When I decided to do a small piece on the preserving of wines and available systems, I couldn't resist using a lyric from one of my favourite movies as the title.
I am often asked "how long can I keep a bottle of wine once opened.
When I say wine preservation, I'm not just talking about having some wine left in the bottle and popping it back in the fridge for another day, if the wine was a screw cap then pop it back in or use a Vacuvin. With this you pump the air out of the bottle stopping oxidation (spoiling) of the wine. They have been around since 1986 and work well for a few days. Do this for both red and white wines as lowering the temperature will preserve the wine for longer.
However, if you have a great bottle you want to try, but don't have the right occasion any time soon to justify opening it up or you want a half bottle of wine but not a whole one, (the latter being alien to me, but suit some people) then the best device on the market is the Coravin
What makes this so different is that unlike other devices or systems the Coravin is designed to pour wine without removing the cork and (as their tests have shown) remain fresh as an unopened bottle for up to a year.
It's all down to the technology of the needle. Designed to pass through the cork without displacing it so once removed the cork simply expands again. As you pour the wine its replaced by Argon gas which keeps the oxygen out thus keeping it fresh.