that wines last as long as they do because of the various chemical reactions that are part of the production and drinking processes. The creation of alcohol, use of sulphites, and presence of tannings all have an impact on how long a bottle of wine can last before it loses its qualities.

The key here is that you need to understand your specific bottle of wine.

Allowing a wine to age beyond its capabilities will lead to it developing a sharp and unpleasant taste. It essentially becomes a form of vinegar, which makes it unsuitable for drinking. But even in these circumstances, the wine may be usable. Vinegar doesn’t spoil, which means you can still use it as a seasoning. Just know that vinegar that is the result of spoiled wine generally doesn’t taste especially good.

Regardless, we see now that the very methods used to make wine are also responsible for its ability to last as long as it does.

You can enhance the wines potential age by storing it correctly. And of course, make sure you drink the wine within a few days once you’ve opened it.