Indulging and enjoying wine is an interesting hobby. There are so many types of wines to discover, from all sorts of regions and places! If you only enjoy drinking wine casually, then storage may not be something that matters very much to you. However, if you are a real enthusiast and someone who has multiple bottles of wine on hand at any point in time, following these wine storage tips can really help you to prolong your wine’s lifespan. After all, who wouldn’t want a wine that ages and pairs well with your favorite cheese! Read on to find out more.
Considering What Wine You Want To Store
As a lover of wine, you might already know that most of the wine sold should not be aged or placed in cellars for a long time period. This is especially so for cheaper wines. Keeping them for several years won’t make the wine taste better and would instead, make it spoil. On the other hand, if you own fine wine, this can be stored for many years. Fine wine ages well and tastes better with time. These are expensive wines and having a good quality wine cellar is important to ensure the quality is preserved, even, improved!
Avoid Placing Your Wine In Direct Sunlight
Finding a dry, dark storage space is another part of increasing the lifespan of your bottle of wine. Sunlight is detrimental to your wine because it can cause oxidation in amino acids that contain sulfur. Therefore, this affects the flavor of your wine. By storing your wine away from direct sunlight and fluorescent lights, you can be sure that no funny smell or taste will ruin your prized wine bottles. If you cannot keep your bottle completely out of light, wrap your wine bottle in a cloth.
Store Your Wine at A Consistent Temperature
Store your wine between 45 to 65 degrees as any temperature about 70 degrees can cause your wine to spoil. Consistency is also important because the more fluctuations occur in temperature and humidity, the shorter the wine will last. External weather is always changing, which is why it’s good to have a wine cellar that has a consistent temperature and only use a wine rack if you’re sure you’re going to be consuming the wine soon.
Don’t Store Your Corked Wine Bottles in An Upright Position
A strange tip that is important to note is that you should store your wine on its side, especially if there’s a cork. Upright storage is convenient but can cause the cork on the bottle to dry out. This can result in the wine getting exposed to oxygen which, unfortunately, results in spoiled wine. So another good tip would be to store your wine bottles and remember to keep the cork moist.
Take Note of Your Wine Bottle’s Expiry Date
Even wine has an expiry date and not all wine is supposed to age. Most wine bottles do not last more than a year or two, which is why storing your wines unnecessarily long can be detrimental. It’s best to consume most wines within a short time period, even if there is no explicit expiration date stated.