Sniff it first, but I think, like the others, that you’ll have a glass full of vinegar, which is cool, you know, if that’s what you like and all.
Now I, OTOH have just purchased a 5 year old tawny port that I plan to stow and forget about for close to that number of years, and by then, oh it should be so very good.
I need to do some reading (and I might be wrong) but it’s not an “oops”. :rolleyes:
My understanding is that VA is largely related to the amount of acetic acid and choice of yeast used during fermentation. While aceobacter is a product of ethanol oxidation I’m not sure how it differs from what is commonly just called oxidation.
What is the difference between oxidation and acetic spoilage… Volatile acidity… “Volatile” wine (now that we are using the specific term VA rather than the more common definition of volatile)?
I’m of the opinion that the wine is not “volatile” and will look into more info for now the OP could just taste it and let us know how it is…
Absolutely. No sense in tossing it, except in a salad. If it is unpalatable, substitute it for wine vinegar in a recipe. I imagine it would be part of an acceptable marinade.
friedo, personal insults are not allowed in MPSIMS. Da Pit, Da Pit is where you need to be for that.
That warning aside, I agree with friedo on a few things: white zinfandel is no less a wine than a merlot or regular zinfandel. Yes, it’s sweeter, and yes it’s commonly the first wine beginners drink on a regular basis, but it’s still a good wine–as is its cousin, white merlot. I certainly don’t look down on people who choose white zinfandel any more than I look down on those with taste bad enough to drink a chardonnay. 
What would you know? You like Kraft Mac & Cheese from a box. 
You should see me now, buddy. I’ve learned many a thing since jumping the broom with auntie em. Nowadays I make a killer shrimp bisque (“killer” as in very tasty, not as in, “Gee, officer, I have no idea why his esophagus melted!”); a rich cream cheese-covered apple spice cake; cheesecake brownies, stuffed mushroom caps, delicious pasta… pretty much anything that’ll clog your arteries and kill you. (Over time. Unless you eat all of the above at once.)
Not that I, um… don’t enjoy macaroni from the blue box every now and then. (Which is perfectly complimented by a jug of white zin.)
Philistine!!!
Everybody knows the correct wine to serve with mac & cheese is Lancer’s rose. <sheesh!>
Did you actually jump over a broom with auntie em, Skip? Inquiring minds want to know.
Alas, the only thing we really jumped over was a bristly metaphor.
Well, that’s no good, where’s a broom around here? goes off to hunt
All right. I am a Doper, and I know what I have to do.
I just got back from work and read your words of encouragement.
If a Doper could pan-fry his own semen, if a Doper could open the Cooler of Doom, then my duty is clear.
I must open the fifteen-year-old white zinfandel.
My feelings on white zinfandel in general are these: it was the first wine I drank and enjoyed, and I’m grateful to it for helping me develop a taste for wine. These days, it doesn’t taste good to me any more- I was shocked, the last time I tried it, expecting something good and instead tasting oversweet, insipid pinkness. But I don’t shun those who drink it, and I hold out hopes that there might be good white zinfandel out there.
When I get home, tonight at 8:30ish, I will open the bottle and report upon my findings.
Pray for me.
White Zinfandel Vinegar Recipes Googled.
Don’t pitch it. Use it to make something yummy.
Actually that ‘oops’ was on my part, or meant for me. Volatile is a term used around here often to refer to a wine spoiled by acetic acid, regardless of how the acetic acid was formed. (The way you noted is one, there are others.) It might not be technically correct, I honestly don’t know.
In this case I’m guessing oxidation and time (and 13 years is actually more accurate for a 91 white zin) have turned the wine.
Considering the relatively low cost of white zin, my gut tells me it’s not only not good enough to drink, it’s also not good enough to make vinegar out of. It’s gone. Long gone.
Of course there is a part of me (the evil part) that is with you on wanting FisherQueen to give it a taste test (you know, for science!) and report back to us. 
Yay FisherQueen!
Yeah, it gets into small distinctions and things not many people here will care about…short answer like you said is that there is more than one way to get to a point where we are saying V.A. is a problem.
The only thing to do now will be done at approx 8:30 pm.
Excuse me? Granted, most whites don’t age as long or as well as red wines, but they’re far from vinegar. In fact, Sauternes - a white dessert wine - is often considered to be the longest-aging wine around. There’s also plenty of dry white wines that age just fine. I’ve had 11-year-old vintage champagne and it was absolutely wonderful.
But I do have to come down on your side on the White Zin. The minute it’s put in the bottle is too long for me.
I’m home. I have laid out in front of me the necessary items:
One bottle of Delicato 1991 white Zinfandel, bottled in California. According to the back label, it may contain up to 25% other grape varieties.
A corkscrew.
A small wine glass
A two-liter bottle of Sprite, for after.
Here goes.
I’ve opened and poured a very small portion.
The color isn’t the cheerful pink I normally associate with white Zinfandel. Instead, it’s a golden brown, a bit reminiscent of mead, but a little darker. It has a pinkish tint.
The cork was very soft. So soft that I broke it in half when opening it, and had to go in again.
I can smell the wine even from a foot away on the table. The smell from here is strong, but not unpleasant. I’m going in for a closer look.
Do it, do it…
When I swirl it in the glass, I see that its texture has much more body than I expect from white Zinfandel. It clings to the glass for some time, more like what I’d see with cabernet sauvignon.
The smell is still quite sweet, but thick and cloying. Again I’m reminded of mead, or cream sherry. It isn’t objectionable to sniff from the top of the glass, but sticking my nose right in, I detect a musty aroma.
I’ve been surprised so far. I expected a smell that would keep me from willingness to try it, but it truly doesn’t smell as awful as I thought it would.
But now comes the scary part. I’m going to put it in my mouth. Just let me pour myself some Sprite, first.