Barnaby, I see it differently. In my experience, the negative sensory impact of oxidation has nothing to do with the initial quality of the wine. Personally, I am much more concerned about damaging an expensive wine, than a cheap one. What’s the point in paying a lot for an excellent wine only to drink it in a condition that the winemaker would never sell it in? I find the smell and taste of oxidation is more noticable in white wines. I particularly notice it the light bodied whites. However, I find that most wines will be fine for a couple days. If you you have an unfinished bottle of red you could put it in the fridge and then pull it back out a few hours before your going to drink from it again. Oxidation is a chemical reaction so it slows down at lower temperatures. Most people (like my wife) don’t know what an mildly oxidized wine smells or tastes like, they just know the wine tastes lousy. If the wine smells or tastes even remotely like Sherry, it’s oxidized. Unfortunately, once you learn to indentify oxidation (via taste/smell) it’s impossible to ignore it.
