How Long Champagne Will Stay Crisp And Bubbly After Opening
You know a party is serious when there's a bottle of fizzy Champagne involved, no matter which type of bubbly is your favorite. But after the celebratory cork-popping is done and the Champagne is poured into glasses, have you ever wondered how long it stays bubbly before going flat? Well, it's not great news: Champagne doesn't last very long once it's opened. Unlike regular still wine, which can stay good for three to seven days depending on the type, Champagne's fizziness only lasts for around 24 hours. After that, the sparkling will fade and take a lot of the beverage's flavor with it. What you're left with is a flat, slightly vinegary drink that's not enjoyable, no matter how fancy the bottle you bought was.
Fortunately, there are plenty of tricks you can try to make your open Champagne last a bit longer! But before we get to that, though, you should know how the bubbliness in a bottle of Champagne works.
The physics behind the bubbles in your champagne
Champagne gets its signature bubbly texture from the carbonation process that's done during production. It's part of the charm that makes Champagne such a nice drink. You don't just simply taste the wine, you literally feel it, too.
In this sense, a bottle of Champagne isn't all that different from a can of soda, which also gets its fizz from carbonization. And if you've ever left your can of Coke out for a few hours, you may have also noticed how the carbonation can disappear over time. The same thing also applies for Champagne. Once you've popped the cork and poured it, the carbon dioxide gas that gives Champagne its sparkle quickly escapes into the open air. You can actually witness this process by peering into the bottle — you'll see lots of tiny bubbles rising from the bottom to the top of the liquid. These bubbles are carbon dioxide! As they pop, the gas is released from the wine into the air. When more and more of these bubbles pop and the dissolved carbon dioxide in the wine diminishes, the Champagne loses its fizziness and eventually becomes flat.
That's why the best time to savor your Champagne is when it's still nice and carbonated. You can still drink it once it's gone flat, of course, but your drinking experience won't be nearly as enjoyable as before.
How you can keep those bubbles around for as long as possible
As we mentioned earlier, the ideal time to enjoy Champagne is within 24 hours of uncorking it. However, if you find yourself unable to finish it in that time frame, there are still a couple ways to save the Champagne for later.
The first is to cool down the Champagne — the cooler, the better (just don't freeze it). According to the Iowa State University Midwest Grape and Winery Institute, lower temperatures increase the solubility of carbon dioxide in the wine, allowing it to retain its fizziness for a longer period. When cooled properly in the fridge, your opened Champagne can last for as long as three to five days before flattening.
Over the years, people have come up with many tricks to preserve the Champagne's effervescence, including the famous "put a spoon handle in the bottle" trick. But it turns out that this is merely an old wives' tale. In reality, you should avoid inserting anything into the bottle, including the old cork. Research conducted by Stanford University suggests that simply leaving the Champagne bottle open in the fridge is sufficient to keep your bubbly beverage ... well, bubbly, for an extra day!