Storing wine carefully does matter
Did you know that wine is a natural, perishable food product and as a result needs to be stored with the same care and attention as you would take with food? When wine is exposed to heat, light, vibration or fluctuations in temperature and humidity, all types of wine whether it is red, white, sparkling or fortified, can spoil.
On the other hand, if you store your wine properly it can maintain its quality and improve in aroma, flavour and complexity, as the years go by. So if you're buying expensive wine, think carefully about how you store it. The best temperature for aging wine is 55 °F (13 °C). When you're storing wine you should keep the following in mind:
1. The cork needs to stay moist
2. The temperature in the room/cellar should stay stable
3. The location needs to be free of vibration
4. Other items with strong odors should not be stored in the same area
5. Ideally the storage area should be dark
6. And it should have high humidity
Here in India if you have basement, consider keeping your wines there. Also look into a Haier wine cellar or a Voltas one.
Comments
Good input! Wine storing is an important aspect. Though, while cellaring screw top wines, certain variations may not be a cause of too much of a concern. Like, there is no need to keep the bottle tilted beacuse there is no cork to moist.
Kulpreet Yadav
You're absolutely right. We often forget that its better to think of wine as a perishable food product than as an alcohol beverage. It is after all a food accompaniment.
Where should sparkling wine be stored,refrigerator or basement? How long will it keep? ie. upto 1year or 2 years?
I am a wine enthusiast from Mumbai. Considering that in Mumbai we live in cramped up apartments and variable weather conditions, what is the best possible and cheaper way to store wines? Is it okay to keep them in wooden cupboards horizontally or slant & should the cupboard wood be of any specific type if we make a custom made one? To keep the storage highly humid can you suggest any specific alternatives or materials. I get my WSI shipments in thermocol boxes. Is it advisable to have a thick-n-strong thermocol casing all around inside the storage unit to create high humid condition?
The wood doesn't matter as long as it's not scented. Warm temperatures prematurely age wine and it will be past its prime in no time, if not out right bad. To keep storage simple, aim for one consistent temperature for both red and white wine.
The worst thing for wine is to be stored at temperatures that swing wildly. The thermocol will protect the wines in transit. After that, refrigerate your wines straightaway — both whites and reds — rather than risk storing them in warm conditions.
I store my wines at 18° C all year round and consume most of the wine within a year even though I have a Voltas wine chiller.
If you have fine wines that you want to keep for long-term storage (five years or more) you will need to invest in a proper wine chiller and ensure they remain at a constant temperature with a good level of humidity. In dry conditions the cork is likely to shrivel allowing wine to seep out and air to get in which will spoil the wine. With too high humidity the wine labels are likely to peel off, which is, of course, a lesser evil.