Dessert Wine and Port Life After Opening

My first post, and I tried to search for the answer so I aplogize if this is covered elsewhere.

I've read on this board, and heard, and experienced myself, that an opened bottle of port could/should last up to four weeks after opening. Does everyone agree if it's corked properly and refridgerated?

Does the same apply to a dessert wine? Like a Sauternes, a Muscado (if I recall the Australian dessert wine that was so good but forget the name), or a Vin Santo?

Welcome. I would say that Tawney ports are rather indestructable after opening. Some will go for six months or more. Cheap ruby port isn't worth drinking in the first place. LBV will last a few weeks, but Vintage port will really start to deteriorate after a day or so -especially older, more delicate bottles. Other dessert wines should be taken on a wine to wine basis. I like the freshness that a Beerenauslese or Trockenbeerenauslese has in the first couple of days, but if stored properly, they can last a long time (try raising the level with marbles). There is a famous tale of a barrel of Austrian Ausbruch wine being consumed over the span 300 years using this technique with washed stones. If you're not that ambitious, drink most dessert wines within a week (easily done with a half bottle). Generally, they'll show differently every day, but certainly won't go bad for some time. Tere are also 'Unkillable' dessert wines such as Madeira and Pedro Ximenez Sherries that even when opened, will outlive us all.


Prost!
Bill

Welcome to the forum Kirby! As usual Bill is on the ball but I have to add that I am quite a collector of sweetie Oz rieslings and semillons and they do develope nicely when opened a few days...well, most of them!!

What Bill said. Good summary.

The most common open-bottle mistake is to generalize about Ports and get Tawny Ports (and their brothers, Colheitas) mixed up with Vintage Ports. Open Tawnies keep, open VPs don't.