Silly Question: Freezing Leftover Wine?

[MKSquared]

In an effort to cut back on waste, I've been freezing portions of things I don't finish: a can of pineapple juice, chipotles in adobo, chicken and beef broth. On the recommendation of several people, I've tried freezing some extra white wine in ice cube trays, and then storing the cubes in bags in the freezer.

Since alcohol has a lower freezing point than water does, the water portion of the wine has frozen, but the alcohol has seeped out and has collected in the corner of the bag.

Does that happen to everyone? What can I do to avoid that? Does freezing wine really work? (Do any of you ever NOT finish wine?!):D

[Ralph]

Because of the alcohol, you can't/shouldn't freeze wine. As I've mentioned in previous threads on cooking wine, we usually by a very inexpensive jug (1.5L); the last one we got was either Almaden or Paul Masson and was about $4.50! I know there are more expensive (and perhaps better) jug wines. We just pick up a generic white & generic red, and keep them refrigerated until they're gone - they've never turned on us. We don't buy the stuff labeled as "cooking wine," but we also don't drink the generics we use for cooking. Seems a bit of a waste to spend good money on a good bottle, only to use it for cooking. I know a lot of others here will disagree, but this is just my preference.

[lorilei]

Another option, insofar as wine is concerned, is to buy a BOX of wine.

I know -- true wine connoisseurs will shudder. But there are some fairly decent brands out there (tolerable for drinking and very nice for cooking). The best part is that they generally keep for 3-6 months, which is usually more than enough time to use them up (and possibly longer than many things keep in the freezer).

I haven't done this in a while (since we seem to have no trouble at all drinking up bottles of wine around our house), but it's something I keep in mind for times when the budget is tight. Boxed wines are cheaper than most bottled wine and they keep much longer. It's a great way to save money and still enjoy life a little bit.

[susangibbs]

I don't know if "freeze" is exactly the right word for it, since it never fully solidifys. I started doing after reading Nigella Lawson's How to Eat . She recomends freezing unfinshed bottles by putting a glass sized portion in a ziploc.

This was a revelation to me because we just can't ever seem to finish a bottle in before it goes bad and I don't like to cook with anything I wouldn't drink. There was a great artical in Cook's llustrated a month or two ago (December maybe?) about the best inexpensive wines to cook with (around $10 a bottle if memory serves). The freezer method has saved me a small fortune in thrown away half-full bottles:)

[SusanMac]

Geez, never had the problem of "leftover wine" ! :-)

I do belong to the school of cooking with cheap wine, as I just want the expensive stuff in my tummy by itself. So, I always keep an inexpensive bottle around for cooking. Port works well for red, a pinot grigio for white. But lots of cooks say never to cook with something you wouldn't drink (I think those are guys who don't have to buy their own!)

[Nirak]

I purchased some splits of wine to have as party favors for my new year's eve party. They were Sutter Homme, a decent but not expensive brand. We had some left over and they are great for cooking. They are easy to store, and most recipes call for about 1/2 C to 1 C (I think they are 8 oz. bottles). Just a thought.

[brendat4]

I can't help you on the freezing wine part of your question but I do have an idea to help you on waste. We don't really drink wine (or alcohol of any kind) unless we're having a party.

For cooking I started buying those little four-packs of wines (they sell them in our grocery store--usually on the top shelf of where the rest of the wine is). Maybe that's what Nirak meant by "splits of wine." Anyway, they come in all varieties-chardonnay, cabernet, zinfandel, etc. There are several labels that make them. It's great because I only have to open one small bottle for my cooking and even if I have leftover I don't feel so bad about not using the rest of it up because I'm only throwing out a little and not almost a whole bottle of wine. I don't really think it's all that more expensive either--even if it is it's negligible. Either way I don't mind since I'd rather pay a little more than have to throw out wine.

Hope this helps!

[Nirak]

That's exactly what I meant by splits ... I think the 4 pack was $6. Not bad and not wasteful.