Storing Wine Do's and Don'ts

Ever wonder why some people keep wine in caves and underground cellars? The optimum temperature for wine to keep is at 55 degrees with a humidity level of 70 percent. Wine must be kept still and out of sunlight. Seems like a lot of work just to keep a single bottle of wine.

One of the many follies of being a new owner of a bottle of wine was keeping it too long at the wrong temperatures. In the past, at times, I would buy a bottle of good wine and I would save it for a special occasion. Often times, that special occasion never came. When I finally opened the bottle, it tasted like vinegar. The reason was due to poor storage. Here are a few simple rules on how to store wine in your own home.

For wine to keep, it must be stored in an area that is between 68 and 73 degrees. The temperature must never reach above 75 degrees. If wine is exposed to temperatures above 75 degrees, it will oxidize. The complexity and properties of the wine changes, thus its flavor will change. This is not the intent of the wine maker.

I have found that a lot of people like to display there wines on racks on the kitchen counter as decoration. Unless your house is at a constant temperature below 73 degrees, this is not a preferred way to store wine, unless you never plan on turning off the air conditioning or don’t plan on opening the bottles.

The preferred way to store a bottle of wine is in a temperature controlled wine refrigerator, but like most people, a wine refrigerator is not in your house. Unless you are a wine collector, it isn’t necessary to own one. The best way to store wine when a refrigerator is not available is to keep it near ground level in a dark area, like a cabinet or pantry.
Back in the day, I used to put bottles of wine on the plant shelves, because I thought it looked sophisticated. That is pure comedy. Don't do this, unless you've already drinken it and you put Kool-aid in its place and recork it.

Another way to preserve your wine is to not disturb it. Moving the bottles and vibrations will negatively affect the wine. If you have to store it in the hall closet, then keep it there.

Another thing to keep in mind is to keep the bottle on its side. This is keeping in mind that you’ve purchased a wine with natural cork. Keeping the bottle on its side keeps the cork moist.

More often, winemakers are using synthetic corks or screw caps to seal the wines. The reason is 3 percent of all produced wines are tainted with trichloroanisole. This is caused by bad corks. The result from a tainted cork does not change the properties of the wine, but it alters the flavor. To prevent this from happening, many winemakers are switching to synthetic corks to reduce that down from 3 percent to 0 percent loses.

So the next time you purchase a bottle of wine, you have a better idea of how to store it for months or years to come.