If you are a big wine drinker, this might not be much of a penny pinching tip. But for all you non-wine drinkers, this one will save you a few dollars. When I’m making a recipe that calls for a bit of wine, it doesn’t make much sense for me to drive to the store and pick up a full bottle, only to use a tiny bit of it and have the rest go to waste (see why all you wine drinkers wouldn’t have a problem here, as I’m assuming you would just pour yourself a nice big glass of leftovers).
So here’s what I do. I make wine ice cubes. I buy a bottle of wine and then fill ice cube trays. Once they are frozen, I place them in a Ziploc bag and just pull one or two cubes out when a recipe calls for it. No wine {or money} wasted.
Have you ever tried this or is leftover wine not a problem for you?!
~Mavis
Wendy says
There is usually no wine left mavis!Jk. Ok, not really.
Brianna says
Interesting idea, I’m going to try it next time. I usually buy cheap wine for cooking because I cannot stand the ‘cooking wine’ sold in the vinegar section of the store. I use what I need and place the cork back in the bottle and put it in the fridge until my next recipe. My mother recorks her wine after a recipe and puts it back in her wine cabinet. I’ve never thought much about it…..freeze it, refridgerate it, or keep it at room temperature after uncorking. Which one is the best method or does it really matter? I’m not a drinker.
Sue says
I recorked a bottle and kept it on the kitchen counter. By the time I opened it up again (almost a year! just wasn’t in the mood for wine that year!) it had gone vinegary. So while I can’t say about keeping it in the fridge, at room temperature there does seem to be a time limit.
Holly says
I’m confused. What is “leftover wine”? Never heard of it
Marcia says
Ha I know! I read this tip awhile ago and thought, never an issue!
Ros4 says
GO, HOLLY!!! 😎
ilona Watzlawick says
Duh! Why didn’t I think of that?!
Anita says
That is a neat idea. I wonder if it would work for sherry. I just picked up the ingredients for a dish and it calls for a small amount of sherry. I’m going to try it and see. I’m not sure if the percentage of alcohol will be too high to freeze, but it is worth a try. Anita
Nikki says
Sherry keeps at room temperature
It’s to do with the higher alcohol content
Anita says
Thanks Nikki. I did not know that!
Anita
Catherine says
What if you wanted to drink said frozen wine at a later date, rather than use it in cooking? Would the flavor be weird? Inquiring minds want to know.
HunnyWest says
I have drank the frozen wine before and it tastes fine. It never tastes like a fresh glass right out of the bottle, and there is some sediment at the bottom of the glass. If you drink chardonnay you can use the wine cubes to cool down a warm glass of wine. That works really well. Cheers!
HunnyWest says
I have tried this before and it works pretty well, except that alcohol never fully freezes so the cubes are leaky/mushy. I add a little water to the trays before I add the wine and I get a much better result.
Jenny says
What is this left over wine concept? I never have leftovers
Tisha says
Instead of ice cube trays, if there is a bit of wine left in the bottle, I freeze it in a mason jar. I have one jar for red and one jar for white. The alcohol keeps it somewhat slushy so I can just scoop out however much I want/need for that particular recipe. For cooking purposes, it does not matter if there is a mix of different reds in the jar or different whites.
For the person above who asked about sherry, you can keep sherry at room temperature for quite a while. Or, if you buy fresh ginger, you can chop it up, place in a jar with some sherry. The ginger will be preserved longer and the infused sherry is a great addition to a stir-fry sauce.
Anita says
Thanks for the ginger idea Tisha. I’ll definitely try it – we eat stir-fry meals all the time.
Anita