If you’re like me, you like your wine…a lot, and you drink it after work, with a special meal, or for a particular occasion. You probably have a couple bottles on hand with one white in the fridge and a red in the pantry, unless you are a true wine enthusiast and have a full cellar stocked. That’s what I always did but I didn’t know one thing: how to properly store my wine.
Though there is a whole world out there of wine rules and standards that many enthusiasts follow to a ‘t’, I was never one to follow their convention. I just figured knowing the simple stuff would be enough. At first, I didn’t use a Ravenscroft wine decanter or even gave a second thought to the type of wine glasses I was using. This went for how I stored my wine as well. But then, on a lark, I thought I would try storing my bottles the way you are supposed to, and believe or not, the taste improved dramatically, so even if you aren’t overly consumed by the latest wine rules, consider this one on wine storage a staple.
Temperature: First off, no matter what type of wine you have on hand, it should always be stored in a cool setting-yes! This is why wine enthusiast have wine cellars, for optimal taste! While the best tempurature for wine varies slightly, 55 degrees is a good target. Too much warmer than this temperature, and you will find a much more acidic taste to your wine-one that you won’t enjoy. Try to keep your wine at a constant temperature, as this change will dramatically change the taste of your wine.
Light: Make sure if you want your wine to retain its original full flavor, that you store it in a place where not a lot of light can get at it. Wine that sits in the sunlight for long periods of time will prematurly age your wine in a bad way.
Humidity: Another key consideration when it comes to optimal wine storage is making sure that the humidity levels are just right. Overall, It should be more humid than not in order to keep the wine corks from shrinking. Air will oxidize your wine, so make sure you don’t get cork shrinkage. So, what the right humidity level for storing wine? Between 65-75%. So it only makes sense that basements and cellars are perfect for wine storage.
Sideways: So many wine racks and cellars hold their wine bottles sideways instead of upright, this may seem a strange one to some, but it’s worked for thousands of years? Yes. It is because in order to ensure that the cork is protected from shrinking, it needs to stay moist. This said, keeping a bottle of wine on its side, keeps the wine in constant contact with the cork, thereby keeping it moist.
Travel: When traveling with your wine, you know, to a party or to a BYOB resaurant be sure to use a wine bottle carrier. This will help keep your wine at the right temperature and keep it protected from bouncing around.
