We have evaluated bactericidal activities against Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella enterica of several antimicrobial wine recipes, each consisting of red or white wine extracts of oregano leaves with added garlic juice and oregano oil. Dose-response plots were used to determine the percentage of the recipes that resulted in a 50% decrease in colony-forming units (CFU) at 60 min (BA(50)). Studies designed to optimize antibacterial activities of the recipes demonstrated that several combinations of the naturally occurring plant-derived ingredients rapidly inactivated the above mentioned 4 foodborne pathogens. We also showed that (a) incubation temperature affected activities in the following order: 37 degrees C > 21 degrees C > 4 degrees C; (b) varying the initial bacterial concentrations from 10(3) to 10(4) to 10(5) CFU/well did not significantly affect BA(50) values; (c) storage of 3 marinades up to 2 mo did not change their effectiveness against Salmonella enterica; and (d) polyphenolic compounds isolated by chromatography from red wine exhibited exceptional activity at nanogram levels against 2 strains of Bacillus cereus. These observations suggest that antimicrobial wine formulations have the potential to improve the microbiological safety of foods.