If we always got what we wanted we would all wish for a lovely air-conditioned and air-circulated wine cellar. These mean you can put your feet up and not concern yourself with your wines welfare as they will always be in the best environment to age beautifully. This is very rarely a reality however and the majority of us just try to make the best out of what we have. Here is some great advice for storing your wines safely.
Location. Your bottles, both white and red wine, are best placed in a cool room, away from the light and with moderate humidity levels. The best temperature to store you wine at is between 10° and 16° C (50° to 61° F).Anything higher than this will lead to a decrease in wine quality but anything higher than 25° C will seriously damage the wine’s flavors and body. The wine can change colour if left in direct light and also increase in temperature. The bottle’s cork can expand or shrink depending on the levels of moisture in the room air. This can lead to oxidation, a common problem where air seeps into the bottle and causes the wine (over a period of time) to react with the oxygen.
Positioning. The wine should be placed on a horizontal surface or propped up very slightly so the neck is just higher than the body. This is down to the fact that if there is no liquid in contact with the body of the cork for a sustained period of time it will dry out and contract. This can cause the wine to suffer from oxidation, a mentioned previously.
Display. Keep your wines hidden away in a dark place is not always practical. often you will want them to be on display so you can admire them. A good choice is a wooden wine cabinet due to the fact these tend to maintain a steady temperature and always go for one that lets you store your wines on their side.Don’t pick any that have a glass cover or doors as they can often trap heat inside when there is light on them.
