HM Wine

kittycat204

Quick question, HM wine from many years ago has been found. It needs opening and filtering. If it has turned to vinegar is there any reason I couldn't use it like a white wine vinegar? Wouldn't want it to go to waste if it could be used, even if it has gone off. On the other hand wouldn't want to poison people.

Thanks.

kittycat204

I am really sorry to bump, i just want an answer, any answer.

sam2me

Hi Kittycat204
It will all depend on how old it is. This last few weeks I have opened several old homemade wines. Some of my fathers wine was made in 1979! It smelt and tasted nothing like wine or vinegar!, my friend even drank 1 bottle out of the 5 opened, it was very strong probably what preserved it. Fathers wine had no chemistry in it.
Another bottle I made from a kit in 1986 complete with preserving campden tablets was found in a cupboard and opened. Several people smelt it, some brave ones sipped it, nobody drank it.
The overriding smell from all the bottles is oxidized wine, not poisonous just not nice. The process of vinegar making is different again, starting with wine and allowing yeast to break down the alcohol with air present and produce acid. (You will have to Google the process, I cannot remember exactly) If your wine is oxidized and you make it into vinegar, you will end up with oxidized vinegar too.
If you try to make vinegar from wine full of preservatives it will not work.
So if you open the bottle and it smells OK, well drink it. If not bin it IMO

Hope this helps

Sam2me