How long does homemade wine last?

[Braden]

I’m doing a Moscato Kit and I’m wondering how long I could store my wine for until it’s no good. Obviously I can’t drink all 30 bottles myself! So how should I store it to preserve it longer? And how long will it last unopened?

 

[Vinobeau]

I've got some Beaujolais from 1976 and it is as bad now as it was in 1979 when I bottled it! It was the first wine in my new barrel and I left it in the barrel a bit too long. The next oldest home made wines that I have are about 10-12 years old. I, personally, have never had a bottled wine go bad. The 76 Beaujolais is under cork, but all of my recent wines have used screw tops and 10 year olds are fine.

 

[Rocky]

Braden, Moscato has a good bit of residual sugar so it should last for a couple of years if you take care to do the following (and this applies to most if not all wines):

• Keep it at a constant temperature as close to 55 degrees F as possible.
• Try to maintain an RH as close to 75% as possible
• Protect the wine from UV light.
• Limit any vibration of the wine.
• If you have natural of agglomerate corks, store the wine on its side. There has been some recent question of this practice, but hundreds of years of doing it this way convinces me that it is sound.

 

[franc1969]

Most whites are expected to be consumed within a year or two, your first Moscato should be about that. Reds are variable, even lower end kits I'd expect also a year or two minimum. Read up, tannin levels and grape variety have a huge difference as well as the style of fermentation. I don't see any reason why one person wouldn't be able to drink all of a six-gallon batch within a reasonable time.
Storage as above- reasonable cellaring.

 

[NorCal]

Unless you are buying expensive corks, they are typically rated <5 years. Not saying they couldn't last longer than that, but that is usually the point of failure, unless you re-cork.

 

[crabjoe]

It'll last as long as you want it to last.. hehehehe

 

[NorCal]

It was my birthday today and opened up the first wine, that I helped make in 2013, a Cab Franc and it’s my last bottle. Definitely past it’s prime and I’m glad I enjoyed the other dozen cases prior to now.

 

[Chuck E]

It was my birthday today and opened up the first wine, that I helped make in 2013, a Cab Franc and it’s my last bottle. Definitely past it’s prime and I’m glad I enjoyed the other dozen cases prior to now.

Happy Birthday!

 

[crabjoe]

It was my birthday today and opened up the first wine, that I helped make in 2013, a Cab Franc and it’s my last bottle. Definitely past it’s prime and I’m glad I enjoyed the other dozen cases prior to now.

Happy Birthday!