Whether you live alone and have trouble going through an entire bottle fast enough or find yourself with half bottles left behind after dinner parties or holiday gatherings, every wine drinker has been faced with the conundrum at one time or another of what to do with leftover, no-longer-drinkable wine.

The important thing to note is that although wine that's been opened for too long might not taste good for drinking anymore but that doesn't mean it's unsafe to ingest. You can certainly pour it out (many people do) but why not do some experimenting with it in the kitchen and try using it in some recipes or try your hand at making your own vinegar?

Ideas for using leftover wine:
- Add flavor and body to tomato-based sauces
- Deglaze pans after roasting meat
- Braise vegetables in it
- Cook it down for use as a sauce and glaze base
- Use it in fondue
- Use it as a marinade for beef, chicken, and fish
- Make your own vinegar by simply letting it sit or by following this recipe

Some argue that you should only cook with wine you would also be willing to drink, but much of what makes wine taste good originally gets lost in the cooking process anyway. It's really just about personal preference.

As we noted in our recent report about the just-unveiled 2009 Neiman Marcus Christmas Book, one of the most exclusive gifts on offer this year is a HALL Artisan Wine and Art Experience for $20,000, including a bespoke bottling from the renowned artisanal Napa Valley winemaker. If that's out of your range you can still enjoy the HALL experience this holiday season with wines from their Napa Valley Collection. The collection includes HALL's signature Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from select fruit from their five estate vineyards encompassing more than 500 acres. The flagship is the Kathryn Hall Cabernet Sauvignon, a "sumptuous wine that is the amalgam of the finest wines of the vintage." The 2006 Kathryn Hall vintage was sourced predominately from the estate's Sacrashe Vineyard and captures the "deep, dusty essence" of its hilltop site, helping to earn a 95 point rating from Wine Enthusiast.

The Kathryn Hall Cabernet has a nose of effusive, high-toned exotic fruits, truffle, blackberry jam and crushed stone minerality, with a lasting richness and dense sweet texture on the palate. The 2008 Sauvignon Blanc is notable for balanced acidity, ripe, vivid citrus flavor and a clean lingering finish, with aromas of pink grapefruit, lemon-lime, gooseberry, orange blossom and guava. The 2005 Napa Valley Merlot features Intense aromatics of cedar oak accented by scents of roasted coffee beans and a hint of violets and roses. An open, textured palate of ripe briar fruit, dusty mocha and black pepper finishes with a surge of plum and soft tannin. The 2005 HALL Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon shows rich, concentrated aromatics of currant, blackberry, and ripe cherry complemented by hints of toasty oak. Flavors of leather and nutmeg coalesce with plum and vanilla in the concentrated mid-palate and settle into a seductive, chewy finish.

It's a question that's been tossed around for centuries, since the first cork was popped: How long does wine keep once it's been opened?

As with all things wine, it depends on many factors. Red wine, white wine, young wine, old wine, the list goes on. Oxidation is both a friend and an enemy. A freshly opened bottle often benefits from sitting open for a few minutes before serving in order to allow the oxygen to seep in and bring out the flavors and aromas in their full-bodied glory, but too much time exposed to the air and all those wonderful characteristics start to slowly turn unpleasant and eventually the wine will be dull, sour, and not nearly as fragrant. It's a slow process and it really comes down to personal taste, because no matter how long an opened bottle sits it won't become unsafe to drink -- just unpleasant.

The quick, very general answer on how long an opened bottle of wine keeps is 3 days. All wines will keep at least one day without changing for the worst, and many aged reds can last up to a week. Factors to keep in mind:

• The age of the wine The longer the wine was aged the longer it will retain its desirable characteristics after being opened. Young wine is more susceptible to the effects of oxidation.
• How much is left The fuller the bottle the longer the wine will last, due to less room for oxygen. Consider transferring leftovers into a smaller bottle
  
• Sugar and alcohol content Sugar and alcohol act as preservatives so dessert wines, ports, and sherries can keep much longer (up to a year in some cases).

When it doubt smell it and taste it. If you like it drink it! If you don't, either discard it or find another use for it. There are no hard and fast rules so make your own.

Eric Ripert, the chef/owner of the New York restaurant Le Bernardin, along with his wine director Aldo Sohm, has introduced the Avec Eric Perfect Pairings wine club.

Ripert is the host of a new show for PBS, Avec Eric, in which he explores his own vision of why we cook and where he finds his inspiration. Sohm, who oversees Le Bernardin's wine collection of over 15,000 bottles, recently received the 2009 James Beard Award for "Outstanding Wine Service" and was named "Best Sommelier in the World" in 2008 by the Worldwide Sommelier Association. Sohm is the first representative from America to win this title. Le Bernardin holds three stars from the Michelin Guide ,and has maintained its four-star rating from The New York Times for over 20 years.

In an interesting twist, the wines were picked with specific recipes from the chef in mind. Each month, Ripert and Sohm choose two bottles of wine for their members with the intention of pairing them with recipes inspired by his new series. The members will receive the recipes, as well as the wines, in addition to detailed tasting notes written by Sohm. Members also gain access to monthly online videos of the duo explaining each pairing. The wines are a mixed selection of reds, whites and sparkling chosen to complement the proposed dishes.

Ripert feels strongly that great food does not need to be complicated or intimidating for the home chef. Each show starts out with a trip to a vineyard, farm or four-star kitchen but finishes with the chef in his home kitchen demonstrating recipes for the home cook and enjoying the perfect glass of wine to accompany his meal. A Votre Sante!

I've been following Amazon.com's battle to get into the wine business for the last year or two. Now it seems the story may have reached the end of the road. WineBusiness.com has learned that Amazon.com, may pull the plug on the project before it ever really got started. An email sent to wineries today said that the company has decided"not to resume shipping." As of this summer Amazon was attempting to work with New Vine Logistics, a Napa, California wine-shipping service. The plan was to create a consignment system through a specialized website, where wineries earned 47 percent of the retail price for wine when sold. But the logistics of the program and the fact that wine regulations vary widely from state to state may have doomed the program. The invite-only Amazon wine site remains up.

For 30 years Mr Chow (above) on East 57th Street in New York has been one of the city's most enduring hotspots, frequented over the decades by the likes of Andy Warhol, Jean Michel Basquiat, Calvin Klein, Madonna, Robert DeNiro, Tom Cruise, Uma Thurman and many others. To celebrate the anniversary and show their appreciation to its devoted clientele, the restaurant will present a complimentary bottle of Laurent Perrier Rosé champagne to each table from November 4th - December 15th. The 30th anniversary comes on the heels of the opening of Mr Chow's fifth location in Miami at the W South Beach. The New York branch opened in 1979 following the success of Michael Chow's restaurants in London and Beverly Hills.

[via JustLuxe]

Chesapeake Energy CEO Aubrey McClendon may have sold off wine at an auction earlier this year but he still has cases and cases to go. The Wealth Report draws our attention to the "The Aubrey McClendon Collection" sale scheduled for November 21 at The St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, California. Spectrum Wine Auctions will be simulcasting the sale in Hong Kong, which appears to be where the big spenders on vintage wine are these days. The sale will feature more than 3,000 bottles and may bring in as much as $3 million.

The auction website includes a video interview of McClendon conducted by Mario Sculatti, director of sales and consignments for Spectrum Wine Auctions. McClendon has signed an Imperial of 1990 Lafite Rothschild that will be offered during the auction with commissions earned to be donated to charity on behalf of McClendon and Spectrum Wine Auctions.

McClendon's collection spans a range of the most collectible wines. Particularly prized are two bottles of 1945 Chateau Latour. McClendon also collected large format bottles. The auction offers several six-liter Imperials (the equivalent of eight standard bottles) including a 1982 Cheval Blanc in the original wood case, a 1989 Haut Brion and several vintages from Chateau Mouton Rothschild. McClendon's wine philosophy is simple: "Like anything in life, if you're going to enjoy something you really ought to try to enjoy, I think, the best of the particular pleasure that you're seeking, and so I would encourage people to go after the best wines."

An AP story doesn't make it sound too appetizing (old wine bottles covered in black fungus anyone?) but the upcoming auction of wine bottles from the Tour d'Argent restaurant in Paris, France has oenophiles very excited. The restaurant, a landmark that traces its history all the way back to 1582, has a 450,000-bottle cellar and is selling 18,000 bottles at an auction in December. The auction through French auctioneer Piasa will include everything from modest 10-euro bottles of wine to those fungus-covered bottles of 1875 Armagnac Vieux (estimated at 400-500 euros) and other notable oldies.

The restaurant is paring down on its bottles and wants to modernize. Some of the usual suspects at fine wine auctions including vintages from Chateau Lafite Rothschild, Cheval Blanc and Chateau Margaux will also be up for sale and the grand total is expected to be over one million euros. The provenance of the bottles may also be a selling factor not just because the integrity of the bottles, which were bought directly from vinters, can be assured but also because the bottles bear the restaurant's insignia, the famous tower.

Twitter is partnering with custom wine producer Crushpad on a new charity-driven project, Fledgling Wine. The Twitter staff will work with Crushpad to make a Pinot Noir and a Chardonnay. The fundraiser, the Fledgling Initiative, will benefit Room to Read , a San Francisco non-profit organization that establishes schools and libraries for children in developing countries. Founded by former Microsoft employee John Wood, Room to Read has established 765 schools and filled over 7,000 libraries with more than 5.7 million books. The company says that $5 from every $20 bottle sold will go to Room to Read. Twitter users can follow the progress of the wines through @fledgling. The release date is planned for Fall 2010.

[via SF Gate]

Organic wine has become more popular in recent years but for some wineries working in harmony with the environment is nothing new. Spottswoode in Napa Valley has been farming organically since 1985, and have been certified by the California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) since 1990. The winery also makes use of cover crops, beneficial planting and many other organic farming methods.

Beth Novak Milliken of Spottswoode says that they have done many things to be the "best possible stewards of our 45-acre estate property." In addition to organic farming they have also installed solar panels at the winery and vineyard. They also actively conserve and recycle and use have bees and bird boxes on the property. The 25th anniversary 2006 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon sells for $130 a bottle and the 2008 Spottswoode Sauvignon Blanc is $36 per bottle. The winery is also a member of 1% For the Planet, a group that has pledged to contribute one percent of sales to environmental groups around the world.

Bartholomew Broadbent let me know that his father Michael Broadbent has settled his lawsuit against Random House for defamation of character for his potrayal in the book The Billionaire's Vinegar by Benjamin Wallace. The book centered on the infamous Jefferson wine bottles and in Broadbent's view suggested that Michael Broadbent, an esteemed wine writer and auctioneer and head of Christie's wine department from 1966 to 1992 had behaved in an unprofessional manner. Broadbent's relationship with Hardy Rodenstock, the discoverer of the bottles was called into account.

The book tells the story of German collector, Rodenstock who had allegedly found rare bottles of Chateau Lafite walled up in a basement in Paris. An 1787 Lafite engraved Th:J sparked worldwide interest because it was thought that Jefferson had bought the bottles when he was in Paris serving as ambassador. Three of the bottles were sold at Christie's, where Broadbent worked, between 1985 and 1987 including the the 1787 Lafite which was bought by Malcolm Forbes for $156,450 fin a 1985 auction.

The billionaire in the title is William Koch who sued Rodenstock claiming that he was the source for four Jefferson bottles that Koch bought in 1988. Those bottles are now believed to be fake. Rodenstock has said that the bottles were genuine but has not submitted them for testing. The book sold well and a Will Smith-produced film of the story is in development. Broadbent told Decanter that the sum he settled for was ''not excessive, but enough to buy a good few cases of wine, and to give something to the wine trade benevolent fund." He also said he was celebrating with a magnum of Mouton 1990 at a dinner he and his wife Daphne held for his legal team at his club, Brooks's in Mayfair. He is considering whether or not to take out an injunction on the film.

Author Benjamin Wallace has defended his book. His statement, published on Dr. Vino, says that Broadbent has "chosen to blame the messenger, and doubly so that he is blaming the messenger for something the messenger is not actually saying." Wallace says that his book never portrayed Broadbent as acting in bad faith. Random House has agreed not to distribute the book in the U.K. but it remains available in the United States and elsewhere.

As wine collections increase in value, collectors should consider insuring a valuable collection. According to the experts at Fireman's Fund Insurance Company's Wine Collector Management Services, here are a few things to keep in mind before buying a policy (or renewing or amending one you already have).

Insure your collection separately if it is valuable
As a consumable that appreciates in value as it ages, wine is a unique asset. If your collection has great value, it should probably be insured separately from your general homeowners' insurance policy. If not, you may run the risk that it is under-insured. The average bottle cost in a wine cellar is often $100 or more; individual bottles can easily reach $700 to $1,000 for top wines. A cellar that contains, say, 500 to 1,000 bottles, can be worth between $50,000 and $100,000. Values can easily climb into the millions for larger collections.

Choose blanket coverage or itemized coverage, or a combination of the two
With blanket coverage, your entire collection is covered under one limit, with a single bottle limit of up to $50,000 (with a Fireman's Fund policy). Itemized coverage is recommended for wines valued at $10,000 or more and can be combined with blanket coverage to provide the best protection for your collection. There should be no deductibles on standard policies.

If you buy insurance, be sure it covers all risks
Buy coverage that spans a wide spectrum of causes of loss including fire and theft breakage, flood, and a range of others. You will also need coverage for loss due to power outage or mechanical breakdown of heating, cooling and humidity control equipment, all of which are critical coverages for oenophiles.

Don't transport your wine without checking with your insurer first
Before you transport your wine, ask your agent or insurer if this is a covered risk by your insurance policy. Be certain your wine is protected worldwide and while in transit.

Wine collections are growing, and so are their value, in many cases. Indeed, based on the results of a recent Sotheby's wine auction, held in Hong Kong in early October, the prices of collectible wines are breaking records.

One imperial (six litres) of Château Pétrus 1982 realized a world auction record price of $93,077, while a case (12 bottles) of Château Pétrus 2000 sold for $55,846. Three bottles of a 1992 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon, a winery in Oakville, California, sold for $27,923.

If you have a wine collection, or if you are thinking of building one, here's how to care for your collection, according to the experts at Fireman's Fund Insurance Company's Wine Collector Management Services.

Keep an eye on your climate control
A temperature of 55 degrees Fahrenheit and a relative humidity of 60% to 65% are ideal for long term wine storage. The cool temperature slows the aging process, while the humidity prevents moisture inside the wine bottle from moving into the cork and eventually evaporating into the air. Keep in mind that ideal temperatures do vary somewhat depending on the type of wine you are storing. Attics and garages are not ideal places to store wine, as temperatures can fluctuate greatly in these locations.

Limit your collection's exposure to light sources
A dark room is best for wine storage. Fluorescent light is not believed to be harmful.

Wines should be kept in a stable environment
Vibration is harmful to wine, as it disturbs the sediment. Keep the bottles in a horizontal position.

Back up your power supply
Your wine collection could be at risk during a sustained power outage. A permanent back-up generator will help protect your investment.

Consider renting a storage space
If you lack adequate space to store your collection, professional wine storage facilities are available in most major cities.

New York-based Dreyfus, Ashby & Co., a national independent importer and marketer of fine wine and spirits, has put together a list of great fall wines from around the globe, ideal for various cuisines and all priced under $25. France's Château de Campuget "1753" stems from an 18th century document mentioning the historic property. The 100% Syrah is aged in stainless steel, seeing no oak. Deep purple in color, it is elegant and herbal with nice tannin and a crisp finish, paring nicely with spicy foods as well as hearty cold weather dishes like beef and pastas in red sauce. SRP: $14.99. Under the discerning eye of consulting winemaker Véronique Drouhin-Boss, the light, fruity quality of Cloudline Pinot Noir (2007) from Oregon never waivers and pairs perfectly with everything from a fatty fish, such as salmon, to lamb. SRP: $19.99. Nederburg Cabernet Sauvignon (2007) from South Africa is a full-bodied, mouth-filling and rich wine with ripe fruit, delicate spice, firm tannins and a lasting aftertaste, pairing perfectly with robust winter stews, roasts and mature cheeses. SRP: $11.99.

Italy's Renato Ratti Barbera D'Alba Torriglione (2007) is structured and rich with a pleasing and harmonious bouquet. The result is a full- bodied wine with an excellent balance between acidity and tannin that lends itself particularly well to pastas with lean protein, such as pork or chicken. SRP: $18.99. Tedeschi Valpolicella Capitel Dei Nicalò (2006) is made from local Veronese grape varieties including Corvina, Rondinella, and Molinara in the traditional style of the region. It is complex and elegant with lively acidity and an alcohol content that is balanced nicely by its tannins. SRP: $17.99. Argentina's Enrique Foster Reserva Malbec (2006) is made of selected grapes from old vines and production is limited to 5,000 lbs per acre. The wine is then aged in French and American oak for 12 months and in bottles for an additional six months. It's a huge wine with fruity aroma and berry
flavors perfectly suited to richly spiced dishes and roasted or grilled meats. SRP: $24.99.