Wine Advisor: Wine in the microwave!?

[Robin Garr]

Wine in the microwave!?

Wine is pure, wine is natural. Wine has been made by hand for at least 8,000 years, and the very idea of subjecting it to high-tech abuse seems wrong in so many ways.

Accordingly, the very idea of popping a ration of fine wine into the microwave oven might be enough to make a wine snob faint dead away. Under some very specific circumstances, though, cautious use of the nuke oven may make sense.

Here's one: In Friday's <i>30 Second Wine Advisor</i>, I talked about keeping leftover wine in an open bottle. Unfortunately, wine deteriorates quickly once it's opened. While a day or two of "breathing" may actually improve youthful, immature wines, all wines soon deteriorate with exposure to air, losing their fruit and then oxidizing, eventually taking on the nutlike scent of cheap Sherry.

Keeping a recorked, partly finished bottle in the refrigerator seems to slow down this process. In my experience, table wines start to show changes after only a few days at room temperature, but can hold on for a week or two in the fridge. Fortified wines like Port, because of their alcoholic strength, last longer, although even there, I wouldn't count on more than a week at room temperature, three or four weeks under refrigeration.

But refrigerating red wine or Port creates a service problem. These wines are best served at cool room temperature, not cold. A quick taste of Port or Cabernet straight from the fridge will provide a useful lesson that you won't soon forget. Most people find cold red wine tastes thin, sour and out of whack.

Enter the microwave! A short session in the nuke oven will quickly bring your wine back to serving temperature, and it will not harm the wine <i>provided</i> you warm it in short bursts of 10 to 15 seconds on the first zap, perhaps even less on a second and third zap if the wine seems to need it.

Even if the bottle will fit in your microwave, you're probably better off to decant it into a Pyrex measuring cup for ease in handling. And do take care not to overdo. Boiling your wine - or even getting it really hot - is certainly worse than serving it cold.

But please be assured that, even with a very fine wine, a careful, step-by-step microwave warming will do no harm. And just in case you were wondering, chilling wine and then taking it back to room temperature (and even repeating this process) doesn't hurt it, either. Your fine wines deserve respectful treatment, but generally speaking, modern commercial wine is rarely fragile. Relax, don't worry, enjoy your wine.

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I recently had occasion to shock my server with this. She brought an ice cold red (by the glass) to my table, and I told her to go microwave it. The kid behind the bar was also shocked. I made them do it though, and it was a perfectly acceptable glass of wine after that.

Educating the masses is key.

Great idea Robin -- I'm an enthusiast in the microwaving wine field. But I put my wine in O glasses so that it doesn't need to be poured a second time, hastening oxygenating.

Regards, Bob

Yep, found out about six months ago that you can do this with no ill effect to the wine. Do it all the time since it probably takes me about a week to go through a bottle.

Thanks for the tip! I have often wondered about this (since it takes me quite awhile to finish off a bottle), but I was always too nervous about what would happen to the wine (and my microwave) if things didn't go well.

DON'T

A friend once took a bottle of Petrus to a restaurant. They offered to 'take the chill off it for him', which it transpired corresponded to a minute in the microwave on full blast

Muppets.

I have been using the microwave for years for this purpose. One point that needs to be mentioned specifically is to use the defrost power, low and slow. This way it is much more gradual.

My problem is that after two days the bottle is empty.

I want a device that you put the empty bottle in and it comes out full!

Cheers, Dave C

That's called a "wine barrel", Dave. Works for quite awhile but not forever.

I am a bit surprised by the number of people here who are jumping on this as a way to warm a too cold wine. I have several times over the years in this forum\, reported/advocated the freezing of wines that won't be finished for sometime after opening. It has seemed to me that not many put enough stock in the recommendation to even try it, and if they have they haven't reported back. I know several wine geeks who have for years also warmed a too cold wine in the microwave, but don't think I would ever subject a wine to a full power minute as someone in this thread has stated.

Hey, Bob, I think we have both reccoed freezing left over wine several times over the years. In fact, one of my first posts on WLDG was this quote for WQ101 in 1999:


Bill Plante, CBS State Department correspondent and well-known enophile, confessed recently to a little experiment he conducted with leftover wine: he put it in the freezer. When he took it out, he put it in a microwave oven to thaw. It was, he said, quite drinkable, and since his first experiment he has continued to store and thaw leftover wine this way. But he said thawing in the microwave was very precise, the time depending on the amount of wine in the bottle. It is a matter of practice, he said; just a few seconds too long, and the wine is cooked. Even if the wine is not at its prime, it is excellent for cooking.
Marian Burros, NY Times, November 12, 1989.

[Robin Garr]

don't think I would ever subject a wine to a full power minute as someone in this thread has stated.

The one-minute story was given as a BAD example, Bob.

I would prefer to just put the bottle in a warm water bath for a few minutes.

Hi Robin,

This has been a Noland brother technique for years. We store the wine in the fridge and warm it up in the wine glass for drinking. It seems to work well, but you have to remember to swirl before drinking to make sure there are no hot cold spots.

A friend once took a bottle of Petrus to a restaurant. They offered to 'take the chill off it for him', which it transpired corresponded to a minute in the microwave on full blast

Anyone who orders Petrus, particularly in a restaurant, deserves no less.

Seriously, though, if you've kept a wine in the fridge as Robin posits, bringing it to serving temperature with the judicious use of microwaves might be less harmful than letting it come to temperature naturally, if it must be exposed to oxidation by air during that more gradual process.

Red table wines are best kept under nitrogen, where they'll last more or less forever at room temperature.

Fortified wines such as Port and Madeira will keep at room temperature essentially forever without spoiling (turning to vinegar). The most definitely WILL lose their subtlety and nuances, and with vintage Port that's the whole reason you cellared the damn stuff for 20+ years, after all. Vintage Madeira might actually benefit from further oxidation.

When I can't keep vintage Port under nitrogen, I keep it corked in the fridge. I've never tried nuking before serving. I've just served it cold. It warms up after a few minutes, and it's usually only a bit the worse for wear. I have to confess that opened vintage Port never lasts very long in my household.

-Paul W.

A friend once took a bottle of Petrus to a restaurant.

Anyone who orders Petrus, particularly in a restaurant, deserves no less.

Who ordered a bottle at a restaurant?!

A friend once took a bottle of Petrus to a restaurant. They offered to 'take the chill off it for him', which it transpired corresponded to a minute in the microwave on full blast

Anyone who orders Petrus, particularly in a restaurant, deserves no less.

To be accurate, they took it to the restaurant themselves.

Hi,
I used to put red wine in the microwave for a few seconds to take the chill off but a friend gave me a gadget called the Taste Enhancer. It's a coaster than you just put the bottle or glass on for about 30 seconds or so minimum and it seems to soften the taste as if the wine has had time to breathe. I must admit to being a bit sceptical about it until I gave it a test - one glass not on the Taste Enhancer and another on it with my girlfriend doing it so it was a blind trial for me. There was definitely a change in the taste. I've also tried it with other drinks and even fruit too. I can't say how it works but it does. I've tried it on a number of friends now so we can't all be wrong ...
Cheers!

Roger, welcome.

We've discussed this device on a number of occasions here. Rarely in a positive way.

I would think you would understand how it "works" given the motto of your website: '"Theoretically, everything is treatable given the correct vibrational input."

I was struck by one coincidence; your website indicates:

After qualifying from Bristol Vet School in 1992, Roger spent a number of years in general practice specialising in farm animals to begin with and later, horses. In 1995 he experimented with magnotherapy initially to prove to himself that it didn't work. Following a number of unexpected results (!) he began using magnets in his work to great effect and was featured in Farmers Weekly magazine for work with downer cows.

A few years ago a lady named Jacqueline Peiffer treated horses with magnets, and then found that these magnets could "soften" wines. She actually got a patent on the device -- copy here .

A number of us have tried this and a number of other devices, and I've offered to fund a double blind study to determine whether this or the device you mention, or any other such device actually works. So far no takers.

Again, welcome. Love to read your further thoughts about wine in general -- it will be heavy sledding discussing these devices here, though, without some scientific basis for either how they work or a double blind study proving that they actually do work.

Regards, Bob

Hi,
I used to put red wine in the microwave for a few seconds to take the chill off but a friend gave me a gadget called the Taste Enhancer. It's a coaster than you just put the bottle or glass on for about 30 seconds or so minimum and it seems to soften the taste as if the wine has had time to breathe. I must admit to being a bit sceptical about it until I gave it a test - one glass not on the Taste Enhancer and another on it with my girlfriend doing it so it was a blind trial for me. There was definitely a change in the taste. I've also tried it with other drinks and even fruit too. I can't say how it works but it does. I've tried it on a number of friends now so we can't all be wrong ...
Cheers!

A quick web search brought this up:
By Roger Meacock
Category: 0
Related Articles: taste drink health hydration water food
Submit your articles here!
If you like the idea of opening out the flavours of your food and drink so that they taste better and you'd like to make the water you drink more bio-available to your body so that you reach a higher level of hydration by drinking less water then the Taste Enhancer is just what you've been looking for. The Taste Enhancer is a plastic coaster containing programmed technology that you simply place your drink or plate of food on for about 30 seconds per litre minimum for the effect to work. It requires no power or batteries. The longer you leave your favourite glass of wine (or any other drink) or food on the Taste Enhancer, the better it tastes!!

All but the most expensive wines tend to have a sharpness or edge to them. The more expensive the wine, the less noticeable this edge becomes. By placing an opened bottle on the Taste Enhancer for a minute or 2 it takes away this sharpness and gives red wine the same effect as if it has been allowed to breathe for much longer. White wines become more fruity. It is frustrating when you've put so much effort into cooking a dinner party to then realise you've forgotten to open the carefully chosen bottle of red wine. With the Taste Enhancer it's not an issue and if you're the chef's partner who was supposed to be responsible for making sure the wine is opened in time it could save you an ear-bashing and a stint in the dog-house!

One whisky drinker likened it to adding a small volume of water to whisky - a practice often used by connoisseurs to enable the different flavours within the single malt to be more easily distinguishable by reducing the intensity of flavour so that the taste buds are not overwhelmed. The downside of this practice is that it alters the product as it was distilled in the barrel and also waters down the alcohol. With the Taste Enhancer you're not altering the whisky and you get all the flavours without watering down the alcohol. One drinker in Oklahoma, USA put a whole bottle of regular Jack Daniels on the Taste Enhancer and took it to a party to test on his friends. They were convinced that he'd brought along a bottle of Gentleman Jacks. Brandy and liqueurs are likewise enhanced. For a one-off purchase of a Taste Enhancer you can get this effect with every bottle.

Of course the Taste Enhancer is not just about improving the taste of alcoholic beverages. Athletes who have used the Taste Enhancer with their sports drinks and water have reported that the effects of the drink or water were more quickly apparent. Their energy levels felt higher more quickly and they felt more hydrated. This parallels the experience of indoor gardeners who have placed weak potted plants on the Taste Enhancer and found that the plants recover and grow better than those not placed on the Taste Enhancer. It would seem to suggest that the physical effect of the Taste Enhancer is to make the water and other nutrients more bio-available to cells.

Fresh fruit kept in a bowl on the Taste Enhancer lasts longer before decaying. Again the flavour of the fruit is enhanced as with a drink of fruit juice. With fruit being too expensive to waste unnecessarily there is now a way of minimising this loss and you avoid the disappointment of going to grab a piece of fruit only to find it's no longer edible.

For more information and to buy your Taste Enhancer online go to Taste Enhancer

Full link - see item 22
http://www.homeownership.info/categorie ... Technology

Roger
I thought it a little worrying when I saw your address here as Wiltshire - same as the company who's product you were so impressed by. The words above read exactly like an advert and I am deeply concerned that this is a cheap attempt at spamming. I'm struggling for another interpretation of what I see...
Ian

[Robin Garr]

Hi,
I used to put red wine in the microwave for a few seconds to take the chill off but a friend gave me a gadget called the Taste Enhancer.

Hi, Roger ... I have just one question: Is this spam, or a scam, or both?

Hi,
I used to put red wine in the microwave for a few seconds to take the chill off but a friend gave me a gadget called the Taste Enhancer. It's a coaster than you just put the bottle or glass on for about 30 seconds or so minimum and it seems to soften the taste as if the wine has had time to breathe. I must admit to being a bit sceptical about it until I gave it a test - one glass not on the Taste Enhancer and another on it with my girlfriend doing it so it was a blind trial for me. There was definitely a change in the taste. I've also tried it with other drinks and even fruit too. I can't say how it works but it does. I've tried it on a number of friends now so we can't all be wrong ...
Cheers!

I'm confused here. Are you saying the Taste Enhancer warms the wine in its "softening" process? Or do you have a 'softened taste' of a wine which is still cold?

BTW - not everyone wants their wines softened. Some people like a wine with a little grip while some wines are going to be 'just right' in 'softness' when opened, as long as they are at the right temperature - not too hot, not too cold.

I can't see anything wrong with microwaving wine, and have done it for years, although putting the bottle under running warm water, or into a sink of warm water, does the trick too.

Hi
I accept that some times people will want to have a bit of bite to the taste but other times they want it softened so the Taste Enhancer gives people the option although as quite rightly pointed out it won't alter the temperature of the wine.
If someone is interested in funding a double-blind trial I'd certainly be open to providing a Taste Enhancer for experimentation but of course I'd like to see how the trial would be constructed and on what basis the effect would be measured etc given that taste is somewhat subjective. Coming from a scientific background I am all in favour of proving a change in taste although as I said before I don't know exactly how this is achieved which might make the construction of a trial difficult? Is subjective scoring of taste seen as scientific I don't know?
Although some might see this as cheap spam (although I intentionally didn't try to include any hyperlink) I am genuinely keen on my wine and as a result of the taste difference I have experienced (and others have too) I am involved with the distribution of the device now, so I find this a genuinely interesting topic for discussion from a taste perspective as well as commercial.
Best wishes
Roger

Thank you for revealing your commercial interest in the Wine Enhancer, Roger. As I mentioned in my earlier post, there is quite a bit of history among posters here with the device and with Mr. Catania himself; see this recent discussion here.

I read your basic position to be faith based; from your website:

"For those who believe, no explanation is necessary.

For those who do not, none will suffice."

In general, I would say there are a large number of posters on this site who reject this basic position -- we are keenly interested in explanations that make sense from a scientific point of view.

Have you tried the Scenar and e-Lybra® 8 combination to improve the taste of wine?

Regards, Bob