DON’T SPOIL YOUR WINE
Many people do not realize that wine is a perishable food item. As such, one should take the same amount of care in properly storing wine as one does with any other food. Improperly stored wines will lose value and flavor and eventually could end up undrinkable. Important factors to consider when storing wine are light exposure, temperature extremes, humidity, air exposure and the optimum amount of aging required for a particular wine.
Wines should be stored away from light. Ultraviolet light (UV), especially with clear bottled wines, will damage your wine. Sparkling wines are even more sensitive to UV rays. Incandescent or sodium vapor lights will have less effect on wine than other light forms. Exposure to light may give wine unpleasant aromas and eventually ruin it. If you cannot keep your wine entirely out of the light, at least keep it tightly wrapped in a cloth or simply put the bottle on its side in a box.
Keeping your wine at the correct temperature is critical to maximizing its value and taste. Wines kept at too high of a temperature will age faster than desired. Wine stored at too cold of a temperature can develop deposits or other sediments in it. Each type of wine has its own desirable temperature range. The ideal temperature for storing wine is 54 to 56 degrees. Keep in mind the ideal storage temperature is not the same as the ideal serving temperature. For example, the ideal serving temperature of red burgundy is 62 to 64 degrees.
Quality wineries use corks to seal their wine. Sealing wine with a cork prevents oxidation. Oxidation is an irreversible process that begins when air contacts the wine. Maintaining the integrity of the cork is paramount to successful wine storage. Humidity of about 70 to 75 percent will keep your cork pliable and prevent shrinkage. Reducing temperature fluctuations will keep the cork from expanding and contracting, which will draw air inside the bottle. Wine should be stored on its side to keep the cork moist from within the bottle. One downfall of using cork is they will have the tendency for strong adjacent smells to permeate them and ultimately affect the taste of the wine.
Fortunately, not all of these pitfalls to wine storage are insurmountable. Manufacturers have developed products to fit anyone’s wine storage and serving needs. Wine cooler and chiller products are available from single-bottle chillers to wine coolers that can store hundreds of bottles of your favorite wine. Do you have limited space? Do not worry, because there are wine cooler products that will fit on your counter top. Specially made front-vented wine coolers are sized just right to incorporate them under your kitchen counter. There are even wine coolers with thermoelectric technology that are eco-friendly.
Wine is becoming an ever-increasing favorite of many people. With over 1000 different wine varieties, the choices which one has seem nearly infinite. Buy good wine, store it properly, serve it at the right temperature, and your enjoyment of wine will last a lifetime.
Author: Ron Senn, VP Ideal Wine Coolers, 7/2009
