Keeping an opened bottle

Airtight stopper · the teaspoon myth

To keep an opened bottle of champagne, reseal it with an airtight stopper.1,2 The Comité Champagne states that a teaspoon placed in the neck does not stop the wine from losing its fizz.2

Why an opened bottle goes flat

Once the cork is out, the wine holds far more CO2 than it can keep at normal air pressure. A review (a preprint) puts the supersaturation ratio just after uncorking at about 4.3 The excess gas leaves through the open neck. How fast this happens is clear in a glass: in one study, champagne in a flute fell from 7.4 g/L of dissolved CO2 just after pouring to about 3 g/L after 15 minutes.4 An airtight stopper closes that exit, so the gas collects above the wine again. Background on CO2 and pressure.

The Comité Champagne specifies an airtight stopper or cap, not just any plug.1,2

The teaspoon

A popular tradition says that a teaspoon placed in the neck of an open bottle keeps the bubbles. The Comité Champagne states that it does not prevent the wine from losing its fizz.2 No controlled study of the trick was found for this page.

How long it keeps

No official figure for how many days an opened bottle keeps was found. Until then, the one documented advice is to keep it sealed with an airtight stopper.1

See also

StorageServingCO2 and pressure in the bottleScienceServing temperatureServingHow a bubble is born, rises and burstsScienceHow to pourServing

Sources

  1. Comité Champagne (champagne.education). Factsheet: Champagne Service (EN) (2024)
  2. Comité Champagne (champagne.education). Store and serve Champagne (web page)
  3. Mathijssen A.J.T.M., Lisicki M., Prakash V.N., Mossige E.J.L. Culinary fluid mechanics and other currents in food science. arXiv:2201.12128v2 (review) (2022-10-14)
  4. PLOS. Liger-Belair G., Bourget M., Pron H., Polidori G., Cilindre C. Monitoring gaseous CO2 and ethanol above champagne glasses: flute versus coupe, and the role of temperature. PLoS ONE 7(2): e30628. DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0030628 (2012-02)

Facts checked on 2026-10-19