With the holiday season in full swing, you’ve likely seen your fair share of dramatic toasts over bubbling glasses of Champagne. While a bottle of Champagne is quickly downed by larger groups, it can be tricky to finish an entire bottle of bubbly if it’s just you and your close friends (especially if you cracked open a bottle of wine first to get the party started).
When faced with a half-filled bottle of leftover Champagne, it’s tricky to know the best way to store it. No one wants to drink flat Champagne, so to make sure you never pour the good stuff down the drain again, I’ve rounded up the best ways to keep your bottle of bubbly, well, bubbly.
1. Dangle a spoon in the bottle
While some sources claim putting a spoon in a Champagne bottle doesn’t do anything, others say it’s a life-changing hack. To make sure your Champagne is still bubbly the next day, simply leave a spoon dangling in the mouth of your champagne bottle and place it in the fridge.
The metal of the spoon makes the neck of the bottle colder, which then creates a cold air plug above the warmer Champagne. This then prevents the gasses in the bottle from rising quickly and subsequently keeps the bubbles in.
2. Keep it cold
When I say keep it cold, I mean keep it cold. If you want leftover Champagne to remain bubbly, it’s crucial that you keep it ice cold all night. If you don’t have a fancy ice bucket (who does?), simply fill your kitchen sink with ice and put the Champagne bottle in it along with any other booze you’d like to keep cold.
By keeping the Champagne cold, you’re reducing the amount of gas that’s released. On the flip side, the more carbonation that’s lost, the sweeter the Champagne gets. If you don’t like the taste of Champagne fresh from the bottle, you might actually like it when it’s a tad flat.
3. Plastic wrap and rubber band
Good ol’ plastic wrap will help keep Champagne bubbly overnight in the fridge. While this method doesn’t always work, it’s definitely worth a shot. At the very least, this will prevent random food from accidentally dropping into your bottle.
4. Hermetic cork
Better known as an airtight cork. You can buy this type of reusable cork at any grocery store, but it’s important that you actually invest in this specific kind of cork. Simply recorking your Champagne with the cork it came with could lead to a build-up of gasses in the bottle, and ultimately the cork could go flying off in the fridge.
5. Buy good-quality champagne
I know you don’t want to hear this, but paying a few extra bucks for good-quality Champagne is worth it, especially if you think you’ll have Champagne left over. The science behind this is that gas molecules need to attach to a microscopic speck of material in order eventually form a bubble and escape the bottle. High-quality Champagne has far fewer specks than its cheap counterparts, meaning its bubbles are less likely to escape the bottle.
With these five tips, your Champagne should stay bubbly for an extra day or two. If all else fails, you can still use flat Champagne in some killer recipes and it’ll taste just fine.